THE MERIDEN CYCLISTS' MEMORIAL...

 The Meriden Cyclists’ Memorial…

The obelisk assumes a prominence

In Meriden. Yet although incongruous

It is a memorial nevertheless

And unique in its eminence,

Celebrating cyclists in wartime,

Its construction designed to impress…

Fourteen battalions were formed

For World War One, which served

Mostly in the UK, for cycling 

In trench warfare, mud and mire 

Was not an option in such conditions dire…

The cyclists were thus forced

Into combat, their bikes reserved

For 1918, when a need for cycling

In reconnaissance was desired,

As advances were made and victory transpired…

The obelisk soars in its prominence

At Meriden. Yet folks seem oblivious

To the memorial, I guess.

It is distinctive in its importance,

Honouring cyclists in wartime,

Its powerful message devised to impress…

Pete Ray

2nd June 2022

The memorial to wartime cyclists is an impressive and tall obelisk in Meriden, near where many bicycles were manufactured in Coventry.

Interesting that it stands where it does and not at the National Arboretum in Alrewas near Burton on Trent…

Below is a poem I wrote about wartime folding bicycles some years ago but I have updated it so that it could be included with the above verses…

The B.S.A. Folding Bicycle...

“Fold up your BSA bikes lads,

Attach your silk parachutes tight.

You and your bikes drop together lads,

In a raid over France tonight…

Lubricate and work the joints lads,

As you prepare for the silent fall.

Your bike will drop upside down lads,

Wheels-first comes to no good at all…

Haul in those long puppet strings lads,

Detach your own parachutes quick.

Crouch as you assemble your bikes lads,

Speed undercover is the trick…

Pedal like billy-o then lads,

Do not use the bicycle lamp.

Aim for the dry beaten tracks lads,

Steer clear of the mud and the damp…

The enemy will be surprised lads,

At the speed of your drop and escape.

As you pedal off to the front lads,

The Germans will merely gape…” 

Pete Ray

2nd June 2022

Whilst teaching at the once proud Museum of Science and Industry in Birmingham, one of the more intriguing exhibits on display was a B.S.A. Folding Bicycle. 

I could imagine a 1940’s newsreel commentator using his enthusiastic, excitable voice in a plethora of patriotism and wartime propaganda, as he described this unusual mode of warfare to cinema audiences.