Burgess Hill Bike Ride
There are numerous events held all year to raise funds, including those linked to the Burgess Hill Summer Festival, and the Burgess Hill Bike Ride which we have run for many years in conjunction with the Round Table is one of the main ones. In 2014 we changed to running the Bike Ride with the Rotary Club.
The Bike Ride has 10, 20/25 and 40 mile routes and always attracts a good many riders, giving the chance for riders to raise much money for their own as well as our causes. We held the twenty-seventh Bike Ride on 9th June 2019 in aid of Headway East Sussex. We raised a total of £5,000 from this ride after all the sponsorship and GiftAid had been received and we presented a cheque for £2,500 to Headway East Sussex on 12th March 2020. A balance of £2,500 will be spent on the Lion's and Rotary Club's charitable causes as usual.
Headway East Sussex, 2020
We decided to take a break in 2020 - just as well, due to the Covid pandemic - and we are deciding whether or not to recommence in view of the current conditions.
Please see the Bike Ride's own link for more details.
The twenty-sixth Burgess Hill Bike Ride was held on 3rd June 2018, with the main beneficiary being the Chailey Heritage Foundation, resulting in a cheque for them of over £4,000. Subsequently, we provided them with children's books and DVDs for the school.
Chailey Heritage Foundation, 2018
The twenty fifth Burgess Hill Bike Ride was held on Sunday 4th June 2017 and for that year we again decided to have St Peter and St James Hospice as our main beneficiary, returning to an old favourite.
In 2016, we held the twenty fourth Burgess Hill Bike Ride in aid of the Sussex Cancer Fund, on Sunday 5th June 2016.
In 2015, it was on Sunday, 7th June 2015, in aid of the Sussex Heart Charity and in 2014, the Bike Ride was on 8th June 2014 and was the twenty-second annual Burgess Hill Bike Ride: over 500 riders took part!
The main beneficiary of this Bike Ride was for many years the St Peter and St James Hospice and this is very well supported by many in the area. In 2014, we, in conjunction with the Rotary Club, decided to support the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance Appeal. Since then, we have chosen a different charity each year.
Sussex Cancer Fund, 2016
Sussex Heart Charity, 2015
Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance Appeal, 2014
Pictures from past Bike Rides:
What do you do with your old Burgess Hill Bike Ride T shirts gathered over years of hitting the saddle for good causes? Do you wear them to wash the car or for DIY work? If you're talented Terri Stephens, you'll turn them into an eye-catching quilt to mark the 20th annual event.
"The Bike Ride used the same T shirt design for the first five years" said Terri, "and entrants were given year-dated badges to mark the event. The first dated T shirt was in 1998. That's why there are 16 designs in the quilt."
The Burgess Hill Bike Ride was devised by Terri's husband Malcolm as long ago as 1992, with the first event held in 1993. Since then it has raised over £100,000 for many charities including Barnardos, Knowles Tooth and Chailey Heritage.
Photo: Terri and Malcolm with the Bike Ride Quilt displayed at the 2012 Burgess Hill District Lions Club Charter celebrations.
