Guardian News

A wheely good effort by James as Great Race excitement hits town

By James Wilson

8:50pm Thursday 2nd September 2010

WITH the build up to this year’s Knutsford Great Race in full swing, I thought I would take the opportunity to have a try myself.

If you don’t know about the event that will be taking place on The Moor this Sunday hopefully I can explain.

Every 10 years, an international Penny Farthing race is held in Knutsford.

And this year, the race has attracted 86 entrants, including participants from Canada, USA, New Zealand and Europe.

The day’s events will include a three-hour Penny Farthing marathon around the Moor, with 47 riders on the course at the same time.

A Boneshaker race will then take place, followed by a hobby horse race at 12.30pm.

A cannon which featured in the Battle of Waterloo will be fired to announce the start of the great race.

But in different surroundings, I met Glynn Stockdale at the Old Hal,l at Tatton Park, to see if I could ‘master’ the bikes.

After being told that despite measuring in at an above-average 5ft 11in that my legs weren’t long enough to ride the full size machine, I was left with the ‘child-size’ Penny Farthing.

Despite suffering a dent to my pride, I managed to get the hang of it pretty quickly and was soon racing around the park’s paths, impressing walkers with my newly-acquired skills.

One thing I took from my experience was that I didn’t fall off – however, I am 100 per cent sure I wouldn’t have been able to say the same about the full size machine.

With it being a truly international event I managed to speak to one of those who has travelled thousands of miles to take part.

James Turner, 32, has flown from Napier, in New Zealand, to take part in this year’s race.

He was asked to take part by his father, Roger, a dentist at Toft Road Dental practice, who is an organiser of the event.

“I arrived in town on August 18 to get ready for the race,” he said.

“I raced in the 1990 and the 2000 races, and because I had taken part in these, I just thought it would be a nice thing to do.”

James will be racing a New Rapide Penny Farthing – one he has owned since 2002 and came over with him from his home on the other side of the world.

“To be honest I don’t use the bike a lot back at home,” he said.

“But I have an ambition, no-one has ever ridden from the ‘top’ of New Zealand to the ‘bottom’.

“It is around 2,200km so I’m looking to do it as a sponsored event, but the Knutsford race needs to be completed first.”

To indicate the worldwide appeal of the race a team from the Czech Republic is currently riding from Prague to Cheshire on their Penny Farthings, and many of the competitors have reputations for riding formidable distances on their machines.

One thing is for sure, the riders mean business.

One Knutsford businessman, who wishes to remain anonymous, has lodged a 100 guinea stake with the race organisers that no-one will beat Nick Clayton in the hobby horse challenge race.

All entrants in that race will be riding original wooden and steel machines and it will be the first race on these for more than 190 years.

I’m sure if I was taking part in that race then the businessman would have nothing to worry about – but I’ve heard there could be a mystery rider ready to surprise the crowds.

For more information on the race visit theknutsfordgreatrace.co.uk or head down to the Moor on Sunday morning to see for yourself.

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