Bike Week wraps up for another year, with the screening of the US documentary MOTHERLOAD! and the Longford retro cycles showcase two of the highlights.
US film inspires cycling solidarity
The week kicked off on Sunday 5 March with a screening of MOTHERLOAD! in Hobart and Launceston.
Around 50 people attended each session, with the northern screening preceded by a social ride to the Newnham campus and the southern audience getting free popcorn!
The film explores the history of women and cycling, the development of cargo bikes, barriers to riding more and stories of some of the people who have kept pushing to get cargo bikes accepted as legitimate transport.
The Hobart screening was followed by a lively discussion with the audience and leading local e-bike retailer Ahmet Bektas and Alison Hetherington from Bicycle Network.
Retro cycle showcase
Longford turned on the good weather on Sunday 5 March to showcase people’s old bicycles and provide the chance to take a turn around the velodrome in vintage cycling attire.
Congratulations to Joe from Longford for his meticulously restored Master Sports road bike which won the Roll Cycles prize on the day.
Super Tuesday windy and chilly
Our annual Hobart commuter cyclist count Super Tuesday fell in Bike Week this year and unfortunately on the first really cold morning of the year.
We won’t know the full situation until every counter enters their data, but anecdotally it sounded like numbers were down on previous years, no doubt due to weather but also because working from home and flexible hours is now the new norm in many businesses.
A quick scan of 15 sites across Hobart showed an increase on last year's poor numbers (another bad weather year) but numbers still down on the 2021 results which were more typical of March weather.
This was the first year we have included e-scooters in the official count, as they are now legally able to use paths and some roads in Tasmania.
Having the numbers of people cycling, scooting and skating is useful for local and state governments to understand potential demand for building separated cycleways.
Bike maintenance popular
TBUG’s bikes and pizzas session on Monday 6 March proved popular despite the threatening weather.
Mobile mechanic The Bike Guy came along to show people the basics of keeping their bike in good working order and it was topped off with a pizza feast afterwards.
And Hobart Bike Kitchen got a plug on ABC Radio for their great work turning up every week to show others how to build and repair bikes.
Social rides the glue for the week
There were several social rides offered in Hobart and Launceston that helped glue the other activities together to make the week special, including:
- Pipeline Track from Fern Tree
- Wednesday morning ride Hazelbrae to Bracknell
- Launceston International Womens Day ride (Hobart’s cancelled due to weather)
- Thursday Launceston Twilight ride
- Ranelagh River Ride
- River to Mountain Bike Week lunch ride
- Launceston History Ride
- Hobart Brompton Rally Ride
- Launceston Night Ride
- Launceston Community Ride
Back on your Bike helps more people ride
Our Back on your Bike program was active over the week helping people at Dodges Ferry, Hobart, Howrah and Launceston get the skills they need to ride with more confidence.
The Dodges Ferry sessions were held in conjunction with Okines Community House Bike Repair Shed which opens every week to repair old bikes and give them a second life. And in Launceston we helped members of the Hazara community get on bikes to join the community ride.
Two sets of hands toasty this winter
The winners of our members winter gloves competition have been drawn out of the randomised computer number hat. Congratulations to Andrew from Cremorne and Lisa from South Hobart!
Andrew plans to wear his gloves on his daily commute into Hobart and Lisa for all her trips along the Rivulet Track to keep warmer in winter.