Students will Ride For Eric

The ride, from Hillsborough to Middlesborough, is being hosted on Sunday April 10 by Sheffield charity ‘RideForEric,’ in memory of dedicated city cyclist Eric Codling.

Dad-of-two Eric, of Millhouses, was killed by a reckless driver while out for his weekly Sunday morning bike ride in Whirlow in November 2013.

This will be the third ride hosted by the charity, which was set up by Eric’s friends, family and colleagues to highlight the importance of safe cycling. RideForEric has teamed up for the two-day ride with Sheffield College and SWFC Community Programme, providing bikes and equipment for the 23 participating students. The event has also been sponsored by Irwin Mitchell, where Eric’s widow Karen is an Associate Director, which is promoting safe and sensible cycling this summer through its #SaferJourneys campaign.

Karen said: “Eric, like thousands of people around the country, loved cycling and although the pain of the tragic events that led to his death remains, it’s rewarding to see how many people we’ve supported over the last few years.

“It’s clear that more needs to be done to educate everyone on the possible dangers of cycling and remind people how they can stay safe. Next weekend’s ride, which we’ve named ‘Hills2Boro,’ was borne from me being a Sheffield Wednesday fan and Eric supporting ‘the Boro.’ He once proudly cycled from one destination to the other in a single day and this memory gave me the inspiration for the ride.

“It’s fantastic that the students have agreed to join us on the ride and it’s great to be able to work with SWFC and use some of the funds raised from this event to support the fantastic work they do.”

Visit www.rideforeric.com for details.