Six on Cycles

This term with the help of Ian Cullen from Sustrans, children at Fagley Primary have been learning how to cycle safely.

Today, I was asked to accompany a group of ten Year 6 children on a cycle ride passing through Fagley and Calverley and taking in the beautiful local woodlands.

We began in the morning by checking that all our bikes were in good condition. We then moved on to the playground where we practiced cycling up and down hills, over grass and safely crossing road junctions.

After lunch we slapped on plenty of sunscreen, filled our water bottles and went over the route for the cycle.

Our route began by cycling through the estate and over a meadow that extends along the perimeter of Morrisons Headquarters. The children squealed with delight as they sped through the long grass towards the beck.

The next part of our route took in a gruelling bumpy climb up Woodhall Lane. Ian talked to the children about pacing themselves. He told them to imagine that they had '30 pennies' of energy and they had to think about where to spend these along the route. Abisha, Jack and Reece decided to tackle the hill climb head on  and invest 10 pennies of energy cycling to the top of the hill without a break. Anesu, Karolina and Imtiaz decided they didn't want to go in to hard at the start of the cycle and would take the hill at a more leisurely pace.


At the top of Woodhall Lane after a water break, we negotiated crossing our first major road. Remembering their training from the morning, The children took it in turns to check the road was clear and make their way across the road and on to Priesthorpe Road. We were treated to stunning views  over  as we freewheeled down the lane taking advantage of the cooling breeze.

We made our way past stone houses, through Calverley village and towards West Wood. We were greeted by cheery hellos and smiles from the local residents and the children beamed back at them. The dappled shade of the woodland was most welcome as was the biscuit break we took at the halfway point of our route.

Next we headed down Clara Drive with its large executive homes with manicured lawns and gravel driveways. Laiba had a slight chain malfunction, but expertly righted it and was soon on her way again.

Crossing over Carr Bottom Road, we headed along Ravenscliffe Crescent towards Bill Wood (which joins Round Wood and Ravenscliffe Wood)
Legs were beginning to tire, but the familiarity of Forest School base geed us on to keep pedalling.

The final leg of our tour was an uphill climb in the blazing sun up Fagley Road and back to school. Weary and red of face, but not beaten we finally made it back to school, exhilarated by what we had achieved.

It has been a while since I have cycled and I was a bit nervous about riding on the roads, but I can honestly say, I had a wonderful afternoon. The children were fantastic, motivating each other to dig deep and keep going. I was so proud to be a part of their journey and wish them well as they begin their new journey as they leave Fagley and head off towards their high schools.