Ryedale’s towns and villages are gearing up for this year’s Tour de Yorkshire, during which riders will race through Helmsley, Kirkbymoorside, Pickering and Thornton-le-Dale. The race route follows the A170 through the district on Saturday 5 May, on its way to a stage finish at Scarborough.
This year sees another set of top class riders competing in the event, which for the first time has been extended to four days over the Bank Holiday weekend. Ryedale’s picturesque towns will be some of the stars of the show on what’s expected to be one of the most popular days for people watching the race at the roadside and for UK and international TV audiences.
And the district is set to shine, with decorations and activities right along the route. Helmsley businesses are competing with each other for the best window displays, and there’ll be a range of family activities taking place at Helmsley Community Library.
Plans are in place at Kirkbymoorside to make the most of the international TV exposure, with local children working hard on some ‘land art’ that can be seen from the cameras following the race in a helicopter. The town is also hosting the annual ‘tractor run’ and 10km races the same weekend.
Meanwhile decorations are being put in in Pickering and Thornton-le-Dale. Pickering’s church bells will be ringing to welcome the riders as they pass through. At Thornton-le-Dale a special ‘spinride’ event will be taking place all day to raise money for local charities, as part of day of community events.
Chair of Ryedale District Council’s policy and resources committee, Cllr Luke Ives, explained why the race is so important to the area, “We’ve been lucky enough to have been involved in every Tour de Yorkshire since it started in 2015 and people and businesses along the route always come out to support the riders and make the most of the event. For us, this is about promoting our area to the world – we’re lucky enough to live in such a beautiful part of the UK, and it’s fantastic to see communities along the route decorating their towns and villages and organising local events.
“The race is a great opportunity to get out to explore the district and to spend the day in the area, which has obvious benefits for our local businesses.”
Full race information can be found on letour.yorkshire.com. There’s local information about the race and the route through Ryedale on Ryedale District Council’s website: ryedale.gov.uk/tdy
There will be temporary rolling road closures in place as the race passes through the district, although disruption is expected to be minimal. The road closures will depend on the speed of the riders, which will be determined by factors such as the weather. As a guide, however, riders are expected at Sutton Bank around 2.55pm, Helmsley at 3.10pm, Kirkbymoorside at 3.25pm, Pickering at 3.40pm, Thornton-le-Dale at 3.45pm. You can check out all the race times and route details on letour.yorkshire.com.