I READ with interest Nigel Mansell’s comments as he cycled through Darlington on a 13-day ride to raise money for the charity, UK Youth, of which he is president (Echo, Aug 2).

He extolled the benefits of cycling and said there was no better interest for the youth of today than cycling.

I totally agree with these sentiments. In Middlesbrough we are huge supporters of cycling and through our Healthy Town programme have supported the provision of hundreds of mountain bikes to schoolchildren and adults at a subsidised rate.

Furthermore, we have what must be the biggest cycling event in the North-East on Sunday, August 15 – Sky Ride Middlesbrough – when the streets of central Middlesbrough will be closed to traffic and opened up purely for cycling.

We expect thousands to attend and I would urge all readers of The Northern Echo who, like Nigel Mansell, love cycling to get involved in this wonderful free event. To take part simply register at goskyride.com Councillor Brenda Thompson, Executive Member for Public Health and Sport, Middlesbrough Council.