The organisers of the original Tweed Run

The organisers of the original Tweed Run in London had seen photos of when cycling for pleasure was last big in London at the turn of the century,'' Sydney Tweed Ride, organiser Susan Goodwin, said. ''Those people were wearing the equivalent of the jeans and T-shirts of the day, which was plus fours, knee-high socks and tweed jackets. It looked so fabulous that we thought we'd got to do a ride too.''

Sydney's ride has doubled in size each year since its first outing in 2009. ''The first year we had 70 people, last year there were 150 and this year we are hoping for well over 300 people,'' Goodwin said.

Aimed at encouraging more people to ride bicycles for pleasure and as exercise, the Tweed Ride unashamedly eschews lycra in favour of more traditional attire.

''You don't need to be a super-fit person,'' Goodwin said.
''It's about being a little bit more elegant and taking a little bit more time. Because we look so fabulous we get a more positive reaction from bus drivers, car drivers and pedestrians, which is great because we want people to look at us and say 'I want to ride my bike too'. We are not against the full sports stuff, it's just a different way of encouraging people to ride bikes rather than drive their cars.''

Enrique Morris was yesterday taking part in his first Tweed Ride in a Harris tweed shooting-style jacket he had purchased for the occasion. ''It just seems like a nice way to spend a Sunday morning,'' the 24-year-old said. Yesterday's ride culminated in a picnic at Moore Park with the ''Tweed Games'' including tea and saucer races, and prizes for best dressed cyclists on the day.