Charity postpones bike ride due to wet conditions

Organisers said the conditions would be hazardous if the event were to go ahead

An air ambulance charity has postponed its annual bike ride due to "hazardous" ground conditions after one of the wettest winters on record.

Midlands Air Ambulance Charity announced on Wednesday that it was postponing its Bike4Life Ride Out and Festival and said the safety of its riders was "paramount".

Organisers said they made the "difficult decision" to reschedule their biggest fundraising event of the year due to conditions being too wet to safely accommodate the 6,000 bikes and 10,000 visitors that were expected to attend.

The sold-out event was due to take place on Sunday.

The charity said that it had been closely monitoring the weather but the ground at the festival site would not have chance to dry out sufficiently before Sunday.

A spokesperson said the charity was "incredibly disappointed" and that the decision to postpone had not been taken lightly.

Emma Wood, head of fundraising and engagement for the charity, said: "We understand the disappointment and inconvenience this decision may cause, however we have acted with due regard for the safety of our riders, our supporters, our traders, and our staff and volunteers.

"Our annual Bike4Life event is one of the largest biker ride outs in the country which attracts thousands of people every year. It is also one of our biggest fundraising events that supports our lifesaving service, so this decision has not been made lightly."

The charity said it was exploring alternative dates and hoped to be able to announce a new date shortly.