The Lake Foundation is starting a cycling club in South London. Our cycling club will include fun  instructor-led cycling sessions that will help you keep active throughout the year, and it’s free!

A limited number of bikes and helmets will be provided and all are welcome; you don’t need to be an experienced cyclist to join, but you do need to have some experience of riding a bike.

To book your place please email events@thelakefoundation.com

The formation of the club has been possible through a grant from Sport England (Thank you!) and we are very grateful to the Cycling Instructor for their advice and support.

Hi there, my name is Samantha and I’m writing this blog about the exciting cycle journeys with the Lake Foundation.

 I joined the Lake Foundation cycling club after deciding to up my fitness levels and try out my new bike that I had brought. I found out about the club through my local leisure centre.  It had been years since I rode a bike and at first I lacked motivation getting back onto a bike but finding a group of like-minded people inspired me

By riding with the Lake Foundation twice a month my confidence has boosted, It’s the best way to progress your cycling. You learn how to ride safely and efficiently in a group with trained instructors and it’s far easier to head out for a training ride knowing you’ll be with a group of mates rather than on your own. Cycling really helps you feel physically stronger, it is a great stress buster and I always feel refreshed and relaxed after a ride even if my legs ache a bit.

The best part is that when I first started, I barely could cycle very far but after a few months of cycling with the club I was able to cycle 20-23 miles. Now I can cycle around 11-13 mph.  In May 16, My friend asked me to join her team to cycle London to Brighton 54 miles. I knew that it would be a big challenge for me but with all of the cycling with the group I felt confident that I could achieve my goal.

I made it to Brighton in 8 hours. It was hard and gruelling work. At some points I wanted to give up but I kept going! I’m still feeling the pain now. The first time you see Brighton in front you of is shortly after Ditchling Common it is an amazing sight. I used my GPS to track my journey as I went along and the steepest section was a 30.6% gradient. I prepared in advance for the Beacon by training in the gym alongside the cycling. I’d say that at least 80% of the people I saw on the incline had resorted to walking. Although it was hard work I just kept pushing on, and as I got closer to the top I was rewarded with the most amazing views. Then before I knew it the gradient reduced and I had conquered the Beacon! The best feeling ever! and knowing that it was downhill from there. I had an amazing day of cycling and I loved doing it as part of a team. I would definitely ride it again in the future.

I would most defiantly recommend taking up cycling and joining the Lake Foundation cycling club as  it is an amazing way to get to places and when it’s a challenge ride it feels like a real  good achievement. You’ll need a reasonable level of fitness but you definitely don’t need to be a super fit racer.  It is much more fun riding as a group and there’s sometimes a café stop on the journeys.

This month thousands of riders set out at too-early-o’clock on the legendary London to Brighton charity bike ride. Among them was The Lake Foundation cycle club member Sam.

Sam is a regular at our bi-monthly rides. Sam announced her goal to complete the London to Brighton ride on our WhatsApp group back in May:

“Guess what everyone I’m doing the London to Brighton [bike run]”.

In our cycle club fashion, the group began to send messages to cheer Sam on when she decided to keep us informed on WhatsApp about her training.

Training included regular on-road cycling and cycling in the gym. Her team, Cor Correya once rode to Biggin Hill through Sanstead and Warlingham over country lanes and hills. Sam messaged the WhatsApp group, “Only 19 days to the big event. Still time to join me if you want to.” Maybe next year!

As well as training Sam invested in a pump, a puncture repair kit and took her bike in for a maintenance check. This was a good way to avoid any mechanical mishaps on the day.

The big day came and Sam wrote to the group including hashtags #L2B and #HeartRiders, which we then tweeted in support of her. Sam kept up the conversation between her start at Clapham Common and arrival in Brighton. Members responded encouragingly:

“Keep going Sam. Keep up the pace and effort luv”

Our summer cycling sessions have been running since the beginning of July and we’re now half way through the sessions which will run until the end of August. This year we’ve had a lovely group of people come along to the sessions; all very friendly and eager to build their confidence in cycling and get some exercise.

Friday’s session was excellent. We had ten in the group and were led, once again, by Brian from the Cycling Instructor who was supported by Matthew.

In previous weeks we focused on cycling technique and riding safely on the road and this week it was time to put it all into practice with a ride from Croydon to Catford and back (about 9 miles).

Our journey to Catford took us along Route 21 which is part of the UK’s National Cycle Network  and is a 94 mile route from Greenwich to Crawley and then on to East Bourne via East Grinstead and Heathfield.

