Great Weston Ride Numbers On The Rise

Posted Wednesday 8th October 2014 –

Entry is now open for the 2015 Great Weston Ride and, after another runaway success this year and with more and more people coming from further afield to take part, the organisers expect that the Ride will attract a record number of entries for the sixth year in a row.

For anyone who hasn’t come across it yet, the Great Weston Ride is a spectacular city-to-coast challenge bike ride that takes place each Summer in the West Country and word is certainly spreading fast now about an event that gets tremendous feedback and plaudits from participants each year. The next outing for the event has been confirmed for Sunday 19th July 2015 and, to underline the Ride’s growing success and popularity, many of this year’s entrants have already booked their places again for 2015.

Ride Organiser, Darren McKimm, commented: “This year’s Ride went fantastically well, we had over 1,000 people who entered as well as a huge number of supporters at the finish, and once again there was just a fantastic atmosphere about the whole day. And off the back of that we’ve already seen a tremendous increase in the number of entries for 2015 compared with the same stage last year.

What was also particularly noticeable this year was the number of people travelling to the area to take part. As you might expect, the majority of participants are from the local Bristol and North Somerset area, but this year one in three riders were actually from further afield – including London, Birmingham, South Wales, and Devon. And we even had one intrepid soul who came all the way from Northern Ireland!

So word’s definitely spreading, and hopefully we’ll see even more people from all over the country rising to the GWR challenge and in the process treating themselves to a great West Country day out – we’re pretty sure they won’t be disappointed!”.

The Ride’s spectacular 56-mile route starts in Bristol and then takes riders through some stunning countryside and picturesque Somerset villages as it charts its way through the Mendips and across the Somerset Levels to its final destination on the seafront in Weston-super-Mare.

The event attracts all sorts of cyclists, from the very experienced right through to complete novices and, judging by the positive and wide-ranging comments from previous participants, there is general agreement that the Great Weston Ride has something to offer just about everyone, especially if they are looking for a great day out as well as a personal challenge.

One rider, Chris Henry from Weston-super-Mare, summed it up: “It was a fantastic day with fantastic views and a fantastic sense of achievement – such a well-organised introduction to mass participation cycling. You can count me in for next year!”. Another participant, Andy Dyer from Bristol, added: “What an awesome ride – breathtaking views over the Somerset Levels, an awesome route and the welcome at the finish line was amazing”. Lots of other riders have left similar comments on the Ride website, and the consensus certainly seems to be that it is well worth a visit to the West Country to take on this rewarding and very do-able cycling challenge.

Many participants also use their efforts to fundraise for charity and the Ride’s official charity partner, Prostate Cancer UK, has received around £105,000 to date, while charity fundraising as a whole has now reached £165,000 since the event began in 2010.

“The Great Weston Ride offers people a great personal challenge, and in the process lots of riders also choose to use their efforts and exertions to fundraise for charity – it adds to the overall sense of achievement, it’s a great source of motivation for many people, and we’re extremely grateful for the generosity and support shown by fundraisers and their sponsors”, a spokesman explained.
So it seems clear that anyone who is looking for a great cycling challenge AND a fun day out should seriously consider the 2015 Great Weston Ride – wherever they live!

Further information, and details on how to enter, can be found at www.greatwestonride.com.