About Us

The club was formed in 1992 from a group of workmates at OMC Ford, in Oldham, riding together during 1991. Although the roots were as an English Chapter of the Los Angeles Police Dept's Law Enforcement Cycling Association club and with friends here in Oldham, Rochdale and Sheffield (one of whom also being a policeman), the club name Trans-Pennine Cycling Club was selected. It seemed a good idea at the time, however our association with the LA Sheriffs was short-lived and our Sheffield student members came back here to the sunny-side of the Pennines: but the name and club colours have stuck. OK, we dropped the hyphen and the original bright yellow and emerald green are muted now.

For a while in the mid 90's, we had a bit of a competitive streak going within the club, with some members having a go at racing, time-trials, even running an open 4-up Team Time Trial event for Manchester District CTT, as well as our own internal club sprints, hill-climbs, treasure trails.

However the leisurely side of cycling was never far away, with a number of Epic Rides, Club Tours and Charity Rides – we co-organized “Over The Edge” with the British Heart Foundation.

Times have changed: the competitive elements of the club have matured a bit, or moved onto other things, traffic levels in the valley roads have increased to less-than-comfortable levels whilst off-road cycling equipment evolved. So, going with the flow, we have incorporated off-road rides as well as seeking quieter on-road routes, thus allowing us to take our time to enjoy the splendid environs of Rochdale, the Pennines, the West Pennine Moors, Ribble Valley and into The Dales beyond.