Christine Stubbs

My name is Christine Stubbs & I am 72 years old. My pastimes are reading, sewing, family, holidays, cycling & going to the theatre.

I was born in Moorends, Doncaster, the youngest of 3 children. As a child with 2 older brothers & living just outside the village we were surrounded by lanes so you soon learned how to scooter or make Go Karts or ride any bike that you could. I was 13 when I got my first new bike & I went all over on it. When I got a live in job as a nanny I would cycle home about 14 miles & back on my day off. Later, when I got married, I then cycled to work & back 5 days a week, still on my old faithful! Later as my first daughter Paula came along and was big enough, I got another bike second hand with a child seat on, my husband also purchased one & we often rode 5 to 6 miles to parks etc. Then our second daughter Kim was born & when she was big enough she had the seat at the back of me & Paula had a crossbar seat in front of Brian. We went all over like that for a few years till the girls could ride bikes and we would cycle to school & back. 

As we got older & our 2 grandchildren came along, out came the bikes, new child seats were fitted & we was off again!

Moving on, as I got older and started with arthritis in my left hip, I again went back to cycling after my hip replacement. I was not great on the bike, especially on inclines so I bought an electric bike. On the move again after another hip replacement,  I relied more on the bike as my first hip replacement had gone very wrong & I couldn’t walk far but cycling was great. When we retired we went all over, taking the bikes with us. During covid, the bikes were a godsend; we would be out almost every day in all weathers, keeping safe but keeping fit both in body & mind.

It was just after we came out of lockdown that I got knocked off my bike by a car and I needed a knee replacement. After a time of recovery I didn’t feel very confident about getting back on the bike so I bought an exercise bike, how boring sat there looking at a wall! It was at this time someone suggested a trike. Whilst looking online at trikes, I came across the SC4A web site so I rang them for information and was told all about the programme they ran. I was invited to their base in Hillsborough in Sheffield for a visit. Me & my husband was made very welcome & everyone was so friendly. Whilst there we talked about my needs and I tried out several trikes. Unfortunately, no electric ones were available at that time but SC4A kept in touch and a while later I was invited back to try out a folding electric trike . We brought it home and I tried it a few times but no this one was not for me. We took the trike back and I tried a couple more but I wanted a folding one so we could take it in the back of the car on days out. Luckily a few weeks later SC4A called us back with what they call a tadpole trike, that is 2 wheels at the front and 1 at the back. My husband was very dubious thinking this not to be very stable but after a few times around the park that was it, I had found my wheels again & was off!

We were able to take it out on loan for 3 months & it was great, the only drawback is we live near the canal & we cycle the canal banks quite a lot, but due to A frame barriers, access can be tricky  because the trike won’t fit through these. But we got out and about, and I was very sad when I had to return the trike. Fortunately I was able to buy my own tadpole trike a few weeks later and am reaping the benefits from this as it’s keeping my hips and knees working and I feel confident and safe on it most of the time (just wish there wasn’t so many potholes in the roads). Because it’s an unusual trike lots of people want to talk to us about it and I get a few thumbs up from motorists which is a good feeling and makes me happy. The more I use the trike, the more benefits I feel, both in body and mind (and my 21yr old grandson thinks I’m cool, what more could I ask for!!).

I always enjoy going back to SC4A, they are a great bunch of people and so helpful, and everybody there seems to have a good time. The benefit i have gained from finding SC4A was that I found the right trike for my individual needs. So thank you SC4A, you have been great and I hope you go from strength to strength and help many more people like me get back in the saddle.