FAQs

Do I need a bike to come on the ride?
If you don’t have a bike but would like to come on a ride, please contact us to discuss how we can help.

Are you insured?
The Great Wheelers Cycling Club is fully insured and the marshals who help organise the rides have all undertaken training with the CTC, which is the governing body for cycling-related matters.

Do I need to pre-book?
It is not essential to pre-book a place on a ride – you can just turn up and go! However, we do recommend that you contact The Great Wheelers first so that we can go through the formalities with you first, which means that the ride can start punctually.

How long are the rides?
The rides range from 5 to 10 miles. Look at our Past Rides section to find out more about our most popular destinations.

Who can come on the rides?
The Club is essentially a family-friendly ride so we encourage parents and guardians to cycle together with their children and enjoy spending time together. Parents and guardians must be able to cycle, although it is not necessary to have experience of road cycling as there are numerous volunteers to help marshall the rides.

Guardians can be siblings, aunts, uncles or anybody else. However, we do ask that guardians are over 16 years of age;

Children who can’t yet cycle, can still come on the ride in a child seat or on a tag-along.

My bike has a puncture. Can I still come on a ride?
Punctures are the biggest obstacle to cyclists, but it’s no problem if you don’t know how to mend a puncture yourself. Our Dr Bike sessions are held once a month on the Friday before a ride and the mechanic will carry out minor repairs to ensure your bike is roadworthy, such as mending punctures. And if you’re really interested, he will be only to happy to show you what to do to mend punctures yourself.

What do I need to wear?
You don’t need to wear any special clothing – not even Lycra – just wear normal clothing which is comfortable for cycling in, e.g. jeans and trainers. In cold or drizzly weather, a waterproof coat is advisable, and hats and gloves. Even in summer consider wearing gloves, especially padded gloves, which can make resting your hands on the handlebars much more comfortable.

Bear in mind that children on child seats needs extra clothing because they are not heating themselves up through exercise. They also have the wind directly in their faces, so need extra protection with hats, scarves and gloves.

One final reminder, please avoid long scarves and very flared trousers which could get caught up in your chain. You can wear special bands to keep flared trousers under control or just a plain elastic band will do the job. You can even tuck your trousers into your socks to prevent them getting caught in your chain.

Do I have to wear a helmet?
The Club operates a policy whereby we leave it to the individual cyclist to decide whether or not to wear a helmet. Each participant must sign a Consent Form indicating whether or not they have chosen to wear a helmet.

Are there any forms to fill in?

In line with our insurance, we ask each adult rider to fill in a consent form. We ask riders to fill in a consent form each year. You can complete this form on arrival, or you can download the form, complete it and bring it with you.