Cycling
Heckington boasts possibly the oldest grass track cycling event in the country, if not the World!
"I love this show its amazing so much for everyone all ages to do and see"
Celebrating 150 years of Cycle Racing at Heckington Show!
Our records show that the first cycle race was held at Heckington Show in 1869. We think that this makes Heckington the oldest bike race in the UK, if not the world! To celebrate the occasion, not only are we staging the British Cycling National 8 kilometre Championship for Men, but we are bringing you three Penny Farthing events.
For those of you in the know (or if you don't, a quick Google search will tell you), the Penny Farthing wasn't invented until 1871, by British engineer James Starley (although the French claim to have had something to do with – well they would, wouldn't they). So in 1869 the racing must have been on Boneshakers, the predecessor of the Penny. Unfortunately, we were unable to find enough people with Boneshakers who were prepared to come to ride them on the grass at Heckington. However, we have done the next best thing and brought you Penny Farthings.
When I was asked to organise these events, the first name that came to mind was Doug Pinkerton. Doug has been riding Pennies for many years and has won 9 UK National Titles, 4 Australian Open Titles and 5 World Titles, the last one being in 1991. So, who better to contact. Doug runs Pinkerton Classic Cycles from his base in Redditch, where he builds and restores bicycles of any description. He also hires out vintage bicycles for films and television, and can sometimes be seen riding them in the background. If you need to know about old bikes, he is the man to ask.
Not only is Doug bringing his own vintage Penny to Heckington, he is also bringing an English Boneshaker, the Penny's predecessor, and a Rover Safety, the bike that was the main reason for their demise. All of these bikes will be on the North Kesteven District Council's stand for you to go and have a look at. Doug, and the other Penny riders will also be there to answer your questions, and maybe pose for photos.
Although there is a big Penny Farthing meeting in Eastbourne on the same weekend as the Show, we have managed to get three more riders to come to Heckington with their machines. Michael Stout is travelling down from Durham, Jonathan Dumelow is coming up from Burton-on-Trent and Laura Wakefield is making the short journey from Wisbech. I'm not sure how many riders they had on the track at Heckington back in the 19th Century, but 4 riders on these machines is plenty. We have a track limit of 25 for our modern racers – that number would be unthinkable for Pennies.
Our records show that the first cycle race was held at Heckington Show in 1869. We think that this makes Heckington the oldest bike race in the UK, if not the world! To celebrate the occasion, not only are we staging the British Cycling National 8 kilometre Championship for Men, but we are bringing you three Penny Farthing events.
For those of you in the know (or if you don't, a quick Google search will tell you), the Penny Farthing wasn't invented until 1871, by British engineer James Starley (although the French claim to have had something to do with – well they would, wouldn't they). So in 1869 the racing must have been on Boneshakers, the predecessor of the Penny. Unfortunately, we were unable to find enough people with Boneshakers who were prepared to come to ride them on the grass at Heckington. However, we have done the next best thing and brought you Penny Farthings.
When I was asked to organise these events, the first name that came to mind was Doug Pinkerton. Doug has been riding Pennies for many years and has won 9 UK National Titles, 4 Australian Open Titles and 5 World Titles, the last one being in 1991. So, who better to contact. Doug runs Pinkerton Classic Cycles from his base in Redditch, where he builds and restores bicycles of any description. He also hires out vintage bicycles for films and television, and can sometimes be seen riding them in the background. If you need to know about old bikes, he is the man to ask.
Not only is Doug bringing his own vintage Penny to Heckington, he is also bringing an English Boneshaker, the Penny's predecessor, and a Rover Safety, the bike that was the main reason for their demise. All of these bikes will be on the North Kesteven District Council's stand for you to go and have a look at. Doug, and the other Penny riders will also be there to answer your questions, and maybe pose for photos.
Although there is a big Penny Farthing meeting in Eastbourne on the same weekend as the Show, we have managed to get three more riders to come to Heckington with their machines. Michael Stout is travelling down from Durham, Jonathan Dumelow is coming up from Burton-on-Trent and Laura Wakefield is making the short journey from Wisbech. I'm not sure how many riders they had on the track at Heckington back in the 19th Century, but 4 riders on these machines is plenty. We have a track limit of 25 for our modern racers – that number would be unthinkable for Pennies.
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Contact Us
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Cycling Secretary
Simon Hare phone07860 153113
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Youth Cycling - Go Ride
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Each year we hold an inter-club championship for Lincolnshire clubs registered as Go-ride clubs with British Cycling. Teams of 6 riders compete in 7 events, scoring points in each event. Come along again this year and support your local team. There may be a future Chris Hoy or Vicky Pendleton out there - and you could see them first at Heckington! |
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Sponsors
Thanks go to all our 2019 Sponsors:
If you would be interested in Sponsoring an event please use the contact details above.
General Enquiries: 01529 461823
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