Too tired for a ride, the best thing you can do is get on and cycle. Even if you’re miserable when you saddle up, cranking through those miles will lift your spirits.

Three 30-minute sessions a week can be enough to give you a lift and make you happier whilst also burning a higher number of calories for a few hours after you stop as the body’s metabolic rate is not only raised during a ride, but for several hours afterwards.

Don’t own a bike or are unsure if cycling is for you? Worry not. We have the answer.

Hire a bike and explore! This way you don’t have to worry about your fitness levels or whether cycling is for you or not. Just a day’s hire starts from as little as £16.00 for an ordinary pedal bike and if you want to take it easy and go that little bit further try an electric bike from £45 and cruise around the countryside discovering those hidden gems you miss driving around in the car.

IWe have devised several easy to follow routes so you can explore at your leisure and not worry about loosing your way.

Best of all why not treat yourself and a loved one to a day to remember for Valentine’s day. St Valentine is a legend and story shrouded in mystery so what better way to celebrate this day than go for a romantic cycle out in Wiltshire’s countryside past Stourhead through beautiful woodland where you might see snowdrops, or bluebells or maybe even a daffodil depending on the weather. The Ponds View Tour is at a special price of £125.00 per couple. This consists of; the hire of two ebikes, a guide to take you around and finishing off with a warming hot chocolate and marshmallows around your very own fire pit at the Three Oaks Farm Campsite which is located on the edge of Wiltshires’s area of outstanding natural beauty .

Make your Valentine happy with this romantic tour for two and book now

The range of hire bikes available includes electric, foldable and mountain, all our bikes are very well maintained and checked over before every hire providing a first- class service ensuring that customers are happy with their hire.

Call 01256 353465 or email info@espokes.co.uk to discuss your requirements

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Reasons for owning an ebike

Why own an electric bike? Beating the hills, exploring the world whilst keeping fit, saving money and having fun! That is what owning an ebike means.

Electric bicycles offer the same benefits as regular cycling; the difference is due to the motor and the power setting you choose. Every time the pedals are pushed you’ll get three, four, five or maybe even 10 pedal strokes more. This means greater distances and longer rides. Great news for the heart, lungs and blood pressure as endless scientific study has proven the link between regular exercise and reduced stress levels.

According to a report by the Transport Research Laboratory, regular bikes are taken out of the shed less than 25 times a year, with 46% being used just once or twice a week. In comparison, 30% of people with electric bikes use them every day, while 81% ride them at least once a week. E-bikes are also good for those whose fitness isn’t what it could or used to be due to age or illness.

The average speed of cars in central London is 7.4mph! On an e-bike 15mph can almost instantly be reached, making them safer than ordinary bikes as it takes a few vital seconds for a regular cyclist to build up speed when stopped at junctions, crossroads and roundabouts; which is where most bike accidents on the road happen; due to the instant acceleration from the motor a faster exit from the danger zone is achieved. Ebike riders are also less likely to jump a red light and are more willing to slow for bends and corners; where many cyclists come off. Finally, being able to keep up with the flow of traffic more easily means, fewer cars, buses and lorries feel the need to overtake, making for safer riding.

With the many choices of stylish electric bikes and accessories now available; many have swapped their cars saving money on commuting as well as saving the planet making ebikes the “coolest way to travel”.

Give it a try and hire an ebike for the weekend www.espokes.co.uk/ebike-hire/

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Breeze rides for women led by women.

Bleary-eyed early on a frosty Sunday morning, I dragged myself out of bed, fuelled up on a hearty bowl of hot porridge and dressed myself head to toe in layers of tights, leggings, vests, t-shirts jumpers and coats, questioning my own sanity and wondering if in fact I was even able to walk in all these clothes let alone ride a bicycle!

Why do I do this, when I could so easily have still been snuggled up in my nice warm cosy bed dreaming of swimming with pigs in the Bahamas!

The answer to your question is Breeze.

Breeze was set up in 2011 by British Cycling, Sport England and Sky with funding from the National Lottery. The initiative was started to encourage women to get fit and have fun on their bicycles, by going on women-led rides.

At Espokes, we have lots of customers who haven’t cycled in ages, are nervous about going on the road, get off to walk around corners, are put off cycling with men who know it all and who wobble more than a plate full of jelly.

It is our pleasure to take these customers out on a short ride to test an electric bike. After a few circuits outside our showroom, they are no longer getting off to walk around the corners, their scared faces have turned to beaming smiles and they are asking if they can go a little further.

The common denominator among these customers is simply lack of confidence.

Riding an electric bike is like you have someone behind you pushing you along; suddenly it takes all the strain out of that killer hill you would never have even contemplated. Having the assistance there also helps you balance better, especially on takeoff, and now you will want to go out on your ebike come rain or shine. You will also no doubt, find yourself going double the distance than ever before.

Seeing how an electric bike has transformed people’s lives is such a fantastic feeling.

Cycling does make you happy and I want other people to experience this too. Even on their ordinary bicycles. Which is why back In April last year I went off to be trained as one of over 2,000 volunteer Breeze Champions who organise and lead ladies rides.

This programme is the cornerstone of British Cycling’s ambition to get one million more women on their bikes by 2020.

As a Breeze champion, I am responsible for organising fun social bike rides for women to take part in. This is to help encourage women to become more active, improve their fitness as well as enabling them to meet new likeminded people.

So when I saw the Breeze Through Winter campaign, I thought it was an ideal opportunity to motivate some ladies to come out on their bicycles.

Last year Breeze recorded 6,500 women taking part in the challenge, which started January 1^st and runs to 28^th February.  As an added incentive, they are rewarding everyone who completes four HSBC UK Breeze rides before 28^th February with a cycling goody bag.

With my first ride booked up in a matter of hours, it was a promising start.

Come Sunday morning, we were very grateful to be blessed with beautiful sunshine, even if it was very cold.

My ladies arrived – equally as layered up as me and all smiles.

I had planned a short ride to start us off. Living in Somerset means we have a hill every which way, but I had managed to find a short ride with just one gradual hill in – which I figured would be good for us all, it would also mean we had worked for our coffee and cake stop which was at the top!

The coffee shop near the end of the ride, not only gave us a chance to warm up, but also to bond, and soon all the ladies were talking to one another as though they already knew each other. It also gave me a chance to find out what they want from the rides.

Cycling with these wonderful ladies is what gets me out of bed on a frosty Sunday morning. I certainly had a lovely morning and it left me feeling refreshed and energised for the rest of the day.

So whether you have made getting fit your new year’s resolution or you are already a seasoned Breeze rider. Sign up on some rides and let’s see if we can beat last year’s 6,500 and if the only thing putting you off is the thought of those hills – we are hiring electric bikes at a discounted rate to ladies booked on a Breeze ride of only £15 book yours now email info@espokes.co.uk or call 07771 927354

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