The time has come to get your name down for the start on 15th July – entries for the Steel Valley Ride 2023 are now open. Click the button below to enter, and remember one of the first 50 entrants will win a £150 Trek voucher so don’t hang about:
Our fingers have thawed out enough from riding at the weekend to let you know to save the 15th July in your diary for this years epic edition of the Steel Valley Ride. Entries opening very soon, keep checking back here for full details.
On Saturday 23rd July over 100 riders took up the challenge of the Steel Valley Ride for the first time in three years. The riders and the organisers were happy to be gathering at the event HQ in Fox Valley again, with nervous excitement buzzing in the air.
Heavy rain had battered the course 24 hours earlier, but the conditions on the day were good, making for fast times out on the 31 mile course. All but a handful of riders made it successfully to the finish, though everyone had a smile on their face whether they made it back on two wheels or four.
The Steel Valley Ride is organised by local conservation charity the Steel Valley Project as an annual fundraising event in partnership with Trek Bicycle Sheffield Fox Valley. As event partner the Trek store became the ride HQ for the day and Trek also provided a £150 voucher for a prize draw on the day.
Tom Newman, General Manager at the Steel Valley Project said “It was such a buzz to finally be running the event again, and to see the smiles on the riders faces at the finish line is such a great feeling. Huge thanks go to our volunteer marshals and event partner Trek without whom the event simply wouldn’t happen. Thanks also to Liberty Steel for the use of their car park for the riders.”
First time rider on the event Richard Pearson said “…great event, and a great route that was very well planned and signed. Many thanks to the organisers and the event volunteers!”.
Andy Cook, manager of Trek Sheffield said “It was great to see so many riders of all ages and abilities taking part in the ride. Trek Sheffield are always keen to support this event due to the excellent work carried out in the local area by the Steel Valley Project, we are already looking forward to next year.”
For more information on the countryside management work carried out by the Steel Valley Project, please visit www.steelvalleyproject.org
With just under 4 weeks to go preparations for the Steel Valley Ride are well under way and we are super excited to meet all the riders in July.
We need just a few more volunteer marshals to be out on the course to help make the event run as smoothly as possible. If you are interested in volunteering then please drop us a line to info@steelvalleyproject.org and we’ll be in touch.
Following a two year hiatus due to you know what, we are pumped to be able to announce the return of the Steel Valley Ride on 23rd July 2022. This year the ride will be part of the all new Stocksbridge Cycling Festival based at Trek Bicycle Fox Valley, full details of the event to follow.
The ride will follow the same classic 31 mile route; packed with technical descents and 3500 feet of gruelling climbs.
You can read more about the event here, or to enter click here.
Our popular 31-mile mountain bike challenge is back for 2020!
Starting and finishing at Trek Sheffield in Stocksbridge, we’ll be following the same route as previous years. Riders will head towards Langsett before tackling the technical terrain over Cut Gate and then dropping down the adrenaline fuelled descent into the Derwent Valley.
From here, the route climbs back up to Whinstone Lee Tor and onto the superb flowing bridleway down to the feed station at Cutthroat Bridge. The return to Stocksbridge is then on quiet roads and lesser known bridleways around Strines, but watch out for the final sting in the tail!
Typical entrants range from the experienced mountain biker wanting to challenge themselves with a speedy circuit, to those looking for a fun day out with friends. You have around 20 weeks from when entries open to the event itself, so plenty of time to get yourself into shape for the big hills and technical descents 😉
There are 150 places available on the event, the same number as last year. All our 2019 places had sold out by the start of June, so we recommend you grab your place early to avoid disappointment.
More details on our Enter page.
“Another great edition of the Steel Valley Ride yesterday. Thanks to all the Steel Valley Project organisers and all the marshals who endured on a day of all weathers. Roll on next year!”
The Steel Valley Ride is back for 2020.
Entries open on Sunday 1st March
With places for last year’s event selling out, we recommend you get your entry in early to avoid disappointment.
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/TheSteelValleyProject
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesteelvalleyproject
Twitter: https://twitter.com/steel_valley
“Another great event and well organised. Thanks again to everyone who makes it possible and organising it. Absolutely loved it!”
“Another great event and well organised. Thanks again to everyone who makes it possible and organising it. Absolutely loved it!”
The third Steel Valley Ride mountain bike event took place at the weekend and what a day!
With all 150 places on the event selling out by early June, the stoke was high this year. Leading up to the big day, our social media was full of comments from people training and getting ready for the ride.
Registration on the day opened at 9am but with enthusiastic riders arriving much earlier we decided to open at 8.15am to help get people through the process. With the first rider briefing scheduled for 9am, it meant a little waiting around afterwards, but luckily the sun was shining!
Once rider registration had closed and the event sweeper was on his way, it was time for the team to drive to Cut Throat Bridge to set up the feed station (mile 18). Back at event HQ, Andy (manager at Trek Sheffield), drew the winner for a pair of Bontrager Flat Line shoes which had been kindly donated by Trek Sheffield for the first 50 entrants. Congratulations go to Kevin Hilton who had a nice surprise on his return.
