With the days getting shorter, colder, and now it seems wetter again, it can be hard to motivate yourself to get on your treadly. So what better excuse than the shortest day of the year to pimp your ride and join some like-minded souls? The 2014 Winter Solstice Ride is coming soon to Christchurch and you’re all invited!
For the third year running, keen riders will be meeting up in North Hagley Park as the darkness sets in, for a cruisy ride around the park with your brightest lights on display. Organiser Ian Wells’ goal is to have enough riders to completely encircle North Hagley Park with a ring of bicycle lights, to give a bright message to our city leaders about the demand for cycling, even in the depths of winter.
The ride will begin on Sat 21st June at 5.30pm from the Mickle Gates at the Armagh St entrance. Once everyone has congregated, we’ll take a counter-clockwise ride (i.e. starting north) around the perimeter of the Park and then adjourn to Fiddlesticks Bar (cnr Worcester & Montreal) for a beer or hot chocolate and discuss how to help make Christchurch a world-class cycling city!
Sunset on the 21st is at 4.59pm, so you will definitely need your lights just to get to the ride. But half the fun of the ride is to see how much you can deck out your bike (and yourself!) in your brightest and most colourful lights and other decorations.
(Note: be mindful on your way to/from the ride that you don’t blind your fellow road users with your lights. I’m seeing some pretty bright cycle lighting out there these days, and if it’s not pointed down to the road it’s pretty annoying…)
At last year’s Ride, Mother Nature threw her worst at the participants, severely denting the promised numbers down to a brave 50-odd souls. Hopefully things won’t be as grim this year but, if need be, you can always take some of our advice about cycling in the wet and the cold… Sign up at the Facebook event page so we can see how many people are going this year.
Will you be joining the Winter Solstice Ride this year?
Brilliant event. Some extra light is just what we need on the shortest day of the year!. Hope it will be very busy!!