Rainbow Riders

Way of The Roses 2026:
Final ritual dip of the front wheels in the sea at Bridlington. York on Day 3 was fabulous, beers by the river in the sun followed by a slap up Indian. Beautiful weather the whole 4 day trip apart from the last hour of the last day with rain bringing us to the coast, but cleared for us to end in sun. Saw lots of signage for Yorkshire Wolds route, more to follow. See you next year for WOTR2027!
Morecambe to Bridlington Total: 170 miles/274km

Way of The Roses 2026: Day 2 - halfway point: after a train out from Manchester, we started by ritually dipping rear wheels in sea at Morecambe; with an overnight at Settle for pub grub; a morning hike before climbing on the saddle to the highest points of the ride; marvelling at the views and wildlife (ponies, highland cattle, grouse, kites, baby lambs, hares); blue skies alternating with cloudy but dry, so far the weather gods have been kind; setting off today after brekky for a peek at Rippon Cathedral, then a much less hilly day to roll into beautiful York. (Day 1: Morecambe to Settle: 59km, Day 2: Settle to Rippon: 70km).

Hello! I’m Richard (He/Him). And I'm the unicycle guy.

My appointment as Secretary for the Rainbow Riders is a first for me. As I’ve never done anything quite like this, and I'm firmly on record as not wanting bureaucracy to interfere with having a good time with friends.
I’ll often admit “I don’t know”, which is a great place to start learning. So while learning as I go, I aim to put myself out there for members and riders to approach with praise, suggestions, comments, and criticism. Slowly slowly catchy monkey.

I took a protracted break from cycling after a car accident as a teenager. I never really felt that I had the confidence or skill since. Until just a few years ago, my father happened across a unicycle amongst the donations for a charity he worked for. So, I took it upon myself to learn. While it’s true, you can never forget how to ride a bicycle, you can unlearn. After learning the unicycle, I'm all manner of fingers and thumbs with two wheels.

I don’t necessarily go out of my way to make a fool of myself, it just kind of keeps happening to me. You can regularly catch me around the Manchester area (and sometimes farther afield), with my trusty steed Roadrunner. Armed only with my lack of brakes and my new found “keeping it wiggly” attitude, I’ve fallen back in love with cycling.

Unicycling that is.

Two wheels is still stoopid.