Pippa Middleton ditches the tennis skirt and learns to ride a bike

Pippa practises clipping in, and clipping out of her pedals, then rides across a cricket pitch a few times.

I bet the groundsman loved that!

“how do you avoid developing massive thighs like many of the Tour de France chaps?”

What like those massive thighs those well known stick insects Wiggo and Frome have?

My arms are nearly as "massive" as their thighs.

And there was I just hoping for a glimpse of a backside that, certainly at the time of the Royal Wedding, needed no improvement at all.

Having said that, similarly well toned backsides would be an extraordinarily successful means of persuading more people to ride bikes.

It's a trite anecdote, packed with all the stuff that puts off newcomers:

Pippa thinks cyclists are "incredibly rude" and that they make her "nervous" because "they think they are the rightful rulers of the road".

She then spends a few paragraphs describing how much expensive, specialist sports equipment is required to ride a bike, and describes the inconvenience of clipless pedals.

This is followed by some absurd concerns around developing massive thighs and horrible talk about bike rollers, Garmins, energy gels and 'training'.

She then signs off by glibly describing a road bike as a "sporting accessory" and says she "shall certainly be less intimidated by urban cyclists (at least those with manners)".

Rubbish.

If I flash back a couple of years to when I was wondering whether to buy a bike I'd have found the advice in this sort of article useful and encouraging.

My only complaint is that my thighs have not grown bigger but my varicose veins have.

I know I will sound grumpy , but I don't think we need this. Women will hop onto bikes thinking its a ride in the country, not realising the dangers, just because Pippa can do it. On my commute into London I see too many ladies on cumbersome (fashionable) bikes taking silly risks through lack of knowledge. Sorry to be a grump

I quite look forward to a good giggle reading Pippa's Telegraph articles and, whilst this one was pretty banal to the average cyclist, if it gets some more 'bums on saddles' then that's fine by me, especially when most newspaper articles are usually discouraging people from cycling.

The comments on this site regularly plumb depths only seen elsewhere in the Youtube comments section. It's unbelievable. Here is an article, not perfect by any means, but which takes cycling and helps open it up to a new audience and potentially break down some of the life-endangering barriers that exist today. And some idiots post the ignorant, bitter tripe seen above

Get over it, for all our sakes

Slightly posh lady on a bicycle, who wasn't on a bicycle before. I think on the whole this is a good thing. Well, any new person on a bike is a good thing.

Did have to Google who she was though. Sounded like a nice but working class person from an Enid Blyton book.

On the plus side, if she does get killed cycling then perhaps she is posh enough to make Boris actually do something about road safety in London?

He doesn't seem to be arsed when it's plebs dying so maybe a bit of blue-ish blood getting spilled on the cycling superhighways might put a Royal rocket under his arse?

The more women that cycle the more cycling will achieve in political circles. Thd more famous women that cycle the more women will cycle.

I live in a country with a royal family but I'm no one's 'subject' but Pippa's doing more good than harm here.

The headline 'Pippa Middleton ditches the tennis skirt and learns to ride a bike' hints at pictures of her arse. Is that why this news item has attracted so much attention?

Great story, perfect person to get more young un's onto bikes, as many have said she is a role model now.

As with all articles though you will always get muppets who disagree but dont offer anything in return......

Twats on saddles! Bums on seats! What variety we cyclists encompass.

A celeb promotes cycling, how is that bad? Some of the comments above are as small minded and myopic as those one would expect from the anti-cycling lobby. I believe that too many cyclists are happy playing the role of persecuted minority. That has to change!

Some impressively elitist comments upthread

Anything that might get

more torygraph readers
or
more women
or
more Londoners
or
more people in general

out on bikes has to be a good thing. imo. ymmv.

I think that even the Daily Mail would be inclined to put a nice spin on this rather than the usual hatchet jobs. So for that angle I'm happy.

Is it just me or is there no pedal attached to the crank on the non-drive side of her bike?!

(almost) Royal bum on two wheels will make a better pro-cycling PR than most of campaigns we've seen so far.

One can only hope that she won't turn into another road safety "expert" promoting ideas of compulsory helmet/high viz kit and stuff...

Some of her comments may seem a bit wimpy or even rude to some of the badass hardcore readers on here, but she is a role model to young girls & even some older women, so seeing her out on a bike can only be a good thing. A positive image to inspire them they can cycle too - I would have chosen a different style of bike for her to ride round on as a newbie, but at the end of the day, it's another female bum on a saddle & that's what counts
But FTR...I'm quite proud of my 'Awesome Quads'..I even have a little trophy to prove it

Brill! One more cyclist. And a figurehead for many, meaning more cyclists. Smashing.
Unlike the misogyny and snobbery above. Its also possible that rich posh people in the news can also be nice human beings at the same time.

"Bike for a better bum" I think this means something else in America Their bums need all the help they can get

I agree...this article needs more pictures; does anyone have any ideas that would be appropriate...you know something to inspire a cyclist to follow her?