Kirsty Gallacher shows us how much fun can be had on a bike
Kirsty Gallacher is trying to encourage us to get back on our bikes.
The Sky Sports News presenter is working with a number of other celebrities, including Kelly Brook and Alexandra Burke for this years Sky Ride - a nationwide cycling initiative from Sky and British Cycling which aims to encourage people of all ages and abilities to get back on their bikes through a series of free events and activities.
We caught up with Kirsty and asked her why she decidied to get involved and what its been like being sat back in the Sky Sports news desk chair.
Tell us about this Sky Ride intiative?
Well basically, we’re trying to get as many people as we can back onto their bikes or onto a bike. If they’ve never rode one it doesn’t matter. It’s to try and get people cycling really. For whatever reason really, it’s fitness – do as much or as little as you like – but it’s great for sort of social reasons, hanging out with the family, we go out as a family. My little one is a bit little, he’s only one, but we go out with Oscar who is four and a half and it’s fantastic because we’ve sort of rediscovered cycling.We just go locally, it’s safe and it’s also really nice to get out on a nice day to go out and about. We’re trying to get a million people back on their bikes by 2013. Really there is no wrong reason, it’s only good reasons that you get from your bike because it’s nice to use the bike instead of the car.
As part of the launch, a bunch of you went in search of the perfect hill, how's that going?
We're still doing that. I've not been as much involved with that. But in general Sky Ride are trying to find the Perfect Hill, you can go to SkyRide.com to find out more information.We're trying to get people to find the perfect hill, whether it's stopping at the top and looking down or it's the ride down or up, whatever it may mean to you.
Why is it important for more people to get on their bikes?
There are lots of reasons. We're trying to get more people to ride, like Boris Johnson, trying to get more people in cities and towns to get on their bikes for reasons to not use the car, being a little more eco-friendly and watching our carbon footprints, so there's that reason.But there is also the fitness and the health reasons, it's just a quite easy way to keep fit and healthy, even just doing a little bit of cycling during the week you're obviously helping yourself, getting your heart rate up and getting a little bit more fit in that way and also it's a nice positive thing to do with your family and friends to socialise. As long as you take the correct safety precautions and you wear a helmut.
Other than bike rides how do you manage to stay in shape?
I go the gym, I do quite a lot of circuit training in the gym. Whether it be doing little sprints on the treadmill, or rowing; I quite enjoy rowing or I'll go for quite a hard bike ride, actually not too hard because I'm only just getting back into it but I just try and get my heart rate up and do some weights and things like that.I've not been at the gym as much as I should have been these past couple of months because I've gone back to Sky Sports and my hours are quite long and I've got the kids as well and we've been really busy. When I get back into it, I'll be doing a little bit more in the gym. I've just re-taken up tennis as well, which I'm enjoying and playing more golf. So re-discovering that which is great.
There's no place to hide on Sky Sports because they break all of the sports stories first
You say you've re-taken up tennis, is that after presenting Wimbledon?
No, I'd taken it up just a little bit before that and then we went on holiday, we went to Spain, at the beginning of July and we took our tennis rackets and played a bit there. We always do actually when we're there. I took it up in the last few months, then doing Wimbledon definitely gave me more of an incentive.
What's it been like being sat back in the Sky Sports News desk chair?
It's been great. I'm going to be doing a new breakfast show, but we're not launching that till the autumn and I decided to go back early, just to reimmerse myself in sport and get back into the swing of things.
Obviously sport is a great love of mine, but I've not actually been presenting sport for a very long time so I have to get my knowledge up and get completely immersed in it.So I thought, I best get back there and start working hard and that's what I'm doing really, you need to know everything about everything. There's no place to hide on Sky Sports News because they break all of the sports stories first and they're across everything you know that is what's great about Sky Sports News, that's the service that you get.
I need to work really hard at that, and that's what I'm doing. I've gone back, I'm enjoying it, the hours are long, it is tough with two kids but I'm enjoying it and if I wasn't working I'd be complaining and I just think that it's a good place to be.
You said that there is going to be the relaunch of the show, what can people expect to see?
