Thousands of bikers will take part in the annual Bike4Life Ride Out and Festival this Sunday.
The Ride Out is the largest motorbike gathering in the country and sees thousands of bikers take to the road in a huge convoy on a 23-mile ride from Shrewsbury to RAF Cosford, home of the Bike4Life Festival.
Once at the festival those attending will enjoy live bands, biker demonstrations, biker-themed stalls and exhibitions, plus a range of refreshment stands and entertainment for young children.
The annual event sees the biking community get together to do their bit in raising valuable funds for the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity. In 2017, the event raised £73,800.
This year the Ride Out will be led by former England Rugby Captain and 2003 World Cup Winner Mike Tindall MBE, who will join Superbike World Champion, Carl Fogarty, plus truck and bike champion Steve Parrish.
Mike Tindall, husband of the Princess Royal’s daughter Zara, rides a Harley Davidson Soft Tail Break Out and has been an ambassador of the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity for the past five years.
Mike Tindall MBE said: “I am delighted to not only support this year’s Bike4Life event again, but to also lead out the 3,500 bikers which is a huge honour alongside Foggie (Carl Fogarty) and Parish (Steve Parrish). This is the one time in the year when the biking community gets together to pay its thanks for the lifesaving work of the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity.”
“Being on a motorbike you are far more vulnerable than someone in a car who has much greater degree of protection. As a biker you are also constantly exposed to hazards on the roads and much more serious injuries in the event of a collision. Speed and emergency lifesaving care are critical in these situations to saving bikers lives. As a biker myself I fully support the lifesaving work of the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity and the Bike4Life event, it’s important for all of us in the biking community to come together and support such a great cause.”
Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service is also supporting Bike4Life this year with firefighters joining the Ride Out.
Shrewsbury fire station’s Watch Manager Paul Gray and Crew Manager Rich Meadows, both experienced motorcyclists, will be with the convoy on its route.
They are part of the Prevention team from Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service who will be at RAF Museum Cosford on board the brigade’s Outreach vehicle to put out important road safety advice to festival goers.
“Both of us have around 20 years biking experience each and we are passionate about motorbike riding,” said Rich, who will be riding a motorbike and wearing motorcycle clothing from Honda Shrewsbury, which has also donated a demo motorbike for the fire service display.
“Motorcyclists are always the ones who come off worse in a collision. As a motorcyclist you have to be so aware of the road conditions and your surroundings.
“The Bike4Life event gives us the opportunity to talk to other bikers, interact with them, and get over some very important safety messages.”
James Bainbridge, Station Officer for Prevention at Shrewsbury fire HQ, said that injuries to motorcyclists were “totally out of proportion” to the numbers of road users.
“Almost a fifth of people killed on our roads are motorcyclists yet they only make up just one per cent of all the traffic on our roads. They are 38 times more likely to die in a collision compared with occupants in a car. We will be doing our utmost to get the important messages out to them to keep them safe.
“As firefighters we deal with the aftermath of a fatal road collision and we aim to do as much as we can to reduce those road deaths.”
For more information about the Bike4Life Ride Out and Festival, go to www.bike4lifefest.com.
Disruption to Motorists
Motorcyclists participating in the event will leave Meole Brace in Shrewsbury at 11.30am on Sunday and will ride to RAF Cosford via the A5, M54 and A41.
The 23-mile journey only takes around half an hour but, depending on the number of people participating, there could be delays and some congestion along this route.
The following closures will be in place during the event (approximately 11am to 1:30pm):
A5 eastbound between Dobbies roundabout and the M54, including the three roundabout entrances (Dobbies, Preston and Emstrey)
M54 eastbound entry slip roads at junctions 7, 6, 5, 4 and 3
M54 westbound exit slip road at junction 3
Diversion routes will be clearly signposted.
Road users may experience some delays along these routes on Sunday morning, but these should ease fairly quickly.
Drivers are advised to plan their journeys ahead of time or to use alternative routes if possible around the middle of the day.
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