From the http://www.kentonline.co.uk 10 May 2015, by Bess Browning

Big party as UK's first cycling pub opens for business

The UK's first cycling pub has opened near Faversham.

Merging beer and bikes, the former "Four Horseshoes" boozer in Seasalter Road in Graveney has been refurbished and rebranded as The "Freewheel" public house.

Serving ales and wine like any traditional pub, this quirky new watering hole also doubles up as a bike maintenance shed.

The idea is the brainchild of bike-crazy Adrian Oliver who co-founded Kent-based CycleAge, an organisation delivering tailored cycling lessons to the public.

On Monday, a year after the pub was closed and boarded up, Adrian treated his new clientele to bands, circus bikes and a barbecue.

Adrian said: “When I went to view the property there were cyclists going past even then, so I saw the potential.

“The pub is ideally located two minutes from the national cycle route, which runs all the way through Kent, so there was no better opportunity for me here.

“On Monday, we had a barbecue serving the poshest sausages from a local farm just down the road and lots of local beer.

“We had loads of bikes on show and our seven-seat monster bike even made an appearance.

“We are really looking forward to welcoming in our new customers during the summer.”

From the https://www.kentonline.co.uk By Anna MacSwan, 13 January 2018.

New owners sought for Graveney's Freewheel Pub.

A much-loved village pub will close unless a new owner can be found.

The "Freewheel Pub and Cycling Cafe" in Graveney opened in 2015 in what used to be the "Four Horseshoes," which had been empty for more than a year.

But having brought the pub back to life, landlord Adrian Oliver has decided to move on.

Adrian Oliver at the Freewheel pub, Graveney.

The decision is due to not being able to make enough money during the summer season to cover the winter months.

The "Freewheel" was set to close yesterday but the village has since rallied and is looking for ways to keep it going.

It will now remain open for the next month to allow time for a new buyer to come forward.

Mr Oliver said he found the response heartening.

He said: “It’s lovely and encouraging. I suppose secretly I was hoping we would get this reaction, but I’m delighted.

“However the reality is that we are still looking for someone to take over the pub. We have given it a good shot, we have achieved an awful lot, and it is time for someone else to take over.

“We are giving it a month for people to come up with formal proposals, and we will review there. Hopefully there will be something good for the pub and good for the village.

“My hope is that it will continue, and it will continue to grow.”

Set just two minutes from a national cycle route, the "Freewheel" is the UK’s first cycling pub.

Mr Oliver, who is from Faversham and plans to return to working in marketing, is also the co-founder of CycleAge, which offers tailored cycling lessons to the public.

He said: “It’s bittersweet. The last couple of years have been incredibly exhausting, but also incredibly rewarding. To get it up and running, to get it known not only locally but nationally, has been very rewarding.

“The costs of running a 200-year-old building are high. We were hoping it would be turning over more than it is at this precise point. We couldn’t see that it was going to be viable in the short term.

“It’s very seasonal and we are reliant on a good summer. Early summer was great, but the weather in August made things difficult.”

The pub is open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and for key activities such as its Wednesday bus pass lunch and Thursday bridge club.