A BARNOLDSWICK man charged with causing the death by careless driving of an Otley cyclist has been sent to crown court.

Nicholas Castle Goddard, 62, is charged with causing the death of Craig Armitage while driving a silver Hyundai 130 Estate on the B6160 at Bolton Abbey on February 15.

Goddard, of Pen-y-Ghent Way, appeared at Skipton Magistrates Court on Friday when he made no indication of plea.

Magistrates were advised by the Crown to send the case to Bradford Crown Court, where he will appear for a preliminary hearing on September 18.

Father-of-three Mr Armitage, 44, was taking part in the Otley Reliability Ride to Kettlewell on February 15, when the incident happened.

The collision took place at about 11.30am on the B6160, between Bolton Abbey and Barden Tower, and involved the silver Hyundai i30 car being driven by Goddard, who was travelling towards Barden.

Mr Armitage was travelling in the opposite direction, on the bends in the Bolton Abbey Estate between the Cavendish Memorial Fountain and the archway, with two other cyclists. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Otley Reliability Ride was one of seven organised rides in Yorkshire scheduled between January and March with the support of British Cycling.

Two rides, of 50km and 100km, took place on the day of the incident, starting in Otley and heading through Ilkley, Addingham and into North Yorkshire.

A week after Mr Armitage's death, Otley came to a standstill as hundreds of cyclists paid their respects to him. About 200 of Mr Armitage’s friends, colleagues and fellow cyclists turned out in his honour on February 22. They completed a 14-mile section – named Craig’s Tribute – of the Alba Rosa Cycling Club’s Reliability Ride, which had been altered especially so it would pass through Mr Armitage’s hometown.

A minute’s silence was held at the starting point outside the Lawnswood Arms, in Leeds, before the riders – including Mr Armitage’s 70-year-old father, Ken – set off. Upon their arrival in Otley, they were cheered on by spectators and publicly thanked by Mr Armitage’s widow, Jill, and his mother, Joan.

Mr Armitage had co-founded Otley-based In Gear Coaching, which runs cycle training programmes for children, with business partner Jonathan Farnby.

He said: “Craig had a massive impact on the local cycling community, not just being a cyclist but a coach.

“He taught many, many children how to ride bikes and was also a real genuine family man and devoted father of three children.”

Skipton Coroner’s Court has opened and adjourned an inquest into the death.