A giant crowd of bike fans enjoyed high-speed racing thrills at the weekend when the world’s only pop-up track-racing event came to Paisley town centre.
StreetVelodrome was making a return to the town after a successful debut last year, with Saturday’s event the first of several on a summer-long UK tour.
The day saw amateur riders sign up to race against the clock during a series of qualifiers, with the best going into the final to compete alongside professionals including John Paul, who represented Team Scotland at Glasgow 2014.
The day saw a men’s and women’s contest, as well as finals at under 16, 12, 10 and eight levels.
The top three men on the day were Dave Johnson, Mario Presi and Jack Ravenscroft, while the top women were Jess Stone, Anna Glowinski and Sarah Bradford of local club Johnstone Jets, who were competing as a guest team.
A film crew was there on the day to capture the best of the action, with a programme set to air later in the year on BT Sport and Eurosport.
Renfrewshire Council laid on a day of sport-themed family fun in the town centre throughout the day – attractions included bubble football, unicycle stunts, street athletics, a smoothie bike and Paisley Farmers’ Market, as well as outdoor spin classes run by Renfrewshire Leisure.
Renfrewshire Council Leader Mark Macmillan, who was there on the day, said: “StreetVelodrome is a really exciting event and you could see how much it grabbed the attention of residents and passers-by alike.
“We are working hard to establish Paisley and Renfrewshire as key destinations on Scotland events map and being able to stage days out like this is a big part of that.
“That work will take on more and more importance over the next two years as we build up to Paisley making its bid for UK City of Culture status in 2021, which would really put us in the international spotlight.”
StreetVelodrome is the first part of a double-header of major cycling events in Paisley this summer, with the town set to host the British Cycling Youth National Circuit Championships on Sunday 12 July.
That event – taking place in Scotland for the first time – is being run by Renfrewshire Council and a partnership of local cycling clubs, and will see the sport’s stars of the future compete on a circuit around the town centre.
For more information on local events, visit www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/events