I first met John in April 1974. In long hair of the era, he was by then over a decade into membership of the Anfield B.C. He was keen on all aspects of cycling; touring, club runs, racing and in particular racing on trikes!

John organised several Easter Tours in the late 70s notable for their arduous nature and big mileages. One averaged over 100 miles per day in poor weather conditions yet were immensely enjoyable. In 1976 he toured in the USA, narrowly avoiding a grizzly bear while camping near the Grand Canyon! Later Tours saw John in Australia and New Zealand, as well as a return to America. In recent years, Maggie accompanied him on firstly an aging tandem then on a custom-made George Longstaff machine. Their holidays included Cuba, Vietnam and Argentina as well as several in the UK and Europe.

His racing started at an early age, quickly gaining a reputation as a top trikie. A fanatic about his trike he decided there was an unused section of his bars, unnecessary weight to be removed in his pursuit and mastery of time. Enthusiastically he cut off the perceived excess, then had to throw away the remains as he’d removed too much! The heavy steel rear axles were replaced with custom titanium ones specially made by the aerospace industry.

John beat national Competition Record for 100 miles on a trike in 1981 with a fine 4-22-55, a time most two wheelers would be proud of let alone three. This took some time to ratify, and the eventual confirmation showed the course to be substantially long!

Moving to Gloucestershire in 1991, John continued his connection with the Anfield and often rode the 140 miles to the club’s annual “Autumn Tints” and back in a weekend, on occasion bringing several local riders with him.

John suffered from Altzheimers in recent years and died peacefully on December 3rd 2025. His funeral is provisionally arranged for December 29th at Westerleigh Crematorium near Yate

Mike Hallgarth Anfield BC

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