It's going to be a little bit more of a relaxed breakfast show, but talking about sports and looking at the mornings papers. I'm hoping that we can really compete with those breakfast shows that are on at the moment. Even if you don't absolutely love sport and it's not your absolute be all and end all, it will be a nice way to wake up in the morning. You get what you need, the information that you need, we'll also be doing emails and things like that. It will be a good show to wake up to.I can't tell you too much at the moment because actually they're changing their minds on a few things at the moment, just tweaking at the moment. I think it will be a great show, very kind of relaxed and you get everything that you need to know about sport.
Other than Sky Sports News, what other things have you got coming up?
I'm just looking at a few other projects at the moment, I'm working hard with Sky Ride at the minute, I'm do some other different bits and pieces. I'm working with a few different companies. I work with Jaguar quite a lot as well, I'm presenting an awards dinner for them this year.At the moment I work four days a week with Sky and that obviously doesn't leave me a lot of room to do much else, but I am able to do stuff and I am looking forward to choosing what else I can do to go along with my Sky Sports work.
In total over 15 city rides - where city centres are shut and traffic-free streets are given over to the cyclists - and more than 750 local rides will be happening up and down the country up until October. With the aim to encourage one million more people to cycle more regularly by 2013.
Femalefirst Taryn Davies
Kirsty Gallacher is trying to encourage us to get back on our bikes.
The Sky Sports News presenter is working with a number of other celebrities, including Kelly Brook and Alexandra Burke for this years Sky Ride - a nationwide cycling initiative from Sky and British Cycling which aims to encourage people of all ages and abilities to get back on their bikes through a series of free events and activities.
We caught up with Kirsty and asked her why she decidied to get involved and what its been like being sat back in the Sky Sports news desk chair.
Tell us about this Sky Ride intiative?
Well basically, we’re trying to get as many people as we can back onto their bikes or onto a bike. If they’ve never rode one it doesn’t matter. It’s to try and get people cycling really. For whatever reason really, it’s fitness – do as much or as little as you like – but it’s great for sort of social reasons, hanging out with the family, we go out as a family. My little one is a bit little, he’s only one, but we go out with Oscar who is four and a half and it’s fantastic because we’ve sort of rediscovered cycling.We just go locally, it’s safe and it’s also really nice to get out on a nice day to go out and about. We’re trying to get a million people back on their bikes by 2013. Really there is no wrong reason, it’s only good reasons that you get from your bike because it’s nice to use the bike instead of the car.
As part of the launch, a bunch of you went in search of the perfect hill, how's that going?
We're still doing that. I've not been as much involved with that. But in general Sky Ride are trying to find the Perfect Hill, you can go to SkyRide.com to find out more information.We're trying to get people to find the perfect hill, whether it's stopping at the top and looking down or it's the ride down or up, whatever it may mean to you.
Why is it important for more people to get on their bikes?
There are lots of reasons. We're trying to get more people to ride, like Boris Johnson, trying to get more people in cities and towns to get on their bikes for reasons to not use the car, being a little more eco-friendly and watching our carbon footprints, so there's that reason.But there is also the fitness and the health reasons, it's just a quite easy way to keep fit and healthy, even just doing a little bit of cycling during the week you're obviously helping yourself, getting your heart rate up and getting a little bit more fit in that way and also it's a nice positive thing to do with your family and friends to socialise. As long as you take the correct safety precautions and you wear a helmut.
Other than bike rides how do you manage to stay in shape?
I go the gym, I do quite a lot of circuit training in the gym. Whether it be doing little sprints on the treadmill, or rowing; I quite enjoy rowing or I'll go for quite a hard bike ride, actually not too hard because I'm only just getting back into it but I just try and get my heart rate up and do some weights and things like that.I've not been at the gym as much as I should have been these past couple of months because I've gone back to Sky Sports and my hours are quite long and I've got the kids as well and we've been really busy. When I get back into it, I'll be doing a little bit more in the gym. I've just re-taken up tennis as well, which I'm enjoying and playing more golf. So re-discovering that which is great.
You say you've re-taken up tennis, is that after presenting Wimbledon?
No, I'd taken it up just a little bit before that and then we went on holiday, we went to Spain, at the beginning of July and we took our tennis rackets and played a bit there. We always do actually when we're there. I took it up in the last few months, then doing Wimbledon definitely gave me more of an incentive.
What's it been like being sat back in the Sky Sports News desk chair?
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