Cycling Activities for February 2016

[Updated event details, 6 Feb] Summer is warming up, and so are the fun activities out there for you on your bike! So here’s a run-down of some of the events coming up that you might like to mark in your diary (the details for some of them are still being finalised). Unless stated, they are all free and open to anyone who’s interested. Remember, you can keep track of what’s coming up via our Events & Activities Calendar.

• Wed 10th Feb: Steve has already mentioned that the main event coming up is national Go By Bike Day. This year in Christchurch there will be five, count ’em, five bike breakfast sites set up around the central city to capture people coming in from all directions. See the map below for where they are, from 7am – 9am. You can get yourself some free breakfast snacks and other giveaways, as well as bike checks and chances to try riding an electric bike.

• Feb 10th will also see the start of Wheel Womyn Wednesdays, from 6pm at the RAD Bikes shed in The Commons on Kilmore/Durham. This is a dedicated monthly session run by the ladies of the shed to share knowledge, answer (and ask) embarrassing questions, and socialise with other bike peeps. Wheel Womyn is a casual, drop-in workshop focused on one topic per event – first up: tyres!

• Meanwhile RAD Bikes continues to operate its twice-weekly workshops for building and repairing bikes; come along either Sundays 12-4pm or Wednesdays 5.30-8.30pm. They’re also re-starting an Afterschools Bike Maintenance Workshop, for keen 10-14 year olds who like to tinker, held on Thursday afternoons, starting on 11th Feb – places are limited though, so register now!

• Sat 20th Feb: Two choices await you this weekend. Firstly, Cycle Chch bring us the Folks & Spokes Bike Gang Ride to the Nostalgia Festival at Ferrymead, a fun mix of good food, music and arts & crafts. The ride will be leaving from the central city at 12pm; more details about the route to be posted soon. You could even ride one of the bikeshare Spark Bikes to the festival and back and your ride that day will be completely free!

• Sun 21st Feb: Also on this weekend from 10.30am, Frocks on Bikes have their next ride scheduled – a Garden tour. Frocks On Bikes is all about helping to get people on a bike (esp. women) – no stress, no fuss, no need for lycra; just freedom, convenience, and fun – in your own style! Starting from Vintage Peddler Bike Hire Co, 75 Peterborough St, the ride will take in 5-6 popular or not-so-well-known gardens, parks and beauty spots in and around Central Christchurch, finishing with a picnic destination in the Moa Reserve.

• Wed 24th Feb: Do you want to learn how to change tyres, mend punctures, check your helmet, and do basic maintenance on your bike? As part of their adult education programme, Hillmorton High School are running a Cycle Maintenance & Care course, from 7-9pm. Cost is $15 for this single session; register now!

• Sun 28th Feb: The last planned event of the month is another Lazy Sunday Cycle Ride, this time in the Ilam-Riccarton area. Not to be confused with the Lazy Sunday concerts in the Botanic Gardens (which you could also ride to!), Lazy Sunday is all about normal riding on normal bikes, featuring safe cycling routes that are mostly traffic-free – great for newbies! Just in time for the start of the university year, the plan is to scout out the area between Canterbury University and Hagley Park, including the new Uni-Cycle Major Cycleway route. The ride will start from 1pm (although it’s free, you’ll need to register for logistics and health/safety); more details to come!

• We’re still hoping to also see some cycle-powered cinema coming to a blank wall near you soon – details when we hear about it! Speaking of films, you might also like to mark Fri 10th Jun in your calendars, which is when the Big Bike Film Night will be coming to Christchurch…

• Not an event, but something to put on your to-do list – vote for NZ’s Favourite Places to Cycle! You’ll remember that last month nominations were called for, and BikeWise received over 2000 suggestions. Based on that they have whittled it down to 20 places over four categories. Christchurch features three times in there so, if you think they’re the best, make sure that you put in your votes before the end of February.

• A reminder too: if you’re interested in Christchurch getting some cycle training/skills activities happening, please complete our survey, so that the City Council can consider options for this.

OK! Plenty there to keep you going this month. And of course, if you just like a good old fashioned ride to explore somewhere new, you can always check out our guide to where to cycle in Christchurch. Don’t forget too all the wonderful Summertimes events being held around Christchurch at the moment, including Summer Theatre, Electric Avenue Music Festival, Sunday Bandstand, I Love New Brighton, and Summer Pool Parties. Why not round up the posse and bike to one of them?

What do you want to attend?