The London Bike Show 2015 - An epic day out!

Last week me, the girls and their friend, L took on one of the busiest cycling events in London bar Critical mass. The London Bike Show 2015

We were promised a plethora of fun for all the family and I'm happy to say they didn't disappoint here, with the tied in nature of the London bike show and the Telegraph Outdoor Adventure and Travel Show it wasn't long before we got our bearings and worked our away around seeing where the day would take us, starting off at the British Triathlon Trust's stand, where the girls were spoilt with colouring in and a mini triathlon, with the girls pulling off some very impressive times for their ages.
While they tried to beat the clock I discovered a dancing goat - It was at this moment we knew we'd picked the right day to attend, as everyone working the event were ramping up the madness for the last day, you just knew.

Loving the dancing goat at the #londonbikeshow

A video posted by Paul Hooker (@hooker1uk) on Feb 15, 2015 at 3:41am PST

It's time to test some toys, firstly the Islabike Bienn 20 and 24 small. L is less confident but jumped on and once she found her footing she took to it like a duck to water, similar to Lissy, who's looking for a new bike at the moment and seemed shocked that she needed a 20 inch bike compared to her 14 inch wheeled bike she currently rides. From here it was Daddies turn to test some Boxer Cycles utility trikes, mainly the Shuttle and the Rocket, I have to say I scream like a girl on the shuttle with the girls in the front, mainly down to how it steers on top of the power it has under the hood, suffice to say it's fast and fun.
Similarly the Rocket is a one stop mad transporter machine, pimped out for fast paced fun with uprated suspension, indicators, lights and horn to help keep you and your precious cargo safer.

From here the children wanted more fun and thanks to activities from
SuperBloc, Guide dogs for the blind, DMR Bikes, and much more for them to see and do. Leaving the kids buzzing with anticipation for next year. From a parents point of view - An amazing day for the more active children, however if bringing two or more children I would suggest getting there for doors opening to get the best from the day.



 Our video will be embedded here - once L's parents give us the ok to publish. I apologise about the screams and poor editing. It's taken ages to put together without crashing!



For the adult cyclist, outdoor fan and even the novice looking to get more from sport it's an ideal place to go, learn, try some of the years greatest feats in cycling so far and a key insight to future cycling trends. With Innovation from both companies and charities like See.Sense, CUDA Cycles, Raleigh, Rubena, Stolen Goat, RIDE EAT DRINK SLEEP, CTC, Sustrans, British Heart Foundation, British Triathlon Trust and many more too you could easily find anything you wanted to see and do in a relaxed atmosphere, something quite different compared to other major events I've been to in the past. While next year I'll try and take a day out to visit the 2016 show to get more photos and immerse greater in the sanctity of two wheeled greatness. both with and without the smalls.

The final show from Action Sports Tour was so full of energy, people who were there throughout the event told me these guys were upping their game every day becoming more immense every time they bought the show to a close. Truth be told I missed the first part of the show but was fortunate to see the second half and the finale, these guys were amazing, kept the now slightly tired crowd pumped and you could see how hard they were pushing themselves for the finale and they pulled it off spectacularly! Hat's off to them!

To wrap up - The 2015 London Bike show was an amazing event, tied in with the telegraph outdoor and adventure shows made it one of the most complete sports days out for everyone! I wholehartedly recommend going to the 2016 show from the 11th-14th Feb next year.


I must add extend a huge thank you to Steve Backshall from Cbbc's Deadly 60 for giving us a moment of his time while trying to relax with his family and at the same time sorry for disturbing you. We do appreciate it

What were your highlights of the London Bike Show 2015? Let us know and we'll add them to the post too!

Paul

We're going to the London Bike Show!

Last year both me and Vee embarked on a journey into London for an event and a trip to the London bike show, part of The Telegraph Outdoor Adventure and Travel Show – Driven by SEAT. Sadly, we were only able to stay for a short while but in the time we were there it was a fantastic day leaving us wanting more in 2015.
And thanks to the lovely event organisers, we'll be there on the 15th February, with two monsters ready to try everything they can get there little mitts onto. If there's enough time and I can keep the tablet or netbook charged during the day I'll host a G+ Hangout if possible.

The London Bike Show is the UK’s largest cycling exhibition, taking place 12 – 15 February 2015 at London’s ExCeL, As well as being able to see the latest bikes, clothing, components and accessories, you will also be able to enjoy our fantastic attractions free of charge (*although you will require premium tickets for the Training Hub.) From 1-2-1 assessments through to stunt displays, there's a host of family fun entertainment waiting for you all at the London Bike Show 2015

Vee With a Vitus Vee 29 bike! 

The London Bike Show, an event, perfect for riders of all ages, abilities and ride types. It looks to be one of the largest bike events in the capital, 

If you're looking for a family day out it'll be one to look forward to, as they've thought of everything for all riders - big and small.

The DMR Pump track offers visitors of all ages the chance to take part in taster sessions for a to see if dirt riding is for you in a safe environment, while it's not for everyone it offers you the chance to chuck around some serious hardware on a fast paced test track.

