It was many years ago when I cycled down Cheddar Gorge. There was a notice at the top telling cyclists to get off and walk down. Goodness knows who thought that was a good idea. And goodness knows who thought any cyclists would actually take any notice of it; I certainly didn't.
Hey Matthew, not related to this video but I just wanted to thank you for all your vids on Norway. I'm just back after 5 weeks cycling from Bergen to Tromso (train from Trondheim to Bodo), but took indirect routes staying off E roads as much as possible. I can't describe how good the trip was. I was very hesitant about taking on Norway and it was your vids that got me over the line to commit to it. Thanks, thanks thanks!!!. I'm in Hamburg now heading back to Sydney, but can't wait to get back to Norway. Cheers!!
Awesome to hear Greg!! Thanks for letting me know. Please send a few pictures of your trip to matthew@cyclenorway.com. I hope you come back again - plenty more to discover (website coming next year). Safe journey home 😊
Funny 😀 I'm Brit/Norwegie.. and.. my first thought was.. A picture from Tønsberg in the middle of the sequence?!.. 😅 probably just too much Norwegian content watched - great content and presentation 👍 🇧🇻❤️🇬🇧 Makes me feel nostalgia for lots of places. (And I remain impressed by your tenacity)
That was a lot of fun to watch. I really liked the segment on the telephone boxes, really well put together. The UK is fine but we are so far behind other nations in so many areas. Cycling is just one of many. Have a great week.
Loved every minute of this, the humour spot on. When the new telephone boxes were introduced I was asked by one of the designers what I thought, silly question that he regretted asking. As for UK cycling, I would send a copy of this to Boris you never know.
I truly believe the only way the UK will modernise its cycling infrastructure is when it gets too expensive for the majority of people to drive a car. In Oslo over the last 5 years they're made it extremely difficult to own a car. There was of course lots of backlash but 5 years on and thousands of people are cycling to work and commuting even with children on special three seater bikes. It would be political suicide to attempt that in the UK.
@@matthewnorway Oslo is now going to the extreme by banning small housing in the suburbs -and want to build high-rise where the collective transport are. But suburbs in Oslo is not more than 5-6km from city centre so it perfect bike-range and there is good collective transport in those areas too. The result will be families are moving out and go to work in Oslo - that will need transport.
Looked like a great wedding. Glad you attended on two wheels. The south of England has become too crowded and is now uninhabitable for anyone of sound disposition. Come up north. Just don't bring the tourist hordes, please. Contrary to your fears outlined above, I did enjoy the editing, and felt the vid was an apt record of what we all do on a quick city break away from home, too much, and not enough relaxing. Good stuff Matthew. I look forward to the next one.
Compliments for all the beautiful shots and good music added to it. Does remind us to our car holiday in Devon. As a Dutch guy I would not consider cycling in that part of the UK. Cycle lanes? What did you mean? I did not see any in your video??? ;)
Great video, loved it and can very much relate to this. Just back from a 2 weeks cycling through the UK and the (cycling) infrastructure is a nightmare. Still like the country.
Getting stuck in a phone box was a real thing.... for cyclists though, not old ladies. A friend of my sister's boyfriend (yeah I know, friend of a friend...) got stuck in one once when his bike fell against the door, jamming it closed. His way out was to ring 999 and get the police to come and release him.
The taps issue; all cold water legally has to be drinking quality. To ensure our safety and good health. Hot water is not safe to drink as it is heated. To ensure we can drink safely the taps have to be kept separate.
also, drinking hot water from the tap when it´s at 85c is likely to lead to a burns unit. Oddly enough, mixer taps manage to seperate hot and cold water also seperate the water when you turn the mixer completely to one or other side. Tap water in Norway is also safe to drink (and far better quality than the UK) as it doesn´t need as much treatment (because it hasn´t previously been through 7 people as in London for example)
Sadly the UK is indeed a land where cyclists are hated. But being a Brit you still have the best humour, irony and satire, in the world. The Romans gave us roads, straight roads!
can take the man out of britian but can't take the whinging british humor out of the man....now if it could be installed into the norway cycling videos, that would be something. i'm not saying slag off the norweigans unnecessarily, but it would be fun to watch humour in norway in english.
