London cyclists invited to a Weekend Wandle Skyride

The River Wandle is the setting for a free cycle ride in South West London which will see families saddling up and discovering the joy of riverside cycling this Sunday. The ride is part of the Skyride scheme and is a gentle one hour ride ideal for young families.

A number of mass-participation Skyrides have taken place this summer, with huge city rides in Manchester to be followed by Glasgow, Leicester and London. Along with these there are around 400 hosted rides at local venues around the country catering for all abilities from novice to expert.

The River Wandle ride will start and finish at Sainsbury’s Save Centre in Colliers Wood on Sunday and it will be led by experts from national bike organisation British Cycling, who will also provide information and tips on safe cycling. It starts at 2.30pm.

The 7km route will take in local landmarks including Merton Abbey Mills, Morden Hall Park and Ravensbury Park.

The Skyride events form part of Sky’s partnership with British Cycling, which is aiming to encourage more people to dust down their bikes and get passionate about pedalling. Sky is setting itself the target of getting one million more people cycling in the next four years.

Jeremy Darroch, Chief Executive of Sky, said: “We want to get as many people as possible to pick up their bikes again this year; for fun, for fitness. So come and join in, with friends or with family, and be part of a new cycling phenomenon that, we hope, will get one million more people cycling by 2013.”