Picture the scene: North Wales, the seaside town of Rhyl on a sunny Whitsuntide Monday in 1885. Outside the Royal Hotel a group of cyclists from clubs in Rhyl, Oxford, Denbigh, Huddersfield, Mold, Liverpool, Holywell, Bangor, Manchester, Birmingham, Bethesda, Wrexham, and Ruthin set of in procession, the Rhyl Cycling Club captain, Mr Smith, at their head on a 58 inch penny-farthing. After following a route that took them through the main thoroughfares of Rhyl the cyclists stopped in front of the Royal Hotel for a group photograph and then sat down to a substantial tea.[1]
The rapid development of the bicycle in the 1870’s and 1880’s saw cycling clubs spring up across Britain as cyclists sought opportunities to race and to socialize. One such club was Wales’ first cycling club, Rhyl Cycling Club, founded in April 1879 as the Rhyl XL Bicycle Club at a meeting held in the…
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Rhyl History Club 