Tag: Newbury

Social Bike Ride – Newbury to Ecchinswell Circular

Posted on by Secretary

Social Bike RideWe will be holding the second of this year’s programme of social bike rides on Saturday 12 April. We will set off from the side of Lloyd’s Bank in Newbury at 9:30 am.

This 16 mile ride takes you up to Greenham, across Greenham Common, then down and through Ecchinswell, turning west through Sydmonton, Burghclere and Penwood before returning to Newbury via Ball Hill.

There is a short, sharp climb up to Greenham and a few smaller climbs throughout the rest of the route.

We will be riding at a fairly relaxed pace of around 10 – 12 mph. Please note that under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

For more information and to book your place, please go to www.goskyride.com.

Social Bike Ride – West Woodhay Circular

Posted on by Secretary

Spokes is organising a series of social bike rides, aiming to do at least one ride per month. Social bike rides are a great way to discover the beautiful routes in your local area and meet like minded people who enjoy cycling. (We have only added a few rides so far, but we will add the others shortly.)

Our first ride this year was the West Woodhay Circular, with 14 riders. The next ride will be on Saturday 12th April to Ecchinswell and Penwood and back to Newbury. This is classified as a ‘steady’ ride, which mostly follows quiet lanes and has no major hills. We will be going at a fairly relaxed pace of around 10 – 12 mph. The ride is open to all, but we ask that anyone under 16 years old is accompanied by an adult.

We’ve set up a Social Cycling Group on the goskyride.com website, which is run by British Cycling. All our rides will be promoted there – you can view the route and book your place via the website.

If you have any questions, then please get in touch.

Dr Bike at Newbury Farmers Market – 2 March

Posted on by Secretary

Dr Bike at Newbury Farmers MarketGet your bike ready for Spring – Spokes are doing FREE bikes checks and minor repairs at Newbury Farmers Market this Sunday between 9am and 1pm.

Bring us your dodgy brakes, jumping gears and flat tyres and our trained volunteers will sort them for you and it won’t cost you a penny!

If your bike needs a bigger repair, then we’ll point you in the direction of your local bike shop where Spokes members get a 10% discount on parts.

Help Needed for February Cycle Count

Posted on by Secretary

We are looking for volunteers to help with our next cycle count. This is a really important activity for Spokes, since the payment that we get from the Council is main source of our funding and is one of the reasons that membership is free.

There are 17 sites which need to be counted from 07:30 to 09:30 on 25th, 26th and 27th February:

Site 1: Newbury – Kennet & Avon Towpath (Beneath A339)
Site 2: Newbury – A339 (on Railway Bridge)
Site 3: Newbury – Robin Hood west arm (London Road)
Site 4: Newbury – Kiln Road / Walton Way
Site 5: Newbury – Love Lane (roundabout at Trinity School)
Site 6: Newbury – Andover Road (just north of St Bartholomew’s School)
Site 7: Newbury – Junction of Northcroft Lane & path to Monkey Bridge
Site 8: Newbury – Junction of Valley Road and Fifth Road
Site 9: Newbury – Junction of Battery End with Wash Common Recreation Ground
Site 10: Thatcham – A4 West of Lower Way
Site 11: Thatcham – Thatcham Station
Site 12: Thatcham – Corner of Bath Road & Green Lane
Site 13: Theale – Junction of High Street & Waterside Drive
Site 14: Hungerford – Staggered junction near Town Hall – Church St & Park St
Site 15: Calcot – Junction of Langley Hill & Bath Road
Site 16: Tilehurst – Junction of Dark Lane & Overdown Road
Site 17: Purley – Junction of Knowsley Road & Oxford Road

If you can help with any of these, then please email us (chair@westberkshirespokes.org). You can do more than one count on subsequent days if you would like. Locations will be allocated on a first come first served basis.

We really appreciate the help that we get from our volunteers, who turn out in all weathers. To say thank you, everyone who counts for at least one hour will be entered in a prize draw for £50 of Banjo vouchers.

Northcroft Lane Link Resurfaced

Posted on by Secretary

Northcroft LaneAs reported previously, Spokes has given West Berkshire Council a list of priorities for improving local cycling infrastructure. As you would expect, this included several big schemes like constructing a cycle route on the A4 between Lower Way and Turnpike Road.

However, it also included a number of smaller schemes like resurfacing the western end of Northcroft Lane, which links to the cycle track at the side of Goldwell Park. This may not seem important, but this short stretch of road was so riddled with potholes that it had become quite uncomfortable to cycle on, and we are delighted to report that the Council has just resurfaced this section.

This is just one example of small-scale changes that can be implemented quickly and easily and which make a genuine difference to local cycling journeys. If you have any schemes that you would like us to lobby the Council to implement, then please get in touch. We can either raise it through the Cycle Forum or separately with Council officers.