For children under 10 who don't wish to blat the Pump track they have the chance to check out the latest bikes on the market around their own dedicated test track. Perfect for parents who want advice and guidance to ensure the smalls get the best out of two wheels. Luckily, they get the chance to see Sir Chris Hoy who'll be showing off his latest Hoy bikes with his Hoy Kids under 10 skills clinic on the 14th Feb, It's a shame we'll miss it but it would be unfair for my two to take places from people who'll benefit more. I do hope to get chance to meet Sir Chris on the Sunday but we'll see.

For the grown up's you'll have the chance to try out the adult test track, with experts on hand to guide you into your perfect bike, be it road, hybrid, mtb or insane stunt rig they'll let you try it out, the kids love this as an opportunity to high five the riders last year. For the more competitive you've also got the Cytech Fastest Wrench Competition where you can win prizes, I know it'll be hard so I'm training for this now. With props to fellow nutter Fester

Hold on, you do more than ride?
Well, you're in luck then - on purchasing a London Bike Show ticket  you gain access to a plethora of amazing shows and events hosted at The Telegraph Outdoor Adventure and Travel Show – Driven by SEAT. These include The London Bike Show, the Triathlon Show: London and the London International Dive Show (Saturday and Sunday only) with one ticket allowing visitors access into all four shows. Offering not only great value for money, but the chance to explore new interests making it an action packed day out suitable for the whole family.

With six exciting zones the Show offers FREE have-a-go attractions, inspirational guest speakers, a range of information on everything ‘outdoor, adventure and travel’, no matter your passion, be it travelling, photography, climbing, watersports or exploring the British countryside - you'll find everything here for you under one roof. As well as the chance to take home some of the latest gear & equipment at special prices.

I was sent the list of speakers this morning and it blew me away in an epic scale with some amazing people coming to speak and that's just bike related. I hear the other shows will have top speakers like Steve Backshall, Kenton Cool, Sam Branson, Monty Halls, The Brownlee Brothers & James Cracknell along with 50+ other adventurers, travel experts, photographers and special guests. Even better - All talks are free on entry, it’s a fantastic opportunity to come and meet the UK’s most adventurous stars and get inspiration for your next adventure, be it on two wheels, tackling a cliff face, scuba adventures or just the chance to hear some legendary adventurers tell their tales I can promise you The London Bike show, part of The Telegraph Outdoor Adventure & Travel Show – Driven by SEAT will be the event you don't want to miss in 2015!


We'll be using instagram and Swarm/foursquare for impromptu meetups/G+ hangouts and much more too.

Me, Vee and Lissy will see you there.

Paul 

Me and Vee's Epic Day out Pt2

Lo' Peeps!

I've split our Epic day out into two parts as I'll be adding more content to the Online safety post soon. 

After we visited the Internet Safety workshops at the The lovely ladies at Frank PR also were able to secure us access to the London Bike show after we completed our sessions at Stratford. With that we said our thanks and pressed on via the Dockland Light Railway, an surreal treat for Vee as they are pretty much automated.  (Dear TFL make specific DLR price tickets for people going to the  ExCel Center, it sucks when I'm charged £8 for wanting to go to 8 stops return, especially as not everyone has an oyster card)  When we got the venue we made it just in time to watch an amazing stunt show from the Animal WD-40 riders, even if Vee complained she could not see too well. On finally walking around the venue we met with many exhibitors, including the #Space4Cycling crew, in light of a road rage incident due to space it felt relevant to us to join in with this important campaign to help keep motorists and cyclists safe, we all deserve respect on the road, despite the numpties who make us all look bad.
Shortly after we bumped into the lovely people from Topeak who may have found the solution for my next phone mount in September, then Islabikes who Vee demanded one of their junior bikes as soon as she can ride properly. I feel she'll be the mad cyclist like me in the future.


Additionally we met up with the team from the Vitus stand, the company responsible for my Naughtybike Vee 1(Yeah I know I talk about it a lot.) They had the Vee 27, Dee 29 and some more amazing bikes on display for people to drool over. I won't lie I want more from the Vitus line soon, It was good to put names to the faces to the people who helped me choose one of the most solid bikes I've ever owned. From Vitus we visited a huge array of stands including lights, helmets, clothes, accessories and security items, including the new invisible DataTag, where the security technology they use on bikes is so advanced it won't damage your frame and all parts can be tagged too, ideal for a high value bike.

Sadly we didn't get a large amount of time at the show especially as everything was a tad rushed on the day but we'll be adding some more pictures onto Facebook and Molome shortly. But in short the day was amazing, from a good morning learning about internet safety and helping educating parents and children to be careful online to Big brown bears, cybermen, top spec bikes and innovative new technology to make cycling safer for everyone who wants to use two wheels. The day was epic!
If you get the chance to visit the London Bike Show 2015 please visit. It'll be worth it, for the novices, mental riders, stunters and general cyclists. You won't be disappointed.

Paul