Community grants boost cycling celebrations
 
Kent is all set to enjoy a sizzling, cycling summer with the arrival of the Tour de France on July 8 and the launch of Go Cycle Kent 2007 – a campaign designed to encourage everyone to get out on their bikes and take part in all the great cycling opportunities to be discovered across the county. Eighteen community groups planning to celebrate the arrival of the Tour de France in Kent on Sunday, July 8 and encourage people of all ages and abilities to get on their bikes and explore the Garden of England have received special grants from Kent County Council. As part of the Go Cycle Kent campaign, the county council’s Kent Sports Development Unit has awarded financial support of more than £6,000 to a wide range of community groups including cycling clubs, nursery groups and the Kent Refugee Action Network. Mike Hill, Kent County Council Cabinet Member for Communities, said: “We are delighted to be supporting people with really good ideas and projects who are enthusiastic about cycling and willing to share that enthusiasm with other people.” Special events receiving Go Cycle Kent campaign grants include Barming Tour de France Fun Day; Maidstone CycleFest; Southborough and District Wheelers Festival of Cycling; Get Active Feel Alive Tour de Herne Bay; Teston and Wateringbury Nursery Group Pedal Push; Aylesford School Sports College Cycle Show Finale; Big Wheel of Kent Bike Ride; The Ashford Wheelers Cycling Club Cycling Promotion Day for Homewood School, Tenterden; Swale Go Cycle Promotion Days; and Colliers Green School’s Cycle to School Day Additional funding has gone to the Commonwork Land Trust for its bid to encourage visitors and staff to cycle from Penshurst Station to Bore Place; Downland Cycles, Canterbury, for providing training for club coaches to deliver Go Ride, Bike It and Dr Bike sessions in Kent schools; Team Sidcup Cycles to support the Bedgebury Family Challenge; Kent Refugee Action Network to explore Kent cycle paths; the Handcycling Association UK to support the opening of the Fowlmead Country Park recently launched by SEEDA, the regional development agency; and St Nicholas School, Canterbury, to attend and participate in activities at the World Series Handcycling Event, at Fowlmead. Full details of cycling events across Kent, cycling clubs, top cycle routes, and tips on safe cycling for all the family as well as buying and maintaining a bike are available at the Go Cycle Kent website, www.gocyclekent.co.uk. KCC is bringing the Tour de France to Kent in partnership with the Tour organisers, Amaury Sport Organisation, Transport for London, SEEDA, Medway Council, district councils and emergency services. Meanwhile, for the latest information about the Tour de France and its 126-mile route through the Kent countryside visit www.kent.gov.uk
Tour de France 2007
The race - the biggest annual sporting event in the world - will travel from London, across Kent, with the first stage finishing in the Cathedral City of Canterbury. Find out more about the Grand Depart and the stage one route. Watched by millions of TV viewers worldwide as well as by thousands of people lining the street, the benefits to Kent are huge. The race will showcase Kent's glorious Garden of England countryside, raise the profile of the county and attract tourists from far and wide. Find out what KCC's leader Paul Carter thinks of the Tour coming to Kent. We are working closely with Transport for London (this link will open in a new window), the police, district councils and many other organisations to bring this exciting event to our shores on 8 July. Find out how our partner organisations are celebrating the arrival of the Tour de France to our shores. |
The most famous cycle race in the world, the Tour de France, is coming to Kent on 8 July 2007.