Cyclists to race aircraft carrier through Harborough
A GROUP of 50 cyclists from the Aircraft Carrier Alliance will travel through Harborough on Saturday (May 26) as part of a very unusual race.
The group will be chasing a 6,000-tonne section of the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth up the country as it travels up the coast by barge from BAE Systems’ base in Portsmouth to Babcock’s Rosyth dockyard in Fife.
The section set off by barge yesterday (Monday, May 21) and the cyclists are due to start chasing it on Friday, travelling by road and raising thousands of pounds for charity in the process.
The gruelling event will see the team cover more than 500 miles in five days.
On the first day the team will clock up 125 miles cycling from Portsmouth to Northampton.
The second day will see them cycle through Harborough on their way to Sheffield.
Organiser, Kirsty Noble, said: “All the cyclists are part of the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, the group of companies charged with constructing and delivering two new aircraft carriers to the Royal Navy.
“The section of the ship they are chasing is the second major ‘block’ to be moved to Rosyth, where the new 65,000 tonne aircraft carriers are being assembled. It makes up a large part of the front of HMS Queen Elizabeth.
“It’s going to be a tough event. We will be timing the cyclists and the block. To stand a chance of beating the block the team needs to cover 500 miles in just five days. But they are determined to do it – and to raise thousands of pounds at the same time.”
All the money raised will go to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines charity.
To follow the progress of the team as they try to ‘beat the block’, or to pledge sponsorship money visit their fundraising website or follow them on Twitter.
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Weather for Market Harborough
Friday 24 May 2013
Today
Light showers
Temperature: 4 C to 9 C
Wind Speed: 29 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 6 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North
