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Goodbye and thank you from Craig Richards

Dear Members and Friends,

Sometimes people say to me, ‘It must be nice not having a boss.’

I answer that while the Board is my boss, the reality is I have almost 50,000 bosses: our members! They part with their hard earned membership fees and I have a responsibility to deliver given the trust they’ve placed in me.

It’s my last day as Bicycle Network CEO tomorrow and I wanted to express my thanks to you for your incredible support.

People also ask me, ‘Aren’t you bored doing the same job for almost 10 years?’ It’s always been a resounding, ‘No way!’

One of Einstein’s famous bike quotes is, ‘Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.’ To me, the never-ending challenge for Bicycle Network to find the perfect balance is what’s made my job so stimulating.

We need to balance how much time we spend celebrating steps forward with bemoaning lack of progress.

We need to balance spending time embracing the positive, progressive thinkers with quelling the aggressive, anti-bike brigade.

We need to balance generating vital funds with pursuing our quest to make the world a better place.

We need to balance time spent looking after those who are loving life on their bike with encouraging others to experience the joy and benefits of two wheels.

Finding that balance is never easy. But over the years, I believe we’ve become more adept at it thanks to how much we’ve learnt from the amazing Bicycle Network members about how to be effective bike advocates, provide memorable experiences and care for people who’ve suffered.

Being Bicycle Network CEO has been an extraordinary privilege for which I’ll be forever grateful. The incredible members of the Bicycle Network family have always been there for me with a wise word when I was in danger of going off track, a caring hand when I needed it most or to join me as we went forward to right a wrong.

Your support has meant the world to me and I can’t thank you enough.

Craig Richards
(former CEO and Bicycle Network member)

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