ON YER BIKE!
 When we embarked upon our mission to green the
Island's tourism industry over three years ago one of our
first obstacles to overcome was the complete lack of quality
cycle-hire services. The search lead me to a young guy
called Gavin Sullivan who at the time had an idea for a
company that would offer top quality mountain bike hire
alongside guided trail riding, we suggested adding on a
drop off service and within 6 months Wight Offroad was born!
Gav has since gone from strength-to-strength and has recently
opened a shop in Shanklin on the Island. He now offers
a full package for schools and visiting youth groups and
has even invested in a mini-bus and trailer to move large
groups around.
The following year we had two new companies join up with
the Green Island Awards, firstly the Bike
Shed, based
in a rural idle near Arreton, on the outskirts of the Bay
area. They offer cycle hire from the shop (a beautifully
converted barn), which is uniquely placed just a stones
throw from one of the Island's main cycle tracks; Route
23. Alongside the standard cycle hire they offer trailer
bikes and child seats as extras.
During the same year we had the arrival of Island
Pedal + Power located in Cowes, again just
a stones throw from the start of Route 23. They offer
new quality, well-maintained bikes for on and off-road
use although if you're after a machine for some serious
off-roading they do recommend you go to Wight Offroad.
They like Wight Offroad offer a full drop-off service
to your location.
During 2006 Island Pedal + Power opened up a hire service
at Brading Station in conjunction with Brading Town Council.
This offers a unique service where visitors arriving by
public transport can immediately pick-up a bike and set
off exploring the eastern Wight. This private-public partnership
is exactly the type of innovation that we have been looking
for and resulted in Island Pedal + Power picking up our Innovation
Award at our annual sustainable tourism awards last
May.
 Chessell Pottery Barns picked up this year's coveted Green
Island Business of the Year 2006 award and have
not simply rested on their laurels! They have recently
gone into partnership with Wight Cycle Hire ,
a new company offering cycle hire over on the west of
the Island. Located in one of the spare barns at the
pottery it is a truly magical location, the site has
direct access to the Tennyson Trail on its doorstep,
probably one of the most dramatic rides the Island has
to offer. They offer high quality bikes & accessories,
rucksacks, kiddies bikes, trailers and child seats. Similarly
to Island Pedal + Power & Wight Offroad they offer
full delivery & collection to any Island location.
If you fancy a bit of cycling holiday where you can cycle
between locations there are two services available to support
you. Firstly Wight Cycle Hire offers
a 'Tag-Along' service where they will move your luggage
on your behalf between accommodations. This is great if
you fancy beginning your trip over in Bembridge on the
east and working your way across (or round) the Island
to the west. Bag-Tag also offers a similar
service.
So after three years we have four major cycle hire companies
offering cycling hire services from all four corners of
the Island, and with the current proposals for the new
cycleway between the West Wight and Newport the demand
for such services can only grow. So whilst you are over
on the Island taking a break, why not try cycling part
or all of it, it really is the best way to take in the
unique experiences the Island has to offer!
Steve
www.wightoffroad.co.uk
www.the-bikeshed.com
www.islandpedalpower.co.uk
www.wightcyclehire.co.uk
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