I've just got back to Thailand after riding from Land's End to John O'Groats and my experience was that there is too much traffic unless you ride on trails. The infrastructure for cyclists is on the whole patchy and often not well thought out. The best part of the trip was in Scotland where there was notably less traffic. I have the feeling that cycle paths and infrastructure are all buzzwords for politicians and planners who have close to no idea of what we actually want and need. I hope you're able to continue to forge closer relationships with the authorities in Norway and help to sort it out for us aspiring visiting cyclists. Ride safe fella.
Firstly congrats on completing LE to JG 👏👌. Great effort 🫡. In addition, a lot of great points here - you hit the nail on the head about cycle lanes being buzz words. 👍
Thanks for the great content ! From France, Grenoble and in the UK currently so I see how much uk is cars only. But in France when sharing the road you still need to be very careful.
So glad I live in Norway and not in densely populated areas elsewhere in Europe. When you are used to a lot of silence and possibilities to be completely alone whenever you want to and have the "allemannsretten" secure the right to camp almost everywhere, I would find it hard to live in UK. In fact sometimes when backpacking in Norway I think there are too many people outdoors even here...just thinking about what that experience would be like in a country of similar size but with 60 million inhabitants.. But I guess backpacking/bikepacking is not as popular in the UK as in Norway? Or are the few remainding non populated areas filled with tourists all the time?
There are national parks where you can hike alone and be by yourself. Scotland has similarities to Norway and much of the highlands are remote and wild. Same to with the islands. But there are large parts of England which are over populated.
cyclists here in Australia have the right to ride 3, 4 & 5 abreast on the road & make all the cars do 40kph. Brighton Le Sands in Sydney is a nightmare with lycra cyclists groups of 6+ riders just claiming the streets & reducing the avg speed of flowing traffic. Cyclists also seem to pick & choose what road rules they want to abide by. Red lights & stop signs seem to be optional.
Great Video, seems odd seeing you in England compared to your usual 'office'. It is funny how cycling in the UK has taken off, government's have made monies available to councils to spend on cycle projects but it many cases it has sadly been carried out badly. It's like its grown so quick nothing was planned but here's a token effort to say where doing the right thing. Such a shame & waste. Poor excuse I know but Its also so new to the UK that people have not had time adjusted the minds & attitudes towards cyclists like other European countries.
Cyclists are at best tolerated in the UK, they are installing more cycle lanes but often is marked by a super slippery (when wet) white line, then when you get to a roundabout you are just spat out to take your chances 😞 I think that new new builds put a bit more sensible infrastructure in place. Cheddar Gorge and the Mendips offer some great rides out of the peak summer periods, I never go there weekends or once the school summer holidays start. I think you were very brave taking it on during Jubilee weekend. Nice to see you taking the p*** out of your old country made me laugh. Looking forward to a the next instalment of Norway 🚲🚲
I’ve only cycled in England once, down in Cornwall. The country is too densely populated and the car is king. No country has got it right, some are much better than others. I’d love to see a video of you cycling in Scotland.
Extra points for the Monty reference ;)
It was many years ago when I cycled down Cheddar Gorge. There was a notice at the top telling cyclists to get off and walk down. Goodness knows who thought that was a good idea. And goodness knows who thought any cyclists would actually take any notice of it; I certainly didn't.
People who make these signs are silly! Walk down 😂🤦♂️
Great humour
... but you haven't lost your british humor ;-)
Of course you have fans in Norway and one of them is watching this great video 👍😂
Thanks! 😃
Hey Matthew, not related to this video but I just wanted to thank you for all your vids on Norway. I'm just back after 5 weeks cycling from Bergen to Tromso (train from Trondheim to Bodo), but took indirect routes staying off E roads as much as possible. I can't describe how good the trip was. I was very hesitant about taking on Norway and it was your vids that got me over the line to commit to it. Thanks, thanks thanks!!!. I'm in Hamburg now heading back to Sydney, but can't wait to get back to Norway. Cheers!!
