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

A special day at Whipsnade Zoo. Review

Eh Up!

We were asked by the Superbreak Community to visit ZSL Whipsnade Zoo as part of the Superbreak Short Breaks promotions, offering great days and short stays at good prices. I'm so, SO glad we visited today.

We live about 3 miles away from ZSL Whipsnade Zoo and have grown up around the park, being filmed with my class at the zoo, on the Really Wild Road Show, growing up with my brother and step brother both working there, with the family up there as much as we could. It was always the local place to go and do things. A place forged into my memories.

I loved the feeling you get when visiting and I got that buzz again the moment we walked in. For the children this a magical feeling, I'm so happy it's not changed throughout the years, I'm glad it's retained it's fun and exciting atmosphere.
The staff were also happy and really bubbly, we found out 15 mins into our visit the celebrations were over the birth of a baby elephant at 5AM that morning.

We decided to take the Zoo Bus around the site and have a quick look around first, as we wanted the children's farm first it was a great chance to see the park without worrying as much about my partners disability. The Bus was a welcomed service to my partner who is registered disabled and mobility impaired. She found the stops to be decent and in the right areas for her. Also props to ArrivaBus for providing an easy access bus which can move up or down  and is wheelchair friendly bus, something the partnership between Arriva and ZSL should be proud of.

We visited the children's zoo first. As the kids said it best "Rabbits to Llama, Alpacas to Sheep, some just awaking while others want sleep." There is one thing children can find quicker than chocolate in a fruit bowl and that is playgrounds. They charged for the indoor playground, Hullabazoo, a purpose built playground mainly for the rainy days but was suited for both rain or sun, as there is a cafe inside we used it as an excuse for a quick coffee break.

Outside they have recently refreshed the playground, the old structures out and new ones in their places. I was impressed with both HullabaZoo and the outdoor play area,  mainly for the design and the signage to help children find their way to help points if they get lost or hurt and plenty of places to sit and chill while the monsters play.

The girls decided they wanted to go on the train, and got a tad upset that it was not running until a certain time, entirely our own fault for not checking the times when we were planning the day ahead. Luckily the Sea lions took their minds off it. We went into the underground observation windows to see Salt and her cohorts were rockin' the tank, despite Salt not doing any tricks any more. They certainly showed the kids how cheeky four playful Sea lions could be.

I received a message to let us know the Jumbo Express, The new name for the Great Whipsnade Railway was about to open. This railway is special, It's a narrow gauge line with specially cared for trains, with Excelsior, the oldest was in service today. I'll admit the engine looked spectacular, testament of the dedication and effort and darned hard work the railway society staff put into this special railway.  Both Vee and Lissy loved it. I'll be uploading video from our trip soon

Straight after our train ride we went to see the tigers and elephants, one of the tigers was very photogenic, despite being unimpressed by the lack of conkers he's found, well that's our story and we're keeping to it.

The elephants were exciting, despite not seeing the calf in the paddock, next time maybe.
After seeing plenty of amazing animals and the girls and my partner were beginning to grow tired. I wanted to quickly see the penguins, bears and monkeys which are situated in the same corner of the park, One girl came the other decided to stay with mum.

Suffice to say Vee loved the penguins and their cheeky behaviour, the Wolverines we saw were scary to her but she told me the brown bear "needed hugs". I agree with that comment, he really did look sad, like he was missing someone or something had upset him, on reporting it to the staff it's a ploy he uses to try and get food scraps. Cheeky little scallywag.

We finally took a trip to the Discovery Center to look at the creepy crawlies and some of the most beautiful butterflies I've seen in a while.

The food and drink prices for such a large venue were actually reasonable. I was expecting to be swearing in my head or begrudgingly paying for overpriced gak. Thankfully This was not the case. Drinks were priced ok and food prices were ok too. Still higher than some cafe's but better than expected from larger corporate parks.

From chubby Chameleons to a relaxed European bear, wolverines, mooses, rhino, monkeys and the penguins. we had a great time today at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo thanks to Superbreak!

Overall I'll give it a 9 out of ten and do recommend visiting the zoo on quieter times of the year as you'll enjoy it more.

If you end up visiting the Zoo with your family here are some easy tips to help it go with a breeze.

Overall I'll give it a 9 out of 10 and do recommend visiting the zoo on quieter times of the year as you'll enjoy it more. Especially if your children dislike hustle and bustle or busier environments.

If you end up visiting the Zoo with your family here are some easy tips to help it go with a breeze. 

Plan ahead, use the website to understand what you want to do first and work from there onwards. It'll help you get the best out of the day. Especially with all the activities, talks and demonstrations on around the day.

Use transport options like the free zoo bus to your advantage. Trust me it does come in useful if you don't drive. or take scooters for the kids so they can scoot to the enclosures and events with you. I'll be trying that the next time we go.


If you are disabled or need assistance discus this with the zoo directly. The staff are very keen to assist if they are able to do so. They can help plan your day with you to make sure you get the most out of your day.


If visiting via Rail and bus links from out of the area (this is doable.) remember to plusbus rail tickets. From Luton train you would have to walk to bus stop 10 at the new interchange, Take the A bus to Asda/Grove theatre and wait there for the x31 to Hemel Hempstead. check the times first though as the zoo bus diversion is limited to a few a day, not a good option but during summer this increases to hourly.


Do you like Zoos and have you visited Whipsnade Zoo? Tell us all!
Cheers! 

P, J, and the kids!