Many of us dream of turning a passion into a profession, but one lifelong cycling enthusiast has decided to make his dream a reality.

Darren Blackstock has been cycling since boyhood – from early days on his BMX before graduating to mountain biking on trails and then to road bikes. He even helped set up a cycling group called Halfast in home village Chiseldon. But he wanted more.

“I have attended business networking events for many years -and they always have the same format,” he said. “Hotel room, talk, eat breakfast and leaves. Don’t get me wrong, it works. But, well, it’s boring. The format seems so dated. Now I’m a keen cyclist, and I wondered if I could combine networking and cycling.”

From this simple idea, new project PedalTalk was born. Darren, 44, set up the company in September and is holding networking events far away from the function rooms of hotels, outside and on the road. “A lot of people need to network, and many people enjoy bike-riding,” Darren explains. “This is another choice. It gives you an opportunity to network but puts bike riding into that as well. It gives you a couple of hours to talk, away from distractions.”

Darren grew up in High Wycombe and admits he did not work very hard at school. “I left with two GCSEs,” he said ruefully. “I got a job in High Wycombe, for a business that was recruiting for a sales admin person.”

He found he enjoyed the sales environment and evidently managed to impress others with his abilities. “When I was 19 I persuaded them to give me a place on a graduate sales programme,” he said. He continued to work in sales in a technical environment, including a five-year stint for Worldcom. He married Claire, and the couple had two children, Emily and Harry. About eight years ago he set up his own business, Blubird, to coach sales teams.

A typical PedalTalk lasts for four hours – which includes introductions with coffee and cake, a couple of hours cycling, plus time for a shower and lunch at the end. Future events will take place at Royal Wootton Bassett, the Forest of Dean, Cirencester in the Cotwolds, and Newbury.

The routes are graded for the challenge they present, and participants need to bring their own bikes. Darren admits this is a networking gig for real cycling enthusiasts but with more and more people enjoying the sport he hopes it will prove a winner for those looking to make build networks

For more information and details of the meets visit www.pedaltalk.co.uk.