Awesome to hear Greg!! Thanks for letting me know. Please send a few pictures of your trip to matthew@cyclenorway.com. I hope you come back again - plenty more to discover (website coming next year). Safe journey home 😊
In reality the title of your video should be
“A place where cyclists are hated”
Sadly, I got that feeling being on the open road in the UK.
@@matthewnorway oh yes, cyclists are being deliberately targeted
It’s out of control, the open hatred
Funny 😀 I'm Brit/Norwegie.. and.. my first thought was.. A picture from Tønsberg in the middle of the sequence?!.. 😅 probably just too much Norwegian content watched - great content and presentation 👍 🇧🇻❤️🇬🇧 Makes me feel nostalgia for lots of places. (And I remain impressed by your tenacity)
That was a lot of fun to watch. I really liked the segment on the telephone boxes, really well put together. The UK is fine but we are so far behind other nations in so many areas. Cycling is just one of many. Have a great week.
Loved every minute of this, the humour spot on. When the new telephone boxes were introduced I was asked by one of the designers what I thought, silly question that he regretted asking. As for UK cycling, I would send a copy of this to Boris you never know.
I truly believe the only way the UK will modernise its cycling infrastructure is when it gets too expensive for the majority of people to drive a car. In Oslo over the last 5 years they're made it extremely difficult to own a car. There was of course lots of backlash but 5 years on and thousands of people are cycling to work and commuting even with children on special three seater bikes. It would be political suicide to attempt that in the UK.
@@matthewnorway Oslo is now going to the extreme by banning small housing in the suburbs -and want to build high-rise where the collective transport are. But suburbs in Oslo is not more than 5-6km from city centre so it perfect bike-range and there is good collective transport in those areas too. The result will be families are moving out and go to work in Oslo - that will need transport.
Bo other culture does sarcasm like the English!
"...even defibrillators are now installed into them, so if that old lady does get stuck, we can keep her going for some time." 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Glad someone else found that funny as well!
Looked like a great wedding. Glad you attended on two wheels. The south of England has become too crowded and is now uninhabitable for anyone of sound disposition. Come up north. Just don't bring the tourist hordes, please. Contrary to your fears outlined above, I did enjoy the editing, and felt the vid was an apt record of what we all do on a quick city break away from home, too much, and not enough relaxing. Good stuff Matthew. I look forward to the next one.
Thanks Malcolm :)
Another spectacular video! Thank you. Wonder how many viewers questioned what a pay phone was. Lol
The British scenery gets better when you add music from The Planets of Gustav Holst!
Compliments for all the beautiful shots and good music added to it. Does remind us to our car holiday in Devon. As a Dutch guy I would not consider cycling in that part of the UK.
Cycle lanes? What did you mean? I did not see any in your video??? ;)
What does Norway have to learn from the UK? How not to do bicycle facilities!
Great video, loved it and can very much relate to this. Just back from a 2 weeks cycling through the UK and the (cycling) infrastructure is a nightmare. Still like the country.
Glad you think the same 👍
Great video, nice sharing 👍👍👍
Getting stuck in a phone box was a real thing.... for cyclists though, not old ladies. A friend of my sister's boyfriend (yeah I know, friend of a friend...) got stuck in one once when his bike fell against the door, jamming it closed. His way out was to ring 999 and get the police to come and release him.
Oh dear - that is embarrassing 🙈
You just made this fan very happy!
The taps issue; all cold water legally has to be drinking quality. To ensure our safety and good health. Hot water is not safe to drink as it is heated. To ensure we can drink safely the taps have to be kept separate.
Thanks Malcolm :)
also, drinking hot water from the tap when it´s at 85c is likely to lead to a burns unit. Oddly enough, mixer taps manage to seperate hot and cold water also seperate the water when you turn the mixer completely to one or other side. Tap water in Norway is also safe to drink (and far better quality than the UK) as it doesn´t need as much treatment (because it hasn´t previously been through 7 people as in London for example)
Sadly the UK is indeed a land where cyclists are hated.
But being a Brit you still have the best humour, irony and satire, in the world.
The Romans gave us roads, straight roads!
can take the man out of britian but can't take the whinging british humor out of the man....now if it could be installed into the norway cycling videos, that would be something. i'm not saying slag off the norweigans unnecessarily, but it would be fun to watch humour in norway in english.
