My RideLondon – the first virtual edition of the world’s greatest festival of cycling – has come to a close after nine days of people pedalling to help save the UK’s charities.

More than 11,000 people signed up to take on a range of challenges, on a variety of wheels including bicycles, tandems, Brompton bikes, rollerskates, scooters and skateboards.

Rides were registered up and down the country and across the world, with participants riding from as far afield as USA, Brazil, Kenya, Japan and Australia. 

The virtual event was created as a substitute for this year’s RideLondon which was scheduled to be held on the streets of London and Surrey on 15-16 August before being cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

The event began on Saturday 15 August and concluded on Sunday (23 August). Some of the highlights of the final weekend included: 

Riding for daughter’s bravery: Nick Guttman, from Devon, raised more than £1,000 for Force Cancer Charity in Exeter. His daughter Nellie was diagnosed with breast cancer in September 2018. She has battled through the disease and it now back working full time for the NHS helping with its response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

No bike, no problem. Wheelchair-user Claudia Burrough, from London, was due to be taking part in the RideLondon-Surrey 46 this year as she worked towards completing the London Classics (the ultimate endurance challenge which requires people to complete the Virgin Money London Marathon, RideLondon-Surrey 100 or 46 for participants with a disability, and the two-mile distance at Swim Serpentine). Instead, Claudia took up the virtual challenge and completed the 46 miles in her wheelchair. 

Hugh Brasher, Event Director of RideLondon, said: “Congratulations to everyone who took part in a challenge over the nine days of My RideLondon. We created this event to give people an opportunity to raise funds for their chosen charity at a time when charities really need help, so it’s been wonderful to see so many people embrace the challenges to do just that. 

“The positive messages posted on social media has emphasised once again just how important cycling and exercise is to our physical and mental health. My RideLondon has given people the chance to get out on their bikes – or whatever wheels they chose for their challenge – to take on a challenge and have fun.” 

Participants in My RideLondon were able to choose from four challenges based on the traditional event weekend. There were 100, 46 and 19-mile options, plus FreeCycle which allowed you to set your own distance. 

By using the My RideLondon app, participants could track their own ride, compare it to the actual RideLondon routes, get a personalised finisher’s certificate and finisher selfie frames.