March 2017 | 133 something for yourself . You can either succeed or fail at this thing of getting a record but it is okay to suggest you can try something and fail , you don ’ t need to be afraid of doing something in case you fail . It ’ s a win , win situation , if I didn ’ t get the record but I gave it my best shot , I did something . I didn ’ t achieve the target I wanted , but that ’ s okay so that ’ s a good measure to kids . There was no losing in this .
Helen : I love the fact that you did this in your kitchen , there were no major sponsors . There ’ s a real homespun feel about it !
Graeme : That was the whole remit from the start to show that you can do something on your own , you don ’ t need to rely on being part of something you just have to make the opportunity . If you get an idea just do it . Young people hold back .
Helen : My son loved the fact that you took some items from the kitchen – your saucepan ! And you made it into a part for the bike .
Graeme : When I was a kid I dreamed of being an explorer but nowadays kids can ’ t dream anymore because you can get everything on Google Earth . What can kids aspire to when it has all been done and you just become a tiny cog in a huge machine ? If you have an idea just do it . We live in a disposable society , somebody makes something for you ; you use it and throw it away . We now live in a generation where we don ’ t things , we don ’ t make things , we just go to the supermarket and get another one . I wanted to show them that there is more than that .
Helen : That came across in the the whole idea that it is possible to reuse , recycle and reduce our impact on the planet .
Graeme : We are the generation that have destroyed the planet . I think young people think more about their impact than we do .
Helen : Where did your from ? obsession with speed come
Graeme : It wasn ’ t an obsession with speed , it was about achievement . It came about when I was on a bike and seventeen . I didn ’ t think I was going to amount to anything . I felt my worth and value as a human being was totally based on what I could achieve . My state of mind was conditional on my sense of achievement .
own concept and then go for the prone world record . It was extremely low tech .
Helen : Do you think you will go back and try and beat that record ?
Graeme : Absolutely not . I am done with any kind of record breaking ?
Helen : You then went on to achieve great things with your hour records and becoming world champion . You are obviously still very Did you do a lot of training for the human-powered speed record ?
Graeme : I still train on a regular basis . I use the hills and my race circuits as a measure of my If I can still go up a hill in a certain gear at a particular speed then I know that I am doing alright . The doesn ’ t really show it but I was training and then staying up until 2 o ’ clock in the morning making the shell for human powered machine so by the time I got on the plane to America I was exhausted .
Helen : Quite an achievement !
Graeme : Thank you very much . From a starting point of where I was , basically I went and built something on my own , a bit like the person who set the record in the place . It was proper 1980s – let ’ s go and build a bike . My
Helen : Have you got any other project on the go at the moment ?
Graeme : I have a project of my own which is a design idea . I see things that don ’ t work very well and I come up with an idea to do it better , design-wise . There are a couple of things that I want to make prototypes for and then go and take them round manufacturers . I am also writing a book called ‘ Enough ’ about my journey from where I was to where I am now . From the blackest moments to now , when I am not on medication , feeling content and in a good place . I also still enjoy riding my bike ; it ’ s one of the things that is central to me , that feeling of fresh air in my lungs and making the most of the beautiful countryside .
Graeme is showcasing the beautiful area he lives in by holding a Sportive called ‘ The Flying Scotsman Sportive ’ on Saturday 20th August .
Many thanks to Graeme for talking to Cycling World
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