I have a 'free licence' of expression when talking about my own culture. It becomes more complicated aboard. ua-cam.com/video/VEk4VB30m9o/v-deo.html
Nice to see your home town!
British humor never fails...
I've just got back to Thailand after riding from Land's End to John O'Groats and my experience was that there is too much traffic unless you ride on trails. The infrastructure for cyclists is on the whole patchy and often not well thought out. The best part of the trip was in Scotland where there was notably less traffic. I have the feeling that cycle paths and infrastructure are all buzzwords for politicians and planners who have close to no idea of what we actually want and need. I hope you're able to continue to forge closer relationships with the authorities in Norway and help to sort it out for us aspiring visiting cyclists. Ride safe fella.
Firstly congrats on completing LE to JG 👏👌. Great effort 🫡. In addition, a lot of great points here - you hit the nail on the head about cycle lanes being buzz words. 👍
Thanks for the great content ! From France, Grenoble and in the UK currently so I see how much uk is cars only. But in France when sharing the road you still need to be very careful.
So glad I live in Norway and not in densely populated areas elsewhere in Europe. When you are used to a lot of silence and possibilities to be completely alone whenever you want to and have the "allemannsretten" secure the right to camp almost everywhere, I would find it hard to live in UK. In fact sometimes when backpacking in Norway I think there are too many people outdoors even here...just thinking about what that experience would be like in a country of similar size but with 60 million inhabitants.. But I guess backpacking/bikepacking is not as popular in the UK as in Norway? Or are the few remainding non populated areas filled with tourists all the time?
There are national parks where you can hike alone and be by yourself. Scotland has similarities to Norway and much of the highlands are remote and wild. Same to with the islands. But there are large parts of England which are over populated.
The sound track was so good.
cyclists here in Australia have the right to ride 3, 4 & 5 abreast on the road & make all the cars do 40kph. Brighton Le Sands in Sydney is a nightmare with lycra cyclists groups of 6+ riders just claiming the streets & reducing the avg speed of flowing traffic. Cyclists also seem to pick & choose what road rules they want to abide by. Red lights & stop signs seem to be optional.
I completely agree with you. Group ride cyclists that take up the road and abuse the situation just causes more friction between road users.
Great Video, seems odd seeing you in England compared to your usual 'office'.
It is funny how cycling in the UK has taken off, government's have made monies available to councils to spend on cycle projects but it many cases it has sadly been carried out badly. It's like its grown so quick nothing was planned but here's a token effort to say where doing the right thing. Such a shame & waste.
Poor excuse I know but Its also so new to the UK that people have not had time adjusted the minds & attitudes towards cyclists like other European countries.
It's unfortunate people who have the money waste it due to a lack of knowledge and understand to what is actually good cycling infrastructure.
@@matthewnorway I totally agree sir.
I think I’d watch any video you made on any topic. Brilliant! 🎉
Too much traffic, dangerous on bike
Cyclists are at best tolerated in the UK, they are installing more cycle lanes but often is marked by a super slippery (when wet) white line, then when you get to a roundabout you are just spat out to take your chances 😞 I think that new new builds put a bit more sensible infrastructure in place.
Cheddar Gorge and the Mendips offer some great rides out of the peak summer periods, I never go there weekends or once the school summer holidays start. I think you were very brave taking it on during Jubilee weekend.
Nice to see you taking the p*** out of your old country made me laugh. Looking forward to a the next instalment of Norway 🚲🚲
The classic cycle lane - everything is going well and then all of sudden you are just spat out to take your chances!
Always good for a laugh.
Nice one,Matthew. Where I live in Australia it’s roundabouts and “murder lanes”, and the local council wonders why very few people cycle…D’oh!
☹️
Red telephone boxes did have a distinctive odour... it is now the mark of a truly middle class area...
That is true!
oh hey is that bridge where Javert died??
no
I’ve only cycled in England once, down in Cornwall. The country is too densely populated and the car is king. No country has got it right, some are much better than others. I’d love to see a video of you cycling in Scotland.