Anyone organising a cycling seminar obviously has great intentions; it’s just a pity their message doesn’t reach those who need it most.

That’s what I thought recently as I sat down in the Sheldonian Theatre for another dose of safe cycling messages, which, to be honest, I’d encountered many times already.

This particular talk was given by Jared Spier of Oxford Cycle Workshop. His delivery was impeccable. He is a confident and honest speaker and I couldn’t help thinking he was put on this Earth to deliver cycling information to the masses.

The only problem was, I had heard it all before – and after gazing round the room to see a mass of hi-vis jackets and helmets, I couldn’t help wondering if the other attendees had as well.

Refreshers in safety information are no bad thing, however, and I dutifully listened as he told us how to negotiate traffic and handle tricky manoeuvres in the road. But even when you think you know it all, a little gem of information can pop up and surprise you.

For instance, on the corner where St Cross Street meets South Parks Road, opposite Linacre College, there is a cycle lane that goes nowhere.

Actually, I tell a lie, if going at any discernable rate on a bicycle it will take you head-on into a bollard, or, perhaps worse, a pedestrian waiting for the lights to change.

Having always wondered what the heck it was for, or whether it was just some unfinished piece of work on behalf of the council, Jared shared the secret with us. The lane is for the use of cyclists attempting to negotiate the corner with a truck up their backside – a bit like a runaway truck lane on a motorway. So if you feel the need to get out of the way you can safely do it here.

This information tied in nicely with the rest of the day’s activities, and fresh out of the theatre I ventured round the corner to sit in a lorry cab.

Transport manager Paul Needle of haulage firm Smiths of Bletchingdon is on a mission to save lives.

He had placed his lorry in Radcliffe Square so cyclists could sit in the cab to gain the perspective of a driver in the hope of giving them a better understanding of the potential risks of undercutting large vehicles.

And did I get a surprise. I knew the truck was fully equipped with the latest cameras and mirrors required by law, but unless you have two sets of eyes, the senses of a shark and psychic intuition to boot, there is no way you could spot a plucky cyclist coming up on your inside in the split second of a blink.

Unfortunately for a couple of cyclists in Oxford, this information didn’t get to them in time, and there have been deaths after accidents in Botley Road, Cowley Road and the junction of Broad Street and Parks Road.

The initiative of Paul Needle has to be highly commended.

In my short sightedness, I started the day thinking I knew it all as a safe cyclist. In fact, Paul gave me another view.

I just hope other cyclists out there get to experience the same.