We began our journey at the beautiful South Norwood Country Park and joined Route 21 at Elmers End. The cycling path took us through the picturesque green spaces and quiet neighbourhoods of  Beckingham, Sydenham and Lewisham and included riverside cycling along the Waterlink Way.

This session was a lovely experience. The weather was perfect – sunny and mild, and the beauty of route was really impressive.  Many South Londoners, myself included, are certainly missing out on the beauty of our city as the pressures of city life mean we aren’t able to take the time to explore and appreciate the beauty that is right on our doorstep. Cycling really addresses this as it creates endless opportunities to explore the city of London in a fun way.

We encourage everyone to give cycling a try, you’ll be surprised at how fun and relaxing it is and at the journey of discovery you can have; you’ll see your city in a whole new light! And we love it because it provides you with a great way to get some exercise. It’s a win-win.

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Joins us next week Friday at Croydon Arena, all are welcome. For more information visit our events page or email events@thelakefoundation.com

Last Friday, we were absolutely delighted to be back at Croydon Arena for another round of summer cycling sessions.  We started these sessions last summer after teaming up with the Cycling Instructor with support from Croydon Council and as it went so well we decided to run the sessions again this year.

Friday’s session was the first in a series of four sessions which will run once a week throughout the month of July. The aims of the sessions are to improve confidence in cycling, prepare attendees for road cycling, teach basic cycling techniques and introduce people to an enjoyable way to get some exercise.

This first session was great fun and it was nice to see Brian from the Cycling Instructor again, he led the group last year and did a fantastic job so we were happy he was back with us again this year.  We were also really pleased with the turnout, there were ten of us and it was a really mixed group in terms of age, ethnicity and cycling ability, plus everyone was really friendly;  all the right ingredients for an enjoyable session.

After a round of introductions it was on to the serious part of the session, technique. We learnt how to check that our bikes are road worthy and then were instructed on the proper way to get on and off a bike, maintaining balance, braking properly,  riding with one hand (preparation for signalling) and cycling slowly (to prepare for cycling in traffic).

We were all given plenty of opportunity to practice all these techniques making this a very informative but practical session, and at the end of the two hours we had cycled several times around the track so we got some good exercise too!

The next session will be on Friday 10^th July at 6pm at Croydon Arena.  Please email events@thelakefoundation.com to register or call 07440 146 645, and you can download our flyer below for more information.

We would like to say a big thank you to the Cycling Instructor and Croydon Council for giving us the opportunity to run this cycling group.

We’re so excited to once again team up with the Cycling Instructor with support from Croydon Council to provide free cycling sessions over the summer. This is a fun way to get fit and active and can be a journey of discovery of the beauty of south London as we cycle through the many hidden green spaces along route 21.

This group has been organised as part of our drive to improve the health and wellbeing of the black community and it aims to: provide members with the opportunity to learn how to cycle; provide tips on cycling technique; improve confidence in cycling; prepare attendees for road cycling; and introduce an enjoyable way for people to get some exercise.

Last year we had a great time with our sessions being led by very experienced and friendly instructors from the Cycling Instructor. Our favourite sessions were the off-road cycling sessions where we discovered beautiful locations like South Norwood Country Park, the Waterlink Way and Riverpool Linear Park.

We’ll be starting on 3^rd July at 6pm at Croydon Arena.  Please do get in touch if you’d like to join us. You can email events@thelakefoundation.com  to book your place and to find out more. Our leaflet below also provides more details.

Sadly, our final cycling session of the season took place today. We had a great time with Brian from Cycling Instructor leading the more experienced members of the group on a 9 mile ride along Route 21 from Croydon to Catford. This was, once again, a lovely experience. The weather was great, sunny and mild, and the beauty of route was really impressive. Locations such as South Norwood Country Party, the Riverpool Linear Park and Cator Park were some of the highlights of the route and we recommend this route to anyone who is new to cycling. It is mostly off-road, very safe and picturesque.

Whilst the majority of the group cycled along Route 21, the less experienced cyclists stayed at Croydon Arena with Helen from Cycling Instructor to go over the basics of cycling. They had a nice session on maintaining balance, the correct way to get on and off a bike, pedalling and riding independently.

We had a great final session and have thoroughly enjoyed this season which began in August. Sessions were both informative and fun with attendees now more confident with cycling and keen to take up cycling as a hobby. We would like to say a big thank you to the Cycling Instructor and Croydon Council for giving us the opportunity to offer this activity to our community and we hope to hold more sessions in the Spring.