Kielder Forest is to be dramatically illuminated for a night time cycle ride as part of the Northumberland Lights Festival 2008 on Wednesday 12 November.

The festival, now in its fourth year, will host the Wood Rush, the first cycle ride to be included in the event. The ride will take cyclists from Kielder Castle to Leaplish Waterside Park and back, while the trails will be bathed in light with what’s described as a “2km dreamlike path.”

The ride is part of NEWHeat, an initiative funded by One NorthEast to encourage businesses across the region to switch their heat energy supply to wood heat, who have teamed up with the Northumberland Lights
to offer cyclists a chance to get involved.

David Clubb, Project Director of NEWHeat explains: “The NEWHeat service has become increasingly popular with more and more businesses across the North East waking up to wood heat as a serious alternative to fossil fuels when it comes to heat energy. With wood chip being in such high demand as the energy source of the future, the Wood Rush seemed a perfect opportunity to engage the public in our mission and the most appropriate name for this fast-paced, forest-based cycling event.”

Festival Director, Zoe Bottrell, added: “The Wood Rush is the first time we’ve organised a specific event for cyclists, and its one in which the riders can enjoy the light and sound installations our artists have created on route, whilst also becoming a part of the art themselves – adding a further layer to the Lakeside spectacle when they wind down the illuminated track by night.

“The partnership with NEWHeat made perfect sense to us as we share many of the aims of the organisation. Northumberland Lights continues to work towards zero net carbon events and we always aim to pursue efficiency in project planning and encourage intelligent use of resources at all our sites. It is our responsibility to limit consumption of fossil fuels and to respond sensitively to the environment that we work with.”

The Wood Rush night ride sponsored 12 Wednesday November between 6.30 and 10pm. Tickets cost £10 and include refreshments. Cyclists are invited to register and depart Kielder Castle any time between 6.30pm to 8.00pm. The ride is expected to take between 1 – 2 hours and all cyclists are requested to return to the Castle by 10.00pm. On return, all ticket-holders will be entitled to hot drinks and light refreshments.

Places are limited and must be pre-booked. All tickets are now on sale and are available from Hexham Tourist Information Centre. Telephone 01434 652220 or email [email protected].