Tour of Britain : Your chance to get involved before race day

The centre of Newark will host junior and senior races, music and entertainment the night before the Tour of Britain heads to the town.

The Market Place and some roads surrounding it will be closed from about 4pm on Tuesday, September 5.

Newark Castle Cycling Club is hosting races at under-eight, under-ten, under-12 and under-16 levels. Entry costs £4.

Riders will tour the 0.4-mile circuit — including Church Street, Kirkgate, Middlegate and Stodman Street — as many times as possible during allotted time slots. The first junior race is at 6.45pm.

A one-lap sponsors’ time trial will be held following the junior events, at about 8pm.

Newark Castle Cycling Club is being supported by British Cycling, Newark and Sherwood District Council and Newark Town Council.

Live music and entertainment is being provided before and after the cycling.

For Mr Paul Beaumont, chairman and coach at the cycling club, the evening represents an opportunity to prove that Newark could host more events in future.

'A huge advert for the sport'

“It will show that Newark can be a player in attracting these races and attracting the community,” he said.

“The Tour of Britain is a huge advert for the sport — therefore we want to maximise people’s exposure to cycling, which in the past has been regarded as a bit of a niche activity.

“Newark was the first town to host a professional road race and if we can make these activities a real success then we would like to see it become an annual event with national teams taking part.”

About 20 to 30 young cyclists train on Tuesday evenings at North Muskham sports field, and Mr Beaumont said a proper base as part of the proposed Newark sports village would help the club to grow.

“The cycle track being proposed through the YMCA is fantastic,” he said.

“What we have found is that while we have the ability to coach children up to a certain age, when they reach their teens we don’t have an age-appropriate environment like a cycle track, so we lose them, and they only come back to the club when they are in their early 20s.

“What we would like to buy is a roller racing rig, which costs about £6,000. That’s the kind of thing we want to engage the teenage cyclists.”

The day after the tour visits Newark, the club is hosting a social ride. Anyone can take part, and it is likely to appeal to individual cyclists who want to ride as part of a peloton.

For more information about the junior races or the sponsors' race, contact Paul Beaumont on 07747 456123.