First Ken gave us the Hovis London Freewheel, but their dough didn't rise to the levels of Sky (*groan*), so under Boris it was rebranded the Sky Sports Freewheel. This year it gets another facelift and will be titled the Mayor of London's Skyride. We're guessing Rupert didn't like the use of the word 'free' - Sky have bought into elite road cycling, and with this push into grass roots riding, perhaps we'll all be paying monthly subscriptions to ride our 'Murdoch-mobiles' in 10 years...
In the meantime, it's still free. As in previous years, there's the main event on closed roads around central London on the 20th of September (register here), but there are also a series of local rides led by volunteer guides each weekend for varying abilities. It's a great way to discover a new route through your local patch, and they even throw in a free t-shirt. We tried the North London off-road route (which was great, but a bit of a misnomer - don't attempt it unless you're comfortable riding in traffic). There are plenty of other options, from family friendly rides in parks, to longer rides out into the Essex countryside. So if you feel like going for a ride on the weekend, why not sign up for something from their calendar of local Skyrides.
