Company director Tony James (39) spent three years carefully customising his hand-built bike before it was snatched by thieves from his back garden in All Saints Road.

The theft of the father-of-two’s prized possession comes barely a week after his son’s bike was stolen from outside a supermarket in the city centre.

Today, Mr James appealed to Evening Telegraph readers to help him get back what was taken from him and help police catch up with the thieves responsible.

He said: “Mountain biking is my hobby, my passion and my escape from city life.

“It has taken me years to build up to a bike of that value, and I probably spent as much time cleaning it as I did riding the thing.

“I’m absolutely mortified about what has happened. Some people might think it’s just a bike, but it was a prized personal possession and someone has just taken it. I’m totally gutted.”

Mr James, who is managing director of city-based maintenance firm Active Property Contractors, had the custom-built bike imported from America three years ago.

Since then he has been adding accessories to boost its performance, and he regularly used it for long-distance rides in the Lake District, Wales and Thetford Forest in Norfolk.

He discovered the theft at about 6pm on Thursday, when he found the latch of his padlocked garden shed had been forced off and the bicycle stolen.

He believes the thieves had climbed over his garden gate between 10am and 3pm the same day. By unfortunate co-incidence, his 15-year-old son William had his £350 bike stolen from outside the Tesco Metro store, in nearby Broadway, the previous Wednesday.

Mr James says his own high-performance bike, a metallic black Turner 5 Spot with front and rear suspension, would be easy to spot in the street.

He said: “It’s certainly not the sort of bike you could buy off the shelves in Halfords – it’s a one-off piece and you won’t find one the same anywhere else.

“It’s quite distinctive and what I would describe as a head turner. If anyone sees it being ridden out on the streets or is offered it for sale, I would urge them to get in touch with the police.”

n Anyone with information about Mr James’s missing bike should call Peterborough police on 0845 456 4564.