Stage three of the 2016 Tour of Britain will pass right through the village centre on Tuesday, 6th September and both Alderley Edge Parish Council and Cheshire East are keen for local communities to get involved in Britain's biggest cycling event and make a special effort to welcome visitors to the village.
The Tour of Britain is scheduled to pass through Alderley Edge just after 1.20pm on Tuesday, 6th September. The riders will travel up Brook Lane and along Wilmslow Road then onto London Road where the third sprint of the day will finish in the village centre by the newsagents.
Riders will then proceed up Macclesfield Road for the start of the King of the Mountains race, passing through Over Alderley, Prestbury, Bollington and Rainow before heading up to the Cat & Fiddle.
In addition to painting bikes orange and placing them around the village, Councillor Christine Munro has visited all the traders on London Road to ask them if will decorate their windows and frontages to welcome the Tour and she is looking into buying some artificial sunflowers to decorate the village.
Christine Munro told alderleyedge.com "It is a great opportunity for the traders and particularly the restaurants to benefit from the additional footfall on the day, and it also a great opportunity to make our village look fantastic for this once in a lifetime event coming to our village.
"I have asked the traders and restaurants to let me know what they will be doing on the day so we can publicise it to all the visitors via The Tour of Britain website. This will put our village on the map and encourage people to come and see what we are all about."
She added "We have been asked if there is anything special the press helicopter, which will be following the race, can take photos of and it would be great if your readers could come up with some ideas for this.
"I thought we could do something on the Ryleys Lane park, there is plenty of room there for a helicopter to hover, but I need some ideas.
"We have a beautiful village and with a little help from everyone we can make it extra specially attractive to welcome the Tour."
Councillor Craig Browne has also met with some of the traders to discuss preparations for this exciting event, such as displaying posters in the shop windows and tying balloons to the railings by The Parade.
Councillor Browne said "We consider that this is a great opportunity to welcome new visitors to the village and we would like to make a special effort to encourage them to visit the various shops, restaurants and bars whilst they are here, so that they will hopefully consider coming back again on a regular basis."
Cheshire East has come up with a number ideas of of how you can get involved, whether you live or work in one of the many places along the route, are a community organiser or simply want to support the event.
Before the race day communities are urged to do a spot of painting and decorating to attract attention, brightens up eyesores and enable people to be creative.
In addition to the orange bicycles which have been located around the village, you could temporarily transform walls, windows and fences using the Cheshire stage colour orange, or your favourite team's colours.
Another suggestion is Yarn Bombing, which is basically covering objects and features in knitting or crochet. It makes a place stand out from the crowd and gives lots of people the chance to take part.
If there's an unused plot of land, the Council is asking residents to consider planting it with orange flowers, or bedding plants to form the shape of a bike. Or hang orange themed hanging baskets outside your house or business to show your support. Maybe even think about alternative planters, too such as cycling helmets.
If you're a dab hand with the shears they suggest you could get to work and trim a hedge into a wheel shape!
Cheshire East Council is also aiming to get every resident and business along the route to decorate a wheel and put it on display. As previously stated, the Cheshire stage colour is orange – but you could use anything you like.
A Council spokesperson said "If you're on the route, a quick tidy up could make sure there's plenty of space on pavements for spectators and help your town or village look its best on race day – remember, you'll be on TV!"
Other suggestions include bunting, maybe in the colours of the different team jerseys, or getting a local music group or choir to welcome the riders or entertain visitors.
A Council spokesperson added "There are lots of other ways to show your support on the day, besides going out along the route and cheering on the teams. Even a simple sign outside your house or business supporting the Tour will encourage others to do the same and help visitors and riders feel welcome on the day."
Stage Three of the Tour of Britain sets off from Congleton at 11am on Tuesday 6th September, finishing at Tatton Park at about 3.30pm.
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