Bedford's Ready Steady Ride event a roaring success

Organised to support the construction of water wells around the world, the event saw 55 enthusiastic children aged three to 11 participate in a fun and challenging bike and scooter ride, covering distances from one to five miles.

The young participants, showcasing incredible determination and spirit, were rewarded with custom event medals for their outstanding efforts. Notably, seven children learned to ride a bike in the lead-up to the event, highlighting the event's success in promoting cycling skills and confidence among the youth.

In a remarkable show of community support, the children collectively raised an impressive £8,000 for the cause.

Additionally, Air Care Journey from Bedford Borough Council played a crucial role by providing balance bikes and scooters, ensuring that all children could participate. Their involvement also emphasised the importance of reducing pollution and encouraged residents to contribute to environmental solutions.

There was even a female short distance running race where a young participant came first, she raised an amazing £356 for the event. She said she couldn’t believe how nice the people were at the event. She and her mum added, "We didn’t know what to expect of the event but are so happy we attended. We will be telling all our friends and family to join next year."

Dr Julia Fruer, a Senior Lecturer in Health, Nutrition, and Exercise at the University of Bedfordshire attended the event with her daughter who participated and said: “The 'Ready, Steady, Ride' event at Bedford International Athletic Stadium provided a fun and exciting opportunity for children and their families to be involved in a physical activity challenge at an internationally-recognised athletic track to fundraise for a very worthwhile cause. Childhood is a key time of life for instilling healthy physical activity habits that can be maintained into adolescence and adulthood for lifelong impact, including the prevention of long term conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancers and mental health conditions.

“By promoting physical activity in young people, the focus can be on disease prevention rather than treatment, and we know that 'prevention is more effective than a cure'. The cycling and scooting physical activity modes that the children used to complete laps are also common modes of active travel, which has co-benefits for human and planetary health by reducing motor vehicle usage and the associated greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution for climate change mitigation.

“Further, the event provided an educational experience for the children, giving them the opportunity to raise funds for people who lack basic amenities that we often take for granted – clean water in this instance. All this resulted in a very positive experience, with children asking 'can we do Ready, Steady Ride again'!”

Ready Steady Lets Go and HAWAA, the organisers of Ready Steady Ride, expressed their satisfaction with the event's success. "This was a highly successful event; it was the biggest first event we've had in the past three years. The stadium is an asset to Bedford, and we were proud to hold the event there."

A big thank you to the Gale Family Charity Trust, whose generous sponsorship added to the success of this event.

For more details and future events, visit www.readysteadyletsgo.org | www.hawaa.org