The SIRs would meet in the mornings before work, he decided. "I needed a bit of peer pressure to get out of bed," he laughs. Besides, the head of Asia Pacific at Northern Trust Asset Management always believed cycling provided "an important extra 'spoke' in the wheel of life".

He started a Yahoo group, printed business cards and hailed every cyclist he saw. He handed them a card and invited them to take part in morning rides. Soon it became a routine for many of the city's cycling enthusiasts.

Today, the SIRs is one of Hong Kong Island's best-known amateur cycling groups, with several hundred members (although not all are active). They ride two to three days a week and on the weekends.

"Not only does it provide a good incentive to train, it provides safety in numbers. In the mornings, you're like a moving Christmas tree," says Kratz. "Safety has always been number one priority.

"It's also incredibly social. The SIRs has become an important social glue for many in such a transient community, he says. "In its simplest form you just show up and ride. But the power of it is that interaction; it becomes a social group in addition to family and work, another spoke."

That it has continued to grow. Three years after starting the SIRs, I returned to Singapore for five years. Several guys picked up the baton when I left and continued with the same spirit, the same approach to inclusiveness and safety concerns. And when I came back, it was as if I'd never left.

? Cycling is a great way to see a country. I've taken my bike to many places: Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand. I love seeing new things, which is probably why I'd never swim. On a philosophical level, I think the bike is one of mankind's greatest inventions. I can't think of any other activity that takes you as far or as quickly for the output of energy. I've been humbled over and over again by where cycling's taken me.

My motivation to ride has changed. In my early 40s, it was all about how fast I could go, and how good I could be. Now my health and fitness drives me. I want to make sure I have another 20 years of healthy living and cycling. I don't spend seven hours on a ridiculously long ride to prepare for a big race like I used to. Instead, I ride for a few intense hours to stay healthy.

? My recipe for survival is to assume I'm invisible. Never assume you have the same rights as drivers. Most drivers don't think you do; they see you as a nuisance, and many think you shouldn't be on the road. You can't change that, so don't try.

I want to see a much more supportive approach to cycling by the authorities. It would be great to see recognition of cycling as a recreational sport that is growing and is here to stay. Help could be given to the riding community to cycle as safely as they can and to be of as little disturbance as possible.

Many people think cycling is an individual sport. But cycling is incredibly social. Call it peer pressure, or what you will, but the 'group' is such an important way to stay motivated and to enjoy cycling. The other thing many miss is the engineering and technology behind a bicycle. I believe non-cyclists don't appreciate the engineering masterpiece that is a bike. With your cleats in, you get power from every fibre, enabling you to ride up steep hills and ride down winding roads a lot faster than a car. When you're in that flow, you realise a bike was built to do the things it does; it has the perfect balance.