Date
Saturday 27th June 2026
Location
Trinity Park Arena, Ipswich, IP3 8UX
Bike
Pre-2000s
Event Times
Event Village Times – 7:30am until 5:00pm
Pedal Retro is part of the Pedal Suffolk Festival, a weekend of cycling celebration. Over 2 days, we will have something for everyone;
- Pedal Suffolk Sportive (Road)
- The Untamed (Gravel)
- Pedal Retro (Pre-2000 classics)
- Cycle Show & Jumble
- Special guests & exhibitors
- Evening social & cycling events
- Camping
Want to know more about the Pedal Suffolk Festival? Click below!
PedalRetro is a journey into our shared cycling history. Join us to relive and celebrate a time when not just the bikes, but our roads, cycle clothing and day-to-day life seemed so much simpler!
Any pre-2000 bike is welcome to join us and we eagerly encourage you to find some woolly tights and jerseys and come prepared to impress your peers with your sartorial cycling elegance to match your PedalRetro machine.
Choose a ride from 25, 50, 75, 100 miles or just rock-up, soak up the atmosphere and display your 2000 bike, kit and memorabilia in our FREE PedalRetro Show.
Whether you are into 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s or 90s or favour classic Italian bikes over hand-built bespoke British creations we hope to have a huge selection of bikes, riders and memorabilia to share with you in a celebration of cycling through the ages. Whether you choose to ride, ride and show or just show you will be very welcome – and we can’t wait to see what you bring!
Ride your PedalRetro steed & relive the glory days!
Join hundreds of riders and enjoy a tour of the heartlands of Suffolk with open skies, on beautiful scenic roads and rolling hills. With options from 25 to 100 miles, there is a route for every rider on your PedalRetro steed. Join us for a celebration of cycling in with like-minded riders.
- 25, 50, 75 & 100 mile routes
- Ride with like-minded enthusiasts
- Fully inclusive event, drink/feed stations inncluded for 25 & 50 mile routes
- Lunch stop included on 75 & 100 mile routes
- Souvineer ride plaque, medal and ride photography included.
NEW for 2026 – FREE PedalRetro Show
12pm-4pm
If you do not fancy riding your pride and joy but still want to be part of PedalRetro then keep reading…
New for 2026 we are creating an area within the Event Village for pre-2000 PedalRetro machines. Bring your bike, kit and memorabilia and lay it out for others to marvel at, start a few conversations and reminisce about the days when cycling seemed so much, well, simpler! We encourage you to dress to impress in period kit!
PedalRetro Show is not only FREE to attend for visitors but also to exhibitors! Secure your free exhibitor pass and join the show. We also have a VIP arena parking option to park in the show area allowing you to simply unload, fix up the chairs and table and layout the picnic when displaying your finest. All VIP parking tickets include a exhibition pass too.
All bikes displayed at the PedalRetro Show will be entered into our PedalRetro awards competition. See below for more info on the awards!
We plan to exhibit the largest collection of Time Trail bikes through the decades and set a world record! We have special guests and exhibitors lined-up to give us industry-leading insight and display historic Time Trail rigs.
Drinks, artisan food outlets and our bar will be open all afternoon. Why not camp overnight, soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the evening events, food and bar.
- FREE visitor entry (free parking for bikes or £5 parking for cars)
- FREE to exhibit/display your bikes, kit & memorabilia (pre-book only & includes PedalRetro awards entry)
- VIP parking in display area (£10 pre-book only & includes PedalRetro awards entry)
- Largest collection of Time Trail Bikes on display
- Meet and chat to like-minded enthusiasts
- Camping, food and drink available
- Special guests, talks and speakers TBC
World Record Attempt – Largest Time Trial Bike Assembly
All Pre-2000 bikes are welcome at PedalRetro and every year we plan to have a special focus on one type or period of our history. This year we plan to gather the biggest ever assembly of Time Trialling bikes through the decades from the fixed wheel specials of the early days of the sport to the super lightweight drilled specials of the 60s to the short wheel base specials of the 70s and low profile and carbon monocoques of the 80s and 90s.
East Anglia has always been a hotbed of time trialling. Man, woman and machine against the course and the clock on an out-and-back road course often with a dead turn in the middle of the road! It is often called the race of truth and was traditionally the mainstay of British cycle racing and the way most club riders started their racing. The sport has seen some significant revolutions in aerodynamics, materials and clothing even more so, arguably, than any other form of cycling. It was 40 years ago when Greg Lemond changed the face of time trialling forever by winning the final stage of the 1986 Tour de France, which was uniquely a Time Trial, with a never-seen-before tri-bar equipped bike. He overcame a huge margin to win the Tour de France outright and it shocked the Tour de France and the cycling World.
So for 2026, our special focus at PedalRetro will be TT and Track bikes. Bikes that were designed without compromise and purely for initially lightness and then aerodynamics. Please come and join us and help us create the World’s biggest single assembly of Time Trail Bikes.
PedalRetro Show Awards
PedalRetro is all about enjoying he bikes, memorabilia and kit of times gone by and enjoying the company and banter of like-minded enthusiasts. However, we will be awarding prizes for best attire, the bike of the decade (for each decade represented) and every entrant will have the chance to vote for the big award…. Make room on your mantelpiece!
