BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
You may have heard – there’s a Royal Wedding this Friday.
It’ll all be done and dusted by the afternoon, so unless you’re having a street party (or the Met office’s prediction of rain comes true) Sustrans has provided a guide to some royal themed bike rides to celebrate Will and Kate’s big day on two wheels.
Hampton Court
Cyclists can rise along the River Thames (National Route four), which just south of Kingston-upon-Thames gets close to Hampton Court Palace, top tourist attraction and former gaff of Henry VIII.
St Andrews
North of the border, a romantic bike ride round St Andrews (off National Route one) is being recommended. The soon to be married couple both went to university in St Andrews, which also offers a castle, cathedral and botanic gardens. Film buffs may wish to note that St Andrews Castle overlooks the ‘Chariots of Fire’ beach. A traffic-free Fife Coastal Path passes the famous golf courses.
Windsor
It doesn’t get a lot more royal than Windsor, containing the Queen’s official residence (National Route 4 and local routes). A circular route takes in the Great Park, Old Windsor, Eton and the castle itself. Those sporting bike baskets or panniers may be tempted to pick up some official Royal Wedding china en-route.
East Sussex
For the historically minded, a detour from the East Sussex Coastal Route (National Route 2) going inland takes in Hastings and Battle to see the site where William the Conqueror changed royal history in 1066, and where King Harold got an arrow in the eye for his trouble.
North Wales
National Route eight, or the Lon Eifion cycle way is a 12-mile scenic route by the Welsh Highland Railway with views to the impressive Caernarfon Castle. Created by Edward I as a military base to rule Wales, the first English Prince of Wales was born there in 1284, which may or may not be a reason to visit, depending on your viewpoint.
Other monarchy-themed rides include the Way of the Roses and Market Bosworth (Route 52) where Richard III died and after which Henry Tudor was crowned, changing the course of UK history. The history hogging area also saw the last battle in the English Civil War in 1651 (in Worcester).
While Sustrans is urging people to get on their bikes and make use of the Cycle Network, the Royal Wedding will mean bike docking stations for Barclays Cycle Hire in London will be shut. From 20:00 on Thursday April 28th to 21:00on Friday April 29th, the following stations will be closed: Northumberland Avenue, Whitehall Place, Craven Street, Horse Guards Avenue, Waterloo Place and Frith Street.
