Entertainment
A documentary about the Dutch cycling revolution could be the catalyst for a revival of Invercargill’s own cycling culture.
The 60min documentary titled, ‘Why We Cycle’ will screen at SIT Centrestage Theatre from 6.30pm on Wednesday (November 13).
A collaboration between Murihiku by Bike and the Dutch embassy, the screening will take the audience on a ride with ordinary cyclists and specialists from a variety of disciplines, uncovering some obvious, but even more hidden effects of cycling on people, on societies, and on the organisation of cities.
Murihiku by Bike founder Cathy Jordan hopes the evening will create even more momentum for a burgeoning cycling movement in Southland.
Invercargill’s wide streets and low traffic volumes meant the city was well-placed for cycling, as evidenced by historic photos of streets filled with parked bikes.
“When I first found out about this documentary, I really wanted to bring it to Invercargill to start a conversation about cycling in the city. It’s been fantastic to have the Dutch embassy come on board to support this event so that we can make it free to the community,” Jordan said.
Jordan, who is also the Play Systems Innovator with Sport Southland’s Healthy Families Invercargill team, said cycling could play an important role in enhancing communities.
“My dream is that Invercargill is a place where it’s really easy for anyone, but especially families, to travel around by bike. If that happened, the benefits for our community in terms of our physical and mental wellbeing would be huge.”
The documentary will be followed by a panel discussion involving Dutch ambassador Mira Woldberg, Ministry of Transport chief science advisor Professor Simon Kingham, Invercargill City Council roading manager Russell Pearson and Eva Hendricks, who grew up in the Netherlands and now bikes around Invercargill with her three children.
The screening will be free, although a koha will be collected to help support the Graeme Cockroft cycle park.
For more information…
https://whatsoninvers.nz/events/why-we-cycle/