I made my first visit to Finland last week, spending a day in Helsinki and a day traveling cross country to see Herrmans, an innovative cycling company.

I have no doubt this was just a taster because there are a lot of really interesting things happening in Finnish cycling, especially in Helsinki, so I have lots of excuses to go back.

And who could not be drawn to a city that showed off glorious sunshine, lots of attractive green space and water and the chance to potter about by bike easily and safely? As a refugee from the dreadful June weather that has seen Belgium break all records for rainfall this was just about perfect!

One of my mental tests for spotting whether cycling is part of the city lifestyle is to see how many people use their bikes just to nip to the parks and waterfronts when the…