Now you may think this a little strange, but in all the years I’ve been cycling, I’ve never once used the train to transport my bike from A to B.  Until today that is!  Well, more accurately, tomorrow.

Now normally, I’d put Popsy, my 24 speed 2 wheel goddess Globe Hybrid, into action for the 10 mile commute but I knew that I’d be faced with many more miles to cycle at my journey’s end.  And I’d still have to get home.

Plan A: TAKE THE TRAIN.  Hmmm, easier said than done. For some reason, a small niggle has been working it’s way from the back of my mind all day and it’s grown into a gremlin I can’t ignore.

How do you take the train with your bike?

1.     Do you have to book your bike on? 
   

2.     How much does it cost?
   

3.     What part of the train do you store it in?
   

No worries, I’ll ring National Rail enquiries!   The nice people there will help me out......

(.....Some time later....)

Give me a headache pill!   Whilst you don’t have to book unless you’re planning to travel on a mainline route, nor do you part with any more of your hard earned cash to transport your 2 wheel goddess, you must make yourself known to the station staff prior to the arrival of your train.  The decision to transport your bike is then left at the discretion of the train guard since only 2 bikes can be transported on any one train.

You must store your bike securely in the guards van before settling yourself in the main carriage. Oh, and you certainly must not, under any circumstances, faff around and cause the train to run late.

Now this poses me a dilemma or two. 

My journey tomorrow is during rush hour.  The train is only a local one having at the most two carriages.

1.     Will it have a guards van? 
   

2.     If so, at what end of the train?  
   

3.     And what if 2 people further up the line are taking their bikes on board meaning that I’m refused? 
   

I’ve got to be at my destination tomorrow by 9 am at the latest. No excuses!   And by the way, my local station is unmanned. Very pretty, but devoid of human existence.

Enter Plan B

Resort to going in by car with Popsy inelegantly strung up on the back.  Get stressed in the rush hour queues, pay exorbitant car parking fees, add more CO2 emissions into the atmosphere and feel generally down in the dumps because I’ve not had my dose of fresh Derbyshire air!

I’d love to hear your personal experiences of traveling by train. Perhaps you can educate me!