Get Involved

There are so many ways to involve your community with this year’s bigger than ever race. You can involve everyone from local businesses and schools to residential homes and community groups, the Tour de Yorkshire is a wonderful way to bring the community together.

There have been some amazing examples of how to draw a crowd in previous years, the North Yorkshire town of Thirsk used the craze of yarn bombing to draw national attention at the Tour de Yorkshire in 2016, the town loved it so much that they still decorate the market square regularly. Drawing coach loads of visitors to the area to see the ever-changing displays.

We loved to see the Yorkshire Wolds market town of Pocklington really getting behind the race, miles of bunting, beautifully dressed shop windows and community spirit made this one of the stand out towns of 2017. Barnsley in South Yorkshire always know how to get involved, they ensured their flower beds, hanging baskets, and every corner of the town shone with yellow and blue for the start in 2015, then in 2017 the area surrounding Barnsley made got behind the race with yellow and blue bikes lining the route for miles.

All of this was made possible by local people wanting to make their town feel part of something huge for Yorkshire. You can keep it simple and add bunting to the front of your business or home or you can go all out and create a whole shop front or display dedicated to the race. In previous years we have seen street parties with themed food and games that start in the early hours and go on to the even earlier hours. In 2017 Saltaire in Bradford threw a mini festival, with food stalls provided by local businesses and coordinated by local community groups, the whole village came out to see the riders in the morning and then stayed out to enjoy the atmosphere.

Most of the iconic TV images of the Tour de Yorkshire have shown the yellow and blue bikes lining the routes with the huge crowds cheering on the riders and they whizz by. Placing the painted bikes across the routes is one of the best ways to show your town or villages support, these can often be found at your local tip and help to brighten up the race routes.

Whatever you decide to do to show your support for this year’s Tour de Yorkshire, make it yours! Do something that represents your town or village and the community that lives there, involve everyone and create something memorable that you can all share.