The celebrated cyclists Sir Chris Hoy and Sir Paul Smith are to contribute to the Design Museum’s Cycle Revolution exhibition taking place from the 18th November and running until the 30th June 2016.

Thanks to the London 2012 Olympics, the interest in cycling has soared in recent years and the Design Museum has decided it is the perfect time to examine the people and machines that make contemporary cycling what it is today and to ask how it might develop in the future.

Bringing together dozens of bicycles from some of the best known manufacturers such as Pinarello and Boardman Elite, personal pieces belonging to Sir Chris Hoy and Sir Paul Smith and film and photography, this is certainly an exhibition that will be enjoyed by cycling enthusiasts.

This is then followed by the news that the Design Museum is launching an International competition to find the ultimate urban rider to feature in the exhibition. The competition asks the most devoted city cyclists to put themselves forward to take part in the exhibition. For details on how to apply visit the Design Museum website.

Back to the Cycle Revolution exhibition, the display will look at the subcultures of cycling through four different topics: the high performers (who reach Olympic speeds), the thrill seekers (who take on all terrains), the urban riders (those who pedal through our cities) and the cargo bikers (who work on two wheels).

But it will also explore the changes in manufacturing techniques and innovation in the use of material and design, with a large-scale representation of bicycle making workshop bringing to life the process used in making bicycles.

The final section of the display will concentrate on the future of cycling – how are designers and manufacturers responding to the needs of 21st century cyclists? How can tensions between motorists, cyclists and pedestrians be usefully resolved?

It is not an exhibition that will be confined to the gallery and will take over the entire building – with a cycle cafe, large scale installations and public events taking place over the course of the exhibition.

The display will be launched with a period cavalcade of bicycles that will be ridden from Herne Hill to the museum on Saturday the 24th October – so if this sounds like your kind of thing then the Design Museum is the place you need to be in November!