Dudley town centre gets ready for Cycling Grand Prix

Express & Star

The streets of Dudley are prepared and the dignitaries rolled out for the British Cycling Dudley Grand Prix

Transcript

00:00Hello, my name is Scott Povey and I'm here from Fittsville Brewery at the Dudley Grand

00:21Prix and we're here today serving some of our lovely beers, so pop along, come and enjoy

00:56Hi, I'm David Viner, I used to be chair of Hamilton Cycling Club and I'm here today to

01:26help out Black Country Radio for the Dudley GP. I think it's a fantastic event, it's a

01:32figure of eight circuit, I guess about one mile around, it's going to be a great opportunity

01:36for the local young riders to mix with the UK's best cyclists, so there will be a community

01:42event to start with, so anybody can join that, I think you have to register, and then the

01:47youth riders will start, and then the amateur race which will be fantastic, we've got a

01:52couple of Hell's Own riders in that, Jameson Blaine and one or two guys, and then the women

02:01will be on at about I think eight o'clock, or seven o'clock sorry, and then the elite

02:08men at eight o'clock, so the whole event is going to be fantastic. I think where we are

02:12now in Priory Road at the start and finish is on an incline, although it's nothing much

02:17as far as the gradient is concerned, these riders will be averaging say 35 miles an hour

02:22for 50 minutes, so I think it's going to be quite a stretch on the legs, and I've got

02:26to say well done to Dudley Council for putting this event on, we need more events in the

02:31West Midlands, and so this is a fantastic opportunity, so thank you very much to everybody

02:36who has made it possible, and I think that includes the Commonwealth Games Legacy Fund,

02:40which is very very important. Yeah, brilliant event, and let's just hope it stays dry tonight

02:45because last year was horrendously wet, this year looks like it's going to be much much

02:51better weather, so hopefully the rain will stay off until at least ten o'clock tonight.

03:16Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah! The Dudley Grand Prix is part of the Black Country Festival

03:25and funded by the West Midlands Combined Authority and the Commonwealth Games Legacy Fund.

03:31The event is sponsored by Swellby, Triple 20 Taxes, Fielding's Auctioneers and Dewson.

03:39This year's event will soon begin, we have six thrilling races, please welcome the Mayor

03:46of Dudley, Councillor Hilary Mills, to officially open the second Dudley Grand Prix!

03:53Well, good afternoon everyone, it's lovely to see you here, and it's great that you've

04:07come out in the rain. I'd like to welcome everybody here, girls and boys, ladies and

04:13gentlemen, I'm delighted to welcome you to the second Grand Prix, which is slightly different.

04:19Let's see, we have a wonderful evening, it looks like the weather has changed its mind,

04:24fingers crossed everybody. As you've heard, we have lots of backers today, we've been

04:30funded by, part of the Black Country Festival and we've been funded by the West Midlands

04:35Combined Authority and the Commonwealth Games Legacy Enhancement Fund. The event is sponsored

04:41by Swellby Tires, Triple 20 Taxes, Fielding's Auctioneers and Dewson.

04:48Let's have a round of applause for our sponsors please. As you've heard, there will be six

04:56thrilling races, and I'm looking forward to all of them. We end at the end, at 7pm, the

05:03Women's National Circuit Series race will get underway, sponsored by Triple 20 Taxes,

05:09and then the final race of the evening will be the Men's race at 8pm, sponsored by Swellby

05:15Tires. As well as the racing, remember this is the Black Country Festival month, we have

05:21lots of other entertainment for you. As well as tonight, the Black Country Festival is

05:27on full screen throughout the borough, and we have the Black Country Music Hall event

05:32at Hindley Hall in the next two nights, Symphonic Orchestra, and Oasis and Blue Bites. But I

05:40am going on Sunday, so I'm going to have a Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Fleetwood Mac and

05:46Madness, and Michael Bublé singing Eternal. I think that's all I generated there. Right,

05:51so get your tickets now if you haven't already. And just remember at the end, we have a large

05:58screening put in place, so if you want to watch England in the European Highs, Hindley

06:04Hall is the place to be. If you want any more information, please check out the website.

06:10So, before I officially open this event, I'd like to thank Generation Pro Cycling Events

06:16and the British Cycling West Midlands for bringing this event to Dundee. Most of all,

06:21I'd like to thank you and all the volunteers from around the borough who have stepped forward

06:26for this amazing event. Thank you to Dundee Communications, and thank you to Highways

06:32Coastal Boat Sports. So at this point...

06:46It gives me great pleasure to open this year's Grand Prix.

06:52Yay!

07:005, 4, 3, 2, 1, away they go!

07:08Okay, let's get lots of support out here. Let's see who's going to make sure they get

07:13this circuit done. It's good to have a great look and see these riders heading off. The

07:17bell rings out as our riders make their way out onto the circuit. Here in the same conditions

07:23that we're going to fight for, our elite riders, and we're going to inspire the next generation

07:29of cycling riders, who's going to emulate last year's winners here on the circuit in

07:34our elite races. Lucy Glover and Jim Brown, they were the riders last year who took a

07:39victory in our elite race. And remember, of course...

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