INGLISH DESIGN OF HARROGATE TOUR DE YORKSHIRE GUIDE – THE FAN PARK AND ROUTE DETAILS

Celebrations in the town begin on Friday 28 April when the Harrogate Cycle Festival opens.  The fan park will be located on West Park Stray in Harrogate, and provide a wide range of entertainment for residents and visitors to enjoy. The festival is free to attend and will be open from 4pm on Friday 28 April until 6pm on Sunday 30 April.  As well as  giving people the chance to watch the race on the big screen, the festival will also feature live entertainment including performances from Queen Tribute Band – HRH and award winning singer/songwriter Rob Reynolds on Friday evening, and Robbie Williams Tribute Act, Dan Budd, on Saturday evening. The event will also showcase the best local and regional musical and creative talent, include cycling themed exhibitions and activities, such as the opportunity to try out electric bikes; and feature street performances and a film screening.

On Saturday, the Artizani theatre company will be entertaining the festival crowds with their ‘Bees’ multi-sensory walkabout performance between 10:30am-12pm and 2pm-3:30pm. The Vegetable Nannies, two everyday gardeners who’ve taken their young vegetables out of the ground for a day trip, will also be amusing the crowds between 11:30am-12:15pm, 1:15pm-2pm and 3pm-3:45pm within the festival and on Parliament Street near the finish line for the race. Other entertainment on Saturday includes performances from the Band of the Royal Armoured Corps and Harrogate’s All Together Now Community Choir.Between 2pm-2:45pm, Open Country, a local cycling group for people with disabilities, will be taking to the race route on Parliament Street to promote disability cycling.Meanwhile, anyone visiting Crescent Gardens will have the opportunity to sample culinary delights from around the world at a mini StrEat Food Festival.

Visitors to the Royal Pump Room Museum, will be in for a cycling themed treat including an exhibition of vintage cycles – from a boneshaker to a penny farthing; oral history recordings by key people involved in Harrogate’s cycling history, including the daughter of legendary cyclist Beryl Burton; and a cycling shadow puppets film created by the museum’s artist in residence, Douglas Thompson. Further details about the museum, including opening times and admission prices can be found at www.harrogate.gov.uk/info/20151/royal_pump_room_museum

On Saturday evening, following the finish of the race, the Royal Pump Room Museum will be holding a free special ‘Evening of Cycling’ between 5pm and 8pm celebrating Harrogate’s rich cycling past, present and future with cycling experts and enthusiasts including cycling journalist Guy Kesteven, illustrator Martin Proctor and writer Martin Gatenby, author of ‘Life as a Mamils – My life as a middle aged man in lycra’.

On Sunday, the fun will continue at the Harrogate Cycling Festival with live performances from Moon on a Stick, who will be performing a selection of Disney songs, and local band Hot Source.

For those people keen to take to two wheels, a number of guided rides will be held for under 14s, women, and the over 50s which will set off from the Harrogate Cycle Festival. Anyone wishing to take part will need to register at the Specialized store located within the cycling festival before Sunday 30 April.

Further information on the Tour de Yorkshire can be found at letour.yorkshire.com or www.visitharrogate.co.uk/events/tour-de-yorkshire

For full details of the route and times take a look at http://letour.yorkshire.com/   or #tdy2017 #harrogate