- Best attired rider – Female & Male awards
- The best dressed rider. Leather helmet, wooly shorts and knitted jersey. You know the drill.
- Bike of the decade – 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s awards
- The very best bike from each era will be recognised with thi
s accolade.
- The very best bike from each era will be recognised with thi
- Spirit of the show
- The Spirit of the Show which will recognise one participant and the contribution they have made to our PedalRetro Show.
NEW – Cycle Jumble
12pm-4pm
Now we all have a habit of hanging onto old parts, kit and memorabilia. PedalRetro is the place to bring your sale items and go home with another load of bits to replace them! Drive-in pitches available in 2 sizes to suit the size of your hoard or collection.
- Open air drive-in pitch
- Meet and chat to like-minded enthusiasts
- £10 car-sized drive in pitch
- £20 van-sized drive in pitch
- Set-up 11am-12pm
Routes
At TPR Events, we’re dedicated to creating the best routes for riders to enjoy. Every route is carefully plotted, analysed, risk-assessed, tested, and fully signposted, giving you the confidence to ride with peace of mind. Plus, all routes will be available to download as GPX files, providing turn-by-turn directions on your phone or GPS device. GPX files will be available a few days before the event, after our final checks for road closures and obstructions.
For Pedal Retro 2026, we’ve crafted 4 exciting routes to offer something for every rider:
Royalty 100 Mile
Britannia 75 Mile
Rouleur 50 Mile
Peleton 25 Mile
Royalty Route
An epic day out on your PedalRetro machine and one to remember as you pedal into the Suffolk lanes through our private cyclist-only Foxhall gate.
Head north to Ashbocking before continuing through Coddenham to our first drink stop with homemade nibbles at Winston Village Hall. We ride on through Debenham (where the Rouleur route splits) and continue north via Eye and Hoxne. After Stradbrooke, we stop for lunch at Brundish just before the Britannia Route riders depart.
The route then leads through Metfield and Peasenhall to another refreshment stop at Bruisyard Village Hall (or the nearby vineyard). Heading south, we enjoy a stunning view of Framlingham Castle across the mere, regrouping with the Britannia Route riders for a celebratory loop around the town. Next is Easton—home to thatched roundhouses and superb Crinkle Crankle walls—where the Rouleur Route riders rejoin.
We return to Trinity Park via Wickham Market, Melton and Woodbridge, briefly meeting the Peloton Route group again before re-entering the park through the cyclist-only Martlesham route.
Route Features
- Distance – 102* Miles
- Elevation – 3847ft
- Start time – 8:00am
TPR Events Difficulty Rating (This difficulty is worked out from the elevation and riding the routes ourselves on a Retro machine)
Britannia Route
A significant challenge on a PedalRetro machine and one to tell your tifosi about at every opportunity!
We follow the Royalty route as above until after the lunch stop before taking a shortcut to rejoin the Royalty riders at Framlinhgam. All the best bits without the Northen 25 mile extra loop!
This route is suitable to any bike as long as you are comfortable riding it for 75 miles. We introduce you to plenty of lanes and some flowing B-roads to help you keep momentum. There is also a few miles of busier roads as we pass through Woodbridge to avoid having to cross the A12 directly.
Route Features
- Distance – 75.2* Miles
- Elevation – 29711 ft
- Start time – 8:30am
TPR Events Difficulty Rating (This difficulty is worked out from the elevation and riding the routes ourselves on a Retro machine)
Rouleur Route
A healthy challenge on a PedalRetro machine that will test you and your PedalRetro pride and joy!
We follow the Royalty Route above until we reach the delightful town of Debenham where instead of climbing through the high street we make a swift right hand turn for our shortcut through to perhaps one of Suffolks best kept secrets, the village of Easton where we region the others.
This route is suitable to any bike as long as you are comfortable riding it for 50 miles. We introduce you to plenty of lanes and some flowing B-roads to help you keep momentum. There is also a few miles of busier roads as we pass through Woodbridge to avoid having to cross the A12 directly.
Route Features
- Distance – 54.5* Miles
- Elevation – over 2167 ft
- Start time – 9:00am
TPR Events Difficulty Rating (This difficulty is worked out from the elevation and riding the routes ourselves on a Retro machine)
Peloton Route
An enjoyable leisurely ride with like minded riders and PedalRetro machines.
An enjoyable leisurely ride with like minded riders. A great way to get started in cycling events and you can take all day to complete the distance at your leisure after the longer rides have left and sped away.
We follow their path until just before Ashbocking where we will turn right towards the absolutely beautiful village of Grundisburgh. Our routes passes the village green where you can stop and enjoy a traditional village centre and perhaps ride through the two fords if you are feeling adventurous!
We have laid on a refreshment stop with nibbles at Little Bealings which is motivationally nicesly over half way meaning its a shorter second half to the ride back into Trinity Park without busy roads via the cyclist-only rear gate.
Route Features
- Distance – 25.9* Miles
- Elevation – 1283 ft
- Start time – 9:30am
TPR Events Difficulty Rating (This difficulty is worked out from the elevation and riding the routes ourselves on a Retro machine)
What bike is suitable?
The PedalRetro Sportive is a road event that takes place on a mixture of quiet country roads and faster flowing B-roads.
Any pre-2000 machine is welcome on this event, make sure you’re comfortable riding it for your ride distance and it is fully servicable before riding.
