On the 8th September 2015, a group of intrepid riders will be setting off from the Eiffel Tower on the RAFBF Battle of Britain 75th Anniversary Brompton Bicycle Challenge from Paris to London. As the event title suggests, they will be doing it all on a Brompton bike! Brompton have very kindly offered to loan a Brompton to every rider on the challenge – but some of the riders (until a couple of Sundays ago) had never seen, let alone ridden a Brompton bike! Therefore, the RAFBF and Brompton organised a familiarisation day for riders to make themselves better acquainted with this cutting edge British cycling technology.
(If you would like to join us on this ride, please see the details here)
Here is how their familiarisation day went…
A bright sunny morning greeted 15 riders who visited RAF Northolt to try out a Brompton for the first time. The riders were getting into the saddle to try out the bikes ahead of their Paris to London Brompton challenge ride.
It was quite a sight to see 15 of the iconic British-engineered fold-away bikes zipping across the airfield at the only Second World War RAF station still operating.
There were a few wobbles as the intrepid cyclists got used to their new mounts and the Brompton team were on hand to make any size adjustments.
Some participants brought their children with them who were more than happy to tuck into a fund-raising cake stall. And of course, the RAF Stig was there to get in on the act – challenging riders to a time trial!
The overall response back from the riders on the day was very positive – they loved the bikes and had a great day trying them out….so much so that one rider decided to buy his own bespoke commemorative Brompton bike which has been made specifically for this amazing challenge!
We would love you to join us on this very special once-in-a-lifetime event to celebrate British cycling technology and the Battle of Britain. You don’t need to own your own Brompton (the hire of a Brompton is included in the event ticket price). The registration cost is £350 and a minimum sponsorship of £1000 is required to fundraise for the RAF Benevolent Fund. Please check out the full details of the event here.
If you’d like to have a go on a Brompton (before committing to our challenge!) take a look at Brompton Bike Hire where you can hire one of these amazing machines for as little as £2.50 from various docking stations around the country.
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