Look Back at May and June

May and June were extremely busy months at ARNY as the riding season got into full flow.  May saw us hold 30 training sessions involving 14 Associates and June was another busy month with 22 training sessions involving 15 Associates.  The weather has been generally very kind with the hot temperatures being more of an issue than the usual rain!

We had 6 new members join in May and June and we welcome; Stuart, David, Susie, Linzi, Myles and Lance.  As always, people join for many different reasons, some with a specific goal to get an advanced qualification for activities such as blood biking, others simply to improve their riding or for the social side of the club.  Whatever the reason ARNY aims to meet the needs of all new members, in line with their personal drivers.  It was particularly pleasing to have two subsequent new female members, which is a first for ARNY.  Whilst we all appreciate that there are far fewer female riders than male, it has been a long standing aim of ARNY to attract more female members and it is great to see it happening.

The new Tutor training for 2025 concluded in June with Phill, Helen, Andy, Steve and Ian all successfully completing the training and joining the Tutor team.  They are all welcome additions to the team and, with the increasing amount of Associates training on a Saturday, should help us to match Tutor numbers to Associates.  We are always aiming to have sufficient Tutors present on Saturday mornings and with the holiday period starting this can sometimes be a challenge.  With the larger Tutor team that we now have it should be easier to meet our goal without putting too much pressure on a small number of Tutors.  As always, it helps in this respect, if you put your name down on the Attendance spreadsheet if you intend to come along to training.

The social programme is now up and running with Wednesday Wobbles and Sunday Social rides in full flow.  The planned events are on the Attendance spreadsheet, along with the ride leader.  Keep your eye out on the normal channels for further information closer to the time of the event.  The June Wednesday wobble led by a Paul Batty was well attended and a great success with them arriving at the Cheese & Ham Inn at Scagglethorpe village. The food and social meal was appreciated by all, followed by a scenic ride home to York for those heading in that direction.

With Phill Bates now at the helm there are some more social events underway.  In May Phill hosted a meal at Yak and Yeti in York which was well received and in June there was an excellent wine tasting at Majestic Wine in York hosted by ARNY member Jeff Terry, which was thoroughly enjoyed by all who went along.  The desire for ARNY to hold more social events was a clear outcome of the last member survey and they are a good chance for people to meet up outside of the normal training days.  If you have any suggestions as to new events please contact Phill Bates directly or email social@arny.org.uk and the idea can then be taken forward.  The aim to provide events that are in line with member’s wishes so that they are well attended and enjoyable for all, so any ideas are welcome.

Jezz Booker, who is now on the ARNY Committee and has taken over the Marketing activity, has been doing a lot of work looking at events and organisations that would be good for ARNY to connect with.  The next event is a Bikes and Burgers evening at NY500 near Pickering on Tuesday July 29^th organised by the York and North Yorkshire Road Safety Partnership.  ARNY will be present and if you would like to come along it would be good to see as many ARNY members as possible.

Lots going on in and around ARNY as always.

Until next time…..