By the time riders started arriving at the feed station, the weather had changed and there were reports of strong winds and horizontal rain high on the moors around Cut Gate. Luckily, the weather improved and with the fun descent of Whinstone Lee Tor leading into the feed station, there were lots of smiles on arrival.
After the feed station, the route covers quiet country roads and bridleways around Strines to weave back towards Stocksbridge. However, an unexpected last minute diversion was required when our marshal encountered a burning car in the middle of the road.
His quick thinking meant that the fire brigade were soon on the scene and the route was diverted to avoid the obstacle. If you wondered why your GPS was showing you off-route around Broomhead reservoir, that was the reason!
Around 3 hours after the first riders had left, we started seeing people arrive back at event HQ. As people leave at different times over a 1 hour period, there are no prizes for being the first back. All riders are winners, walking away with a free Trek water bottle!
We run this event to highlight awareness of our charity and to raise valuable funds to support our countryside management work in the area. For our small team of Steel Valley Project employees, it’s lots of work but also hugely enjoyable and rewarding.
However, an event of this nature simply could not take place without the support and goodwill of our event partners and volunteer marshals.
Massive thanks goes to Trek Sheffield in Fox Valley Stocksbridge, who once again gave up part of their workshop area for our event HQ, supplied limitless cuppas for our event team and donated a free water bottle for every rider on their return. Their behind the scenes support for this event must also be recognised, they really do help us to put on a great day.
Our volunteer marshals are also integral to the event. Without them, we would not have the resources for people to be stationed at key points on the route or to help at the feed station – so a big round of applause for anyone who gave up their Saturday to get involved 👏
Special thanks must go to Ride Holme mountain bike guide, our route sweeper for the second year running. Jason, otherwise calling himself the ‘grim sweeper’ for this event, provided morale support for anyone riding at the back and also collected all the route signs/any litter, ensuring that nothing was left behind in the countryside. He rode the full 31 miles, but the nature of a sweeper means carrying more weight and spending longer on the route than anybody else!
“Thank you to all involved in organising such a good event, well signposted and great marshals.”
It was also great to get event photographers SportSunday involved for the second year running. Their images of riders coming down Whinstone Lee Tor will give anyone entering the event a great reminder of the day and the opportunity to own a professional picture riding their bike. In case you missed it, event pictures can be found via this link here.
Big thanks to Liberty Speciality Steels for providing free parking for all event participants in their staff car park and also Dransfield Properties Ltd who arranged for the event team to have parking in Fox Valley itself.
We’d also like to give thanks to everyone who shared details of the event on their social media, helping 2019 to be the first year that the event sold out.
We received tons of fantastic comments from riders on the day, plus via social media after the event. Whilst there are too many to list, hearing and seeing each one makes our efforts worthwhile, so thank you!
“Awesome day. Thanks to all involved.”
“Really enjoyed it! Same again next year.”
“Thanks guys. It was a top event as usual.”
“Cracking ride. Loved it!”
“Cracking day out on the MTB at the Steel Valley Ride.”
“Cracking riding up over Cut Gate on the Steel Valley Ride. Great event too.”
“Great event, thanks to all the volunteers.”
“Another great edition of the Steel Valley Ride yesterday. Thanks to all the Steel Valley Project organisers and all the marshals who endured on a day of all weathers. Roll on next year!”
“Great day riding with the Steel Valley Project ride.”
“Top ride on one of my favourite routes.”
“Easily the toughest ride I’ve done, brutal climbs, amazing descents, great company and some crazy weather. Had a fantastic time today, thanks Steel Valley Project.”
“Great event, enjoyed it.”
“Good event, thanks to all involved.”
“We really enjoyed the event and will definitely do it again. Thanks to you and the team.”
“Great event organised by the Steel Valley Project.”
It’s also worth noting that a Peak District National Park Ranger commented on how polite and courteous everybody was.
Finally, we’d like to thank everyone who entered the Steel Valley Ride, supporting our work. Particular thanks go to those people who took the time and trouble to set up event sponsorship pages to help raise more money for our charity.
If you missed out on a ticket this year and want to be kept in the loop for any future events, keep an eye on this website and our social media pages:
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/TheSteelValleyProject
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesteelvalleyproject
Twitter: https://twitter.com/steel_valley
To find out more about our conservation and countryside management work, take a look at our website: www.steelvalleyproject.org
See here for more information about volunteering with The Steel Valley Project.
The Steel Valley Ride event photographs are now online.
https://www.sportsunday.co.uk/
Thanks to event partners ‘SportSunday Event Photographers’ for covering this event 🙂
With just a few days to go until the 2019 Steel Valley Ride, the final preparations are well underway.
Event Information Packs were emailed out to all riders last week, but if you’ve mislaid your email, you can download a copy by clicking on this link: Event Information Pack 2019.docx
Event photographers SportSunday Event Photography will be taking pictures around mile 18, on a fast downhill section (Whinstone Lee Tor) as you descend towards the feed station. Get your smile ready for the camera 😎 📷
The pictures will be available to view on their website from Sunday afternoon/evening.
Look forward to seeing you on Saturday….
Steel Valley Ride 