The death of Scottish cyclist Jason McIntyre cast a lengthy shadow on the month of February, and, with the sad news receiving nationwide coverage, brought the potential for danger when cycling right back to the forefront of the collective general public perception.

For me any death of a cyclist hits home, as it is what I do every single day of the year, but at the same time registers as an acceptable 'risk' which I ride to mitigate. And so I was invited onto BBC Radio Scotland to defend this viewpoint on the weekly 'Riddoch Questions' show.

Gearing myself up for a battle both convincing people that we should be on the roads because they are safe, and defending cyclists as a whole from an onslaught of malcontent, I was surprised to find myself in generally positive surroundings, with almost all callers finding some positive in cycling and in cyclists. Even Lady Sharples (see this month's news) found herself taking a pro-cyclist stance, despite her slightly unconventional methods at misdemeanour control.

Maybe we're not fighting so much of a losing battle. Maybe I just got lucky with the audience. But one thing I'm certain of, it shouldn't take the death of a cyclist to put the safety of cyclists into public view, and upsetting and shocking though it is, the death of a cyclist should not put any of us off cycling.

.anth

(an mp3 of Riddoch Questions is available from here)