Richard Slade, Mayor of St Neots, reflects on a 300-mile charity cycling trip to our twin town

St Neots has been twinned with Fâches-Thumesnil in northern France since 1990. Over more than three decades, that partnership has had its ebbs and flows — but I wanted to mark this year’s visit to our new municipal partners with something a little more memorable than a flight and a handshake.

So I cycled.

On the morning of 2 May, I set off from St Neots at 6am, with friends riding alongside for the first stretch. The route took me south through London — past St Paul’s, across the Thames, through Greenwich — and then east across Kent, reaching Folkestone 150 miles and 1,800 metres of climbing later. It was the toughest day I’ve ever spent on a bike, and it wasn’t entirely smooth: a flat tyre coming out of London, two road closures, some heavy rain, and a rather unexpected hill right at the end.

Day two began with a Le Shuttle crossing to Calais and then a ride north-east through the French countryside into Flanders. As I got closer to Fâches-Thumesnil, I was joined by several of the town’s deputy mayors and the president of the local cycling club, who came out to ride the final kilometres alongside me. That gesture meant more than I can say.

At the town hall I was welcomed by councillors, the twinning committee, and a warmth I hadn’t fully expected — speeches, gifts, food and drinks. That evening, over dinner in Lille featuring le Welsh — a proper Flemish brasserie staple — we swapped stories about our towns, our councils, and what local democracy looks and feels like on either side of the Channel.

Fâches-Thumesnil has a new mayor, Brice Lauret, elected just weeks before my visit, and a fresh council full of energy and real commitment to the twinning relationship. I left with new friends, a symbolic chainring keyring pressed into my hand by the cycling club, and a genuine sense that this partnership has a bright future.