GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS
Government Regulations can be found at:
Government COVID Regulations
The regulations related to exercise are as follows
“Exercising and meeting other people
You should minimise time spent outside your home.
It is against the law to meet socially with family or friends unless they are part of your household or support bubble. You can only leave your home to exercise, and not for the purpose of recreation or leisure (e.g. a picnic or a social meeting). This should be limited to once per day, and you should not travel outside your local area.
You can exercise in a public outdoor place:
- by yourself
- with the people you live with
- with your support bubble (if you are legally permitted to form one)
- in a childcare bubble where providing childcare
- or, when on your own, with 1 person from another household
Public outdoor places include:
- parks, beaches, countryside accessible to the public, forests
- public gardens (whether or not you pay to enter them)
- the grounds of a heritage site
- playgrounds
Outdoor sports venues, including tennis courts, golf courses and swimming pools, must close.
When around other people, stay 2 metres apart from anyone not in your household – meaning the people you live with – or your support bubble. Where this is not possible, stay 1 metre apart with extra precautions (e.g. wearing a face covering).”
Note that there is some debate in cycling circles about how to interpret “you should not travel outside your local area”. British Cycling are seeking clarification from the Government, and this page will be updated if we find out more.
BRITISH CYCLING GUIDANCE
The Guidance from BC is at:
BC COVID Guidance
Again you should study the full guidance, but the main points from BC (updated 5th January) are:
“How can I continue to ride?
Under the new restrictions you are permitted to cycle, and we would encourage you to do so, while following these rules:
- You should only ride alone, with your household/support bubble or one other person.
- Stay local, ride within your limits and ensure you are self-sufficient.
- Leave the house to exercise only once each day.
- Keep a safe distance from others and practice good respiratory hygiene (ie. no spitting, use a tissue).
- You can only leave your home to exercise, and not for the purpose of leisure (such as a picnic or a coffee break).
- You can travel a short distance within your area to exercise if necessary (ie. to access an open space).
Under the new restrictions, elite sport and organised outdoor sport for disabled people are both exempt. However, due to restrictions on facility access organised activity for disabled riders will be limited by the availability of a suitable location for it to take place.
What do you mean by local?
We know many of you will want to know what is meant by ‘staying local’. The Government’s definition of this is stated as ‘your village, town or the part of a city where you live’.
We understand that this definition is particularly restrictive for cycling, and we are working to seek further clarification on this. We will provide a further update as soon as we are able.
In the meantime, we recommend that you follow the advice to stay local, ride well within your ability and ensure that you are self-sufficient.”
