Cycles donated to Tour of Britain town's bike park

Daniel Lister (in the suit) handed the bikes over at Northampton Bike Park with Martin Barnwell (far right)

A town that featured in this year's Tour of Britain cycle race has received a donation of 20 mountain bikes.

The bicycles, together with 20 helmets, will allow people to try mountain biking at Northampton's Bike Park.

They have been given to the venue by West Northamptonshire Council, working with British Cycling.

Martin Barwell, from NSport, said the donation was "a step forward in helping even more people to enjoy the bike park".

Earlier this month, thousands of people lined the streets of Northamptonshire to watch the Tour of Britain make its way through the county.

West Northamptonshire Council is hoping the excitement of the big race will raise the profile of cycling in the county.

Daniel Lister, the council's cabinet member for leisure, said: "Communities across West Northamptonshire came out to show their support for the Tour recently, and were hopefully bitten by the cycling bug.

"We're delighted to be able to gift these bikes to provide an opportunity for people who may not have previously been able to use the park to come along and enjoy all the benefits it has to offer."

The Tour of Britain made its way through Northamptonshire, watched by thousands of spectators

Opened in September 2022, Northampton Bike Park is a joint project between the council and Northamptonshire Sport on the site of the old Delapre golf course.

It has a multi-user green trail, off-road mountain bike trails of varying difficulties, plus climb sections and a skills area.

The Bike Park opened two years ago and has various trails for different skill levels

Martin Barnwell, the strategic director of operations at the NSport charity, said: "We run a programme of courses for beginners to the sport [and] being able to offer a bike as part of the package opens the opportunity to try mountain biking without the commitment of buying a bike.

"The donation also means we can invite local schools and community groups to come and try the facilities in pre-arranged visits."