A CONCERT powered by electricity generated by push bikes is set to form the centre piece of the inaugural Ribble Valley Cycling Festival.

The nine-day showcase will feature a wide variety of events throughout the borough to promote the sport and to increase participation rates.

It will take place from June 5 to June 14, and organisers have said it will be held again next year and possibly expanded if it proves to be a success.

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The events are being put together by a team that includes Ribble Valley Borough Council, The Grand Venue and The Green Jersey bike shop in Clitheroe, British Cycling and Cycles Recycled.

It was announced in January that the series of events will be staged a few months before the second stage of the Tour of Britain is due to start in Clitheroe on September 7.

The festival will kick off with an evening with cycling commentator Ned Boulting at The Grand Venue in York Street.

It will be followed the next day with a traffic-free ride on Clitheroe’s outskirts.

The organisers are currently in negotiations with Lancashire County Council to close a number of roads in the town.

Richard Paige, the owner of The Green Jersey, will also be taking a group of youngsters on a 20-mile guided ride of the borough on June 10.

The electronic concert, to be powered by audience members on push bikes, will be staged on June 12, at Clitheroe Band Stand.

A pop-up velodrome will also be opened outside Ribblesdale Leisure Centre in the town on June 13.

The festival will culminate in the annual Ribble Valley Ride on June 14, which will raise money for the Rosemere Cancer Foundation.

More events are also being organised and are due to be announced in the coming weeks.

Ribble Valley Borough Council’s sports development officer Peter Fletcher said: “I hope that it will be a success and that it will be held again next year and maybe even expanded.”

Bill Honeywell, one of the organisers behind the Ribble Valley Ride, said: “It’s a great mix of events and it’s really exciting.”