Get rollin’ – here’s how to ditch your car (and the traffic) for pedal power this year
Driving to work isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Sure, it’s a nice luxury, but honestly who really enjoys sitting in traffic at snail’s pace? All that stopping, starting and stopping again can be pretty damn draining and really kills the mood when you’re trying your best to harmonise with Craig David. Instead of always arriving to work in a sweat over how many minutes late you are, why don’t you try weaving in a few bike commutes here and there? It’s way easier than you think, you don’t need a bike (of your own) and you don’t even have to wear lycra … well, you can if you want.
We reckon many of you have entertained the idea of the occasional ride to work, or even just to the shops, but have no clue know where to start. First thing – a bike. Yep, kind of important. Don’t own one? That’s okay because on February 21, City of Gold Coast will launch a new bike-share scheme featuring these fancy new (and rad-looking) light-weight bikes from Mobike – the first share bikes to be equipped with surfboard racks! You basically access and unlock the bikes via a smartphone app, so it can’t really get much simpler than that. Next question – are you confident riding a bike? If your answer is no, or you just want to brush up on some skills and fitness, there are plenty of cycling workshops you can get to from flat-out beginner sessions though to commuting basics like bike handling, bike maintenance, learning the routes and valuable safety tips. These free (yes, free!) super-fun sessions are open to everyone and are run by local accredited instructors who know the local roads better than anyone – you’ll be in good hands.
There’s also a bunch of extra events and workshops being rolled out (right now) as part of the Get Set for the Games program, which aims to encourage locals to get on their bikes and utilise more than 2000 kilometres of bikeways that weave throughout the city in the lead up to the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. If you can’t remember the last time you rode a bike, the absolute beginners on bikes workshop is right up your alley and lucky for you, there’s one coming up on February 24 and again on March 24. Keen to commute? Check out the Commuter cycle training class on March 10, while you’re there, hang around for the Better bike maintenance class. Take a peek at the Get Set for the Games website for all of the times and booking details.
Let’s be honest, the roads are going to be a tad busy during the Commonwealth Games with road closures and re-routing, so if you were contemplating getting on yer’ bike, then now is the time to start rolling – you’ll be powering past all that traffic like a total baller in no time. You can scope out the full program of workshops and events online.
This post was created with the help of our friends at City of Gold Coast.
To find out more about what’s on in the Gold Coast, head to our Event Guide.
