Giving Back to Cornwall

3 Jul

How Bridge Bike Hire Supports Local Communities

There's a version of the Camel Trail that not everyone gets to experience.

It's not the one in the holiday brochures — the one busy with visitors on sunny August mornings, bikes stretching as far as the eye can see towards Padstow. It's the quieter version. The local version. A February morning when the trail is peaceful, the estuary is still and a family who might never have found their way here gets to discover what all the fuss is about for the very first time.

That's the version we love most. And it's why giving back to our local community is something we feel strongly about at Bridge Bike Hire.

Why Community Matters to Us

Bridge Bike Hire has been part of the Wadebridge community since 1983. Over four decades, we've watched families grow up, seen the town change and stayed rooted in the same spot — because this place, and the people in it, matter to us deeply.

We know that for many local families, getting out on the Camel Trail isn't always straightforward. As the children grow, the bikes they need change — and finding the right bikes, getting them all down to the trail and covering the cost of hire can feel like more effort and expense than it's worth. Many locals also understandably don't want to brave the trail during the busy summer season, and spending money on a day out in the unpredictable off-season can feel like a risk.

The result is that some of the people who live closest to one of the most beautiful trails in the country rarely get to enjoy it at all.

Supporting Local Charities and Community Groups

That's why we regularly donate bike hire vouchers to local schools, community groups and charities to use as raffle prizes and fundraising rewards. For us it's simple — without these groups and organisations, our community would struggle. Supporting them is the right thing to do, and if our vouchers help them raise money and bring a little joy to a local family in the process, that feels like exactly the right use of them.

The response we get when those vouchers are actually used tells us everything we need to know.

Kirsty's Story

Voucher winners on the Camel trial — Kirsty’s family out on the Camel Trail

Kirsty's daughter won a family bike hire voucher in a school raffle — one that Bridge Bike Hire had donated. A few months later, with half term arriving and the weather being typically unpredictable, Kirsty picked up the phone at 9am on a Tuesday morning.

Could they use the voucher that day? Of course. A few ages and heights later, four bikes were reserved. By 9.30am the family arrived to find them ready and waiting, helmets fitted, seat heights adjusted and the trail stretching out ahead of them.

"After an enjoyable few hours we returned with the bikes and happy children ready for some lunch," Kirsty told us. "Our younger daughter has only just got to grips with riding a bike and by the end of it she was cycling really well."

She finished her review with something that stayed with us: "Your crew are all fantastic and you'll always be our bike hire of choice."

A school raffle prize. A Tuesday morning in half term. A little girl learning to ride a bike properly on the Camel Trail for the first time. That's what a voucher can do.

Locals Rediscovering Their Own Backyard

There's something else we've noticed over the years — and Kirsty's story is a perfect example of it. Lots of local families have simply never had the opportunity to properly enjoy the trail on their doorstep. Life gets in the way, the busy season feels like it belongs to the tourists and the off-season feels like a gamble.

A voucher removes all of that. Suddenly the trail is accessible, the cost isn't a barrier and a Tuesday morning in half term becomes an adventure. We love that. We genuinely love that locals who may have forgotten what's right on their doorstep get to rediscover it — and that the trail gets to be theirs for a morning, quiet and peaceful and entirely worth it.

Request a Voucher for Your Community Group

If you run a local school, sports club, community group or charity and would like to request a bike hire voucher for a fundraising event or raffle, we'd love to hear from you.

Please get in touch by email and make sure to include your logo and details of your event or social post — because we don't just donate the voucher, we'll help promote your event too.

📧 info@bridgebikehire.co.uk

We're proud to support the organisations that make our community what it is — and we look forward to hearing from you.