JOINING a cycling club can be a daunting prospect.

You see them all the time, great flocks of them, all wearing matching jerseys and swooshing through the lanes and byways of Cheshire.

It's a scary thing to join a group of people who all know each other already, and even more so when you may not be hugely confident of your ability to keep up or complete a 'short run' of 50 miles.

But mid Cheshire's very own Weaver Valley Cycling Club is keen to break down the barriers, welcome new riders and help them along.

The club, which caters for all kinds of leisure and competitive cycling, has launched a series of rides aimed squarely at beginners of all ages.

Adrian Japp, club secretary, said: "We wanted to offer something we don't currently offer between starters, novices and our standard short rides, it's about filling a gap really."

The first ride took place on Sunday, May 24, and saw a group of riders, myself included, meet at the former Hartford Social Club, in Bradburns Lane, to see what it was all about.

The 10 mile route made use of quiet lanes and cycle paths, travelling from Hartford through Greenbank and Castle to the picturesque Hunts Lock, Riversdale Bridge and along the rivers Dane and Weaver to Northwich.

From there we travelled along Victoria Road, which was very quiet on a Sunday morning, and made use of pedestrian crossings to navigate the four lanes of Chesterway, Then we were into Marbury Lane and leafy lanes of Comberbach and Great Budworth where we stopped at the ice cream farm in Heath Lane for beans on toast and cake before heading back into town.

The wet and gloomy Sunday morning was bound to discourage most beginners and the only real new rider was nine-year-old Sam Beswick, who came on the ride with his dad.

"I liked the ride and felt safe," he said.

"My favourite part was going down hills."

Alan Silver, the club runs navigator, said there was definitely a call for the beginners' rides, which are being introduced because of public demand.

"We started getting interest on Facebook and Twitter, quite a bit of interest," he said.

"People have been asking so we thought we had better start something.

"We are trying to give people the confidence to ride in groups because people tend to ride out in twos or threes or family groups.

"They can progress from starter rides and go to the Sunday rides."

Weaver Valley Cycling Club will be on hand to chat to beginners and potential new members alike at the Pedal Power Festival in Northwich town centre on Sunday, June 14.