Back in the Saddle by Hayden Groves

Hayden Groves

Hayden Groves

Executive Chef 21st November 2017
Hayden Groves

Hayden Groves

Executive Chef

Back in the Saddle by Hayden Groves

Photography by Dave Hayward and Adrian Franklin.

In 2017, a team of amateur cyclists took on the 3 Tours Challenge, riding the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España to help raise vital money for blood cancer charity Cure Leukaemia.

The challenge was to cycle over 10403km in just 63 days, completing each of the famous Grand Tours one day ahead of the professionals – a feat only 39 professional cyclists have ever completed.

The team of riders included Geoff Thomas, former England and Crystal Palace footballer; James Maltin, wealth manager; Doug McKinnon, telecoms entrepreneur, and Hayden Groves, chef and author of Back in the Saddle.

National Chef of the Year 2013, Hayden Groves’ love of both food and cycling began early. Success in either field requires many of the same attributes. Simple hard work is not enough to get you to the top: talent is also needed, and Hayden has demonstrated that he has it in buckets.

In 2012 Hayden joined BaxterStorey, the innovative independent hospitality provider, and has been instrumental in promoting and developing their ethos of fresh, local food delivered by highly skilled and enthusiastic teams.

With his natural stamina, cycling come easily to Hayden. His first cycling hero was Greg LeMond, the American three-time winner of the Tour de France, and by the age of 15 his love of road racing was firmly in place.

The 3 Tours Challenge has given him the perfect opportunity to showcase both of his very special talents and to put them to good use in raising money for the charity.

Back in the Saddle features 63 recipes inspired by every stage of their route through Italy, France and Spain: a cycling and food odyssey.

The book features contributions from Professor Charles Craddock CBE, Alastair Storey, Phil Liggett MBE, Laura Kenny CBE and Michel Roux Jr.

All proceeds from the sale of this book will go to help Cure Leukaemia. To order your copy of Back in the Saddle, head to: www.3tourschallenge.com/
">www.3tourschallenge.com/

In these challenging times…

The Staff Canteen team are taking a different approach to keeping our website independent and delivering content free from commercial influence. Our Editorial team have a critical role to play in informing and supporting our audience in a balanced way. We would never put up a paywall  – The Staff Canteen is open to all and we want to keep bringing you the content you want; more from younger chefs, more on mental health, more tips and industry knowledge, more recipes and more videos. We need your support right now, more than ever, to keep The Staff Canteen active. Without your financial contributions this would not be possible.

Over the last 16 years, The Staff Canteen has built what has become the go-to platform for chefs and hospitality professionals. As members and visitors, your daily support has made The Staff Canteen what it is today. Our features and videos from the world’s biggest name chefs are something we are proud of. We have over 560,000 followers across Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and other social channels, each connecting with chefs across the world. Our editorial and social media team are creating and delivering engaging content every day, to support you and the whole sector - we want to do more for you.

A single coffee is more than £2, a beer is £4.50 and a large glass of wine can be £6 or more.

Support The Staff Canteen from as little as £1 today. Thank you.