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SURVIVING a violent attempted kidnapping could have left Toria Leeds, the victim a recluse with no confidence and scared of her own shadow.
SURVIVING a violent attempted kidnapping could have left Toria Leeds, the victim a recluse with no confidence and scared of her own shadow.But for one Peterborough woman, shaking off the effects of the shocking attack lit up an entrepeneural flame inside her, and just two years later her cycle training company has been named one of the UK's top businesses in the 2009 Barclays Trading Places Awards
Now Toria Leeds is in the running for a national award honouring men and women who are turning their lives around by choosing to start up a business, something she never felt possible after surviving a harrowing ambush in her own home in Paston.
Her ex-partner had lain in wait for her and attacked her as she put away her shopping before binding her with garden rope.
She said: "He just came from nowhere and had punched and kicked me to the ground before he tried to tie me up.
"It was like something out of a film."
Toria eventually wriggled free before escaping and raising the alarm before police launched a man-hunt to nab her abusive partner.
And it was during her recovery from her ordeal that Toria, who had previously worked for the city council for 11 years, decided to follow her "green" dream and redesign the city's cycling landscape.
And her company does the legwork so cyclists don't have to, by biking around the maps, which are drawn from aerial photography, and auditing them by foot or bicycle to ensure accuracy
Miss Leeds said: "The method used to produce cycle maps using Ordnance Survey data meant they were all out of date.
"Being a cyclist myself, I wanted to make sure they had key information about the surfaces of the roads, where you can get cash out or buy a drink, things that are really important when you are preparing to go out."
Now the recently launched Green Wheel cycle and walking map is already flying off the shelves in Waterstone's, WHSmith, bicycle shops and leisure outlets as Toria bids to ride out the recession.
Barclays marketing director for local business John Davis, a judge on the panel, said: "Trading Places is a celebration of inspiring people who have struggled through adversity to get their businesses up and running – even during these turbulent times.
"We also hope Toria's story will inspire other budding entrepreneurs in Peterborough, who face similar difficulties in their private lives, to come forward and turn their own business dreams into reality."
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