ERIC GAUSTER: What is your earliest cycling memory?
JAMES K: I didn’t learn to ride until quite late – I was 7 years old and my Dad and my older brothers had got an old frame and sprayed it sky blue, having hung it from the clothes line with a coat hanger through the bottom bracket to do the job. It was a bmx and probably lighter than some of the horrible things you see kids riding on these days. So once it was set to go – red ribbed grips and quilted stitched red saddle – they just pushed me uphill out of the driveway and I pedalled away. At least I remember it being that simple…………..

EG: Where would someone most likely bump into you cycling?
JK: Probably around the Crystal Palace Triangle in South London or if it were a nice weekend in spring down on the Pilgrims Lane past Biggin Hill.

EG: What’s the best and worst thing about current bicycle culture?
JK: The best thing is that it has many different churches – hipsters, commuters, roadies, BMXers, old ladies and kids who just want to ride but rather than petty bickering (like you might get between, say, music sub-cultures) we are all friends.
The worst thing is the fear I have that the increase of cycling is just a trend and it will go the way of skateboarding and rollerblades. I hope not as it is far far far  more practical than any of the ‘transport’ trends before but sometimes cycling comes over as being cool and the bike as a ‘must have accessory’ something I fear people will move away from when the Segway trend takes off……………

EG: Where’s the best place you have discovered by bicycle?
JK: When I moved to my wife’s home town in Este in Italy I had no job, no money and no mates and a lot of spare time. Sadly I had no bike either! Eventually I got a bike given to me and was able to discover the Euganei Hills. It’s fairly unknown part of Italy springing out of the flat northern plane between Venice and Bologna. It is such a beautiful place full of vineyards and small villages with church towers and old villas. I knew I had ‘discovered’ it when my father-in-law asked me for directions!

EG: What really annoys you in life generally?
JK: Selfish and inconsiderate people – be it road users ‘bullying’ others, people making noise in the street at 1am, loud mobile phone conversations on the bus and all these sorts of things which I suspect the protagonists know are going to upset their neighbours or whoever but just don’t care……. it’s as if they want to be ‘challenged’ on it and they are up for confrontation.

EG: Favourite post-ride foodstuff?
JK: Cut up about 15 cherry tomatoes into halves or quarters and cook them in a small pan with a pinch of salt, some chilli flakes and a tablespoon of olive oil. Cover and occasionally stir. Cook it for about 20 mins (probably as long as it takes to boil your water and cook your pasta). Cook about 130 grams of wholewheat penne, drain and then mix the sauce and the pasta together. Some Italian hard cheese grated over the top on the “large” grater works too. Wash down with a pint of milky tea (two bags!) as you are probably sick of water by now and you should keep hydrating for a couple of hours after coming back.

EG: What music currently moves you?
JK: I hadn’t realised how much I listened to BBC6 music until our digital radio broke. Since then I have been re-discovering 80s Australian music on Youtube. It’s quite nice as you get the “suggestions” column down the right hand side so one song and you have a rich seem of stuff coming up you haven’t thought about in years. Early Springsteen always gets me too and I’ve been listening to that at work lately.