Interview: Kate Hoy’s Conquest – A Bike Shop Owner’s Epic Alpine Adventure on ‘The Route’

If you’ve not heard of ‘The Route’, it’s a fundraising event that gives participants the opportunity to ride all of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift ahead of the pros.

This year will be the second edition, supported by charity partner, Cure Leukemia. This women-only challenge will see participants ride the full 1165km route from 25 July to 2 August 2025.

Ahead of this year’s event, we spoke to Kate Hoy, owner of Pronto Bikes, who took part in the event in 2024.

Tell us a little about you?

I’m 46 with 2 children and 2 step-children ranging from 20 to 13, a husband, 2 dogs and a horse! My career background is mainly fitness and marketing, which I very much enjoyed, but life changed in lockdown due to Furlough, etc. Myself and my husband, Justin, decided to open a bike shop. We are now four years in and the shop has grown hugely, as well as selling bikes, accessories and the workshop we have a Castelli Cafe in store, bike fitting department, sports therapist, running analysis and more to come! We have a club with over 160 members and a men’s and women’s race team.

Is it true that you only got on a bike for the first time when you were 40?

Yes! Other than occasionally dragging out an old bike to the pub and back! When I hit 40, I entered a mini triathlon, my brother found me a secondhand bike and off I went. I loved it! A few weeks later, I met Justin (now my husband), who had been an elite cyclist for many years, and my cycling suddenly increased… a lot.

I now compete regularly in triathlons, running, cycling events and last year qualified for the Ironman 70.3 World Championship. If you had told me that 5 years ago, I would never have believed you.

What made you sign up? Did your initial expectations of riding The Route compare with the reality?

I knew that I wanted to take on a challenge, but I wasn’t sure what. I then happened to see Becca Charlton talking about the Route, and everything started to fall into place. My Uncle died of Leukemia when he was just 31, and my cousins were only 3 and 1, and at the time, my mother-in-law, Linda, had blood cancer. She sadly passed away a few months before the Route, but knew I was doing it.

I also knew Andy Cook, who runs the cycling side of the ride, so it all just seemed to come together – a cycling challenge that was raising money for a charity close to my heart, I applied straight away!

Reflecting on your experience, what were the most valuable lessons you learned that you’ve already started applying, or plan to apply, within Pronto Bikes to better serve your customers?

Having always been competitive, whenever I used to exercise, it was always full gas, and because I was also short of time due to work/children, etc, it was always rushed. The biggest thing I took from the ride was actually really enjoying the riding, taking in the stunning landscapes, chatting to the other riders, and the escapism from the stresses of everyday life. It has made me really appreciate how lucky I am to be able to ride my bike and the universal appeal it has to all, and to take the time to enjoy it.

So really it made me even more passionate about cycling but also helping other people realise that they could take on a challenge, whether that’s riding up mountains in France or doing their first ever 10-mile bike ride through the lanes in Somerset. Cycling is a special thing to do and benefits us in so many ways.

Participating in ‘The Route’ is a pretty specific kind of cycling experience. Based on your experience, what do you think the benefits would be for other bike shop owners considering taking on similar challenges?

We have a lot of customers that already go on cycling holidays abroad or who have taken on cycling challenges, so it helps us to understand what they are looking for when it comes to bikes, comfort, kit etc but I have found that it has also inspired some of our customers to take on challenges themselves. I have also found that some of them have newfound respect for me as they’ve realised I can actually ride a bike … however, they still know I am not good at bike mechanics!

I hope that me having done it will open up opportunities for other people to find out more about the challenges they can take on and what else is out there.

From your perspective, what are some of the key trends you’ve observed in the female cycling market, and what opportunities do you see for bike shops to better engage with and support female cyclists?

I think we may buck the trend here at Pronto with the female cycling market. It definitely helps having female members of staff, especially if they are keen riders themselves.

I think people in general, not just women, are investing in themselves, whether it’s their hobbies, physical or mental health, fitness, coaches, rather than spending their disposable income on cars, shoes and luxury items.

We have four ladies in our top 10 spending customers and have sold many high-end road bikes (including £12500 Dogmas) to women who predominantly are over 45 and are looking for beautiful, fast bikes that bring them joy when they ride them.

Gravel riding is definitely becoming more popular and we are increasing our gravel ride outs from the shop this year. We do put on a few female-only rides throughout the year, which are popular, but in general in our club,  females are happy to go on mixed rides … it’s more about who they are riding with and where, rather than the gender of the ride! We have also had experts come in and do talks on women’s nutrition/hormones and exercise that were well attended.

I think the culture of social media has also helped many people talk about any issues they might have. Instagrammers that have shared stories of mental health/menopause/saddle discomfort/sore feet etc etc, so when they come into the shop, they feel more comfortable sharing any problems within cycling they may have.

What was the community response to your participation and fundraising efforts? Did you see an impact on customer engagement or shop visibility? 

They were amazing and so supportive! I held a few raffles, quizzes, etc, to raise money, but customers (new and old) were so generous with their donations. They also offered valuable advice about riding some of the climbs and the long rides.

I shared my journey on my personal and business social media accounts, and it had great interaction and support. It was also shocking to find out how many people had been affected by blood cancer, whether it was themselves, a family member or a friend.

Having experienced the level of professional support on ‘The Route,’ like rolling road closures and dedicated mechanics, what did you find most valuable, and how do you think bike shops can use those insights to better advise their customers on event preparation or general riding?

You’ve hit the nail on the head with preparation. Customers like to know what is going to happen, where the ride is going, how fast it will be, potential hazards, who else is riding, what they need to take, and what to expect. This is especially key for any new or nervous riders.

Describe the atmosphere of the all-female team and your most memorable moments during the ride? 

Excitement, supportive, encouraging, privileged, united, proud!

My most memorable moments:

• Watching the start of the Women’s Race in Rotterdam.
• Riding through France on the most beautiful winding road through the valleys .. perfect setting, scenery, people and riding.
• Each day, I dedicated the stage and rode for someone who either had blood cancer, had survived blood cancer or was living with it, so each day when I was finding it tough, I thought of them.
• The last day was particularly emotional as I was riding for my mother-in-law, who had recently passed away. She was passionate about cycling and loved following the Tour, I know she would have been proud.
• With about 2km to go on the Col De Glandon, having a little cry as my back was screaming, the rain was coming, and I knew I still had to climb Alpe D’Huez … someone took my picture and my face said it all!
• The last 1km of the ride up Alpe D’Huez it was happy tears all the way realising what I and the other team members had achieved.
• The evening meals … catching up on the day’s events, the special moments and the plan and anticipation for the next day.

It truly was the most special and amazing thing I have ever done, I would do it again in a heartbeat!