In this month’s newsletter:-
TdF and TdFF Routes Presentation Paris
Fancy Dress Parade at the Fireworks and Bonfire on Saturday!
Pumpkin Patch Dash
Muddy Hell
Save the date Festive 50 events
Christmas holiday clubs
Tour de france and Tour de france femmes avec zwift route presentation
Next year both the TdF and TdFF tours begin with 3 stages in the UK including a team time trial for the women in London. Herne Hill Velodrome is incredibly grateful to the organisers of the Grand Depart 2027 for inviting 10 youngsters from HHV aged 9-14 to attend the route presentation last week in Paris!
Our young riders got up very very early and met at 3:45am to travel to Paris for the day and were rewarded with amazing seats in the presentation and the opportunity to rub shoulders with their heroes. We then managed a short walking tour of a couple of well known sights before heading back to Gare du Nord for the train home!
Thank you to Thea Smith for the organisation with Grand Depart London Lead Amelia Ashton-Jones. Amelia accompanied us from arrival in Paris to our own grand depart following the presentation, organising our Metro tickets, seats in the presentation, translation earpieces and money for lunch at a local bakery afterwards! Thanks also to Boris Stringer for helping out with the organisation and accompanying us on the trip
Our young representatives met Ministers for Sport from England, Scotland and Wales, the Directors of both the TdF (Christian Prudhomme) and TdFF (Marion Rousse) as well as former olympic and pro riders Dani Rowe, Marcel Kittel, Mark Cavendish and Chris Froome and enjoyed collecting selfies and autographs along the way! It was a day we will all remember and the youngsters did themselves proud with their behaviour and representation of HHV and London. Well done all!
FANCY DRESS PARADE THIS SATURDAY!
For any of you lucky enough to have tickets for the sold out fireworks and bonfire this weekend, please make sure your little ones are clad in their finest halloween outfits to take part in the fancy dress parade! The youngster judged to have the best scary outfit will win the opportunity to press the big red button to start the fireworks display at 7pm and every participant will receive a small prize for their effort!
5pm Gates open
5:45pm Fancy dress parade and competition
6pm Bonfire lit
6:20pm Fire Eaters display
7pm Fireworks
7:20pm LED Dance show
9:30pm Event ends
There will be a variety of food and drink options on the night so please do not bring any alcohol, glass or food on site - there will be security checks at the gate.
There will be no parking at the Velodrome and parking in the local area is limited. We recommend people walk, cycle or come by public transport.
Also good to know:
The Lost Child point is the ambulance as you come in on the right but we would rather not need this so please do keep a close eye (and grip!) on little ones throughout the evening
Please bring a physical ticket or proof on a mobile as evidence of purchase (the phone reception is not great on site so please make sure you have a screenshot!).
Contact friends@hhvt.org if you have any questions
Saturday 7 November 10am-1pm
Join us for our new kids halloween event designed to celebrate balance biking
Replacing our annual Spooktastic Cycling event, this year’s event gives young riders a refreshed and exciting way to enjoy the autumn festivities with us — all before Muddy Hell, our big cyclocross racing event later in the afternoon and evening.
We’ll have face‑painting, drawing and painting and of course plenty of cycling — all included in the ticket price. At HHV, we love balance biking and want to celebrate with you the freedom it gives young riders.
Who is it for?
This event is designed for children aged 2–8 years, whether they’re brand new to balance bikes or already confident riders. Children who can already ride pedal bikes are very welcome and can still enjoy the fast and furious racing on balance bikes. There are two bookable free‑ride slots, running from 10am until 11:30am. Children can explore, play, and enjoy the course at their own pace.
Are you feeling the need for speed?
After free‑riding, the racing begins! There will be four age categories: 2+3 years, 4+5 years, 6+7 years and 8+ years old
Every rider will complete a heat and a final.
Races take place on our specially designed multi‑terrain course and last only a few minutes. Every racer receives a medal, regardless of finishing position. Creative activities — including face‑painting — continue throughout the event for both free‑riders and racers.
Muddy hell Racing 7 November
There’s plenty of action coming up for young off roaders with the Muddy Hell U12 and youth cyclocross races. Grab your best spooky outfit and join in the fun then hang around and watch the adults in their best costumes taking on the course in the dark!
Spectating is free (and spooky outfits are also strongly encouraged!) but this year you need to grab yourself a ticket to spectate so please don’t delay!
save the date: christmas Holiday clubs
This year we will be running 3 extra holiday club sessions in the Christmas school holidays 21-23 December. Currently planned for both track and mountain biking, entries will be opening on Eventrac here shortly.
save the date: festive 50 laps
Since 2023 we have invited youngsters to take part in our Festive 50 challenges to raise funds for those less fortunate than themselves to come to the velodrome for cycling. In the past 3 years, these youngsters have raised a whopping £16,000 by turning out in the challenging weather between Christmas and New Year and pedalling their hearts out for a good cause.
Inspired by our adults attempting the Festive 500 immediately after, our young riders aged 8-16yrs will be attempting to ride 50kms on the main track (112 laps) in one go. Brief stops for food and water are permitted but the event is on road bikes so they should be able to sustain themselves on the bike and there is a tight deadline for finishing to allow the Festive 500’ers to get underway for their epic challenge.
Recipients of the funding raised to date include local youngsters, both individual, schools and community groups who have come for learn to cycle sessions, mountain biking, track sessions and holiday clubs. These sessions have provided the young people with opportunities to learn to ride and ride here, giving them lifelong skills and created memories to last a lifetime as well.
Thank you so much to everyone who has supported the young people in their endeavours and to everyone who has sponsored them - your support is truly life changing.
Watch this space for applications for this year’s event!
That’s all for this month. As ever if you have any questions or feedback please do get in touch with us by email (tbell@hhvt.org (8-16yrs) or hhorsman@hhvt.org (under 8s)) or grab us for a chat at the track.
Happy Halloween 🎃👻