Having started cycling 10 years ago, Diane Maciver, 52, has since co-founded She Pedals Scotland and Get on a Bike to champion greater inclusion in the sport.
In that time, she has also ensured the gender balance at Elgin Cycling Club, where she is Vice Chair, has risen to, and now remains, at a 50/50 split between men and women.
Her efforts have been rewarded by British Cycling, who have recognised her efforts to use cycling to bring people together and make a positive difference.
“I’m overwhelmed,” she said. “I still can’t believe it. It is very surreal.
“I’ve never had anything like this before. I cycle because I enjoy it and it makes people feel good and it makes me feel good.”
Maciver works full-time as a nurse but spends her free time volunteering in numerous roles in cycling, including as a Breeze leader and a member of the Scottish Cycling North Committee.
It means she spends much of her time on two wheels, but her job and own personal life have demonstrated exactly how powerful the sport can be.
Having experienced the loss of a close friend in 2019, Maciver took to cycling for her own mental health and now shares that journey with others through the Get on a Bike charity she co-founded.
“I had a really horrible bereavement in 2019 where my best friend collapsed while running. She was only 45, so it was very sudden,” she explained.
“I was probably not in a great place. I needed something to get me going, so I chose cycling.
“I wanted to take people out that probably didn’t cycle and maybe had a bit of mental health problems, maybe somebody with long-term conditions like diabetes.
“There’s nothing better than getting on a bike and feeling the fresh air. Regardless of what speed you go at, there is something special about doing that.
“Also, the coffee shops and having a chat with people. A conversation on a bike is better than taking an antidepressant, in my opinion.”
The charity now takes referrals and has benefitted from grants from Scottish Cycling and a £18,000 lottery bid to help get more people on a bike.
The British Cycling Awards are an annual opportunity to recognise and reward the contributions of our members, volunteers, clubs, and riders.
And Maciver could not be more deserving having also co-founded She Pedals Scotland, alongside Lorna Breetzke, which brings together women and girls from across Scotland for a national celebration of cycling on 14th June.
“There’s always been a stigma that cycling has been a more male-dominated sport with the phrase ‘men in lycra’,” said Maciver.
“But women can do it, too. We should have the same feeling on a bike as what a man gets. The more women I can get on a bike, the better.
“I took a group out recently and it was a bit windy, but we decided to go ahead. We were meeting up and there were four women there that said, ‘I am so glad you didn’t cancel.’
“They kept saying, this is so good. It’s just watching their faces and then having them message afterwards saying, ‘We really enjoyed that. When’s the next one?’
“That just gives you a buzz as if to say they love this and they get so much out of it.”
Could you develop your skills, meet new people and bring huge impact to your local community through volunteering? Get involved with British Cycling volunteering opportunities at https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/volunteering
