CYCLING enthusiasts are aiming to break the 200 participants barrier at a bike rally tomorrow.

Organizers of the third annual Greenacre Bicycle Rally hope the event will raise awareness about the need for more investment in sustainable transport around the borough.

Bike groups will be joined by cyclists of all ages and abilities on the 3.5 mile course around Finchley, Friern Barnet, and Whetstone, which is setting off from outside artsdepot, in Tally Ho, at midday.

All forms of pedal power will be on show, including a rickshaw and a disco bike, and participants are being encouraged to dress their own bikes in flags, ribbons and paint to add to the spectacle.

Co-ordinator Mike Gee said: “It is a fantastic achievement to get it on and we hope to get a lot of cycles on the road.

“It proves we have a determination to move towards sustainable transport, and people are prepared to turn out to support that.

“It has always been a fun day to show cycling is a fun, practical, cheap and good way to make local journeys. We want to make the borough a more welcoming place for cyclists.”

In the first year, the event attracted 138 cycles, which grew to 169 last year, and Mr Gee is hoping to register more than 200 cycles for Sunday's rally.

Trained stewards, police cyclists and St John Ambulance riders, will assist participants, who are invited to gather at Tally Ho from 10am.

This year, cyclists will stop at Friary Park for lunch with the option of setting off along the Dollis Valley Greenway to the Barnet Countryside Centre where an Environment Fair will be taking place.

The Mayor of Barnet, Councillor Anthony Finn, and council leader, Councillor Lynne Hillan, are expected to cut the ribbon tomorrow, and Mr Gee is hoping for more support from Barnet Council to promote biking in the borough.

He said: “We're still waiting to hear if we have got a grant coming from the council. We have to still spend the money but we don't know if we are going to get it back.

“If we don't get anything, we will be out of pocket and we don't know if we can do it again.

“We just seem so far away from the borough of Barnet embracing cycling in the way the Mayor of London does.”