And so we reached our final destination, Maidenhead, in our five-day tour of Berkshire towns to promote safer cycling. Our position on the tennis courts of Kidwell’s Park gave us and the Extreme Mountain Bike Team boys loads of room but it did get quite hot! Being a part of the Maidenhead Festival was great though as there were loads of people to talk to, especially those with families who were visiting the cycle experience section next door.
We were also able to give away free Urban Limits water bottles thanks to the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead and we had lots of takers. Our massive supply of water proved popular too! Steve provided the Dr. Bike services, helping several cyclists out with quick reparis and more advice about bike maintenance.
The Wattbike Challenge was less popular however, down to the on-court temperature of 35 degrees – luckily we had some shade. Nobody beat the best result of the week set in Bracknell by Nick S. of 865 watts. Our competition winners will be announced in a few weeks via our facebook page with the hundreds of people who took part all eligible to win one of 5 great prizes.
Ashley Butler from the Extreme Mountain Bike Team was on form in the high-bar challenge, no doubt spurred on by the big crowds gathered to watch him set a new personal best. With plenty of banter between riders this part of the tour has been very popular with those who turned up to watch.
The final day saw us take on two of the biggest rides of the week with a 16 mile ‘short’ course and a 26 mile ‘long’ ride. The shorter route took us through Maidenhead and off-road using the national cycle paths to Bray, then around the back of Eton Dorney, towards Eton then back along the south bank of the Jubilee River and eventually to Maidenhead.
The long route featured some steep hills as we ventured north to Marlow, Frieth, across the Thames at Hambleden, through Cockpole Green and back to base. One particular hill had us gasping for breath as the gradient hit 18% with some opting to push instead!
All of the riders had a great time and many commented on how it was great to go out in a large group and see new places.
