Stories by region
Whakatāne Mayoral ride kicks off Bike Wise month
Leading by example, Whakatāne Mayor Tony Bonne started off Bike Wise month by biking to work and was joined by dozens of enthusiastic cyclists.
Cyclists met at 6:30 am at Maraetotara Reserve in Ohope to bike with the Mayor to work in Whakatane and could choose which route to cycle, including a hilly bush lined, carless gravel road through scenic kiwi reserves or a shorter tarsealed route over the Ohope Hill.
Mayor Bonne chose the gravel road rather than the Ohope Hill and said, “I loved the ride – especially the bush” and added, “I should do it more often!”
His time taken to ride the trail was five minutes faster than in the previous year and he considered that the crowds helped to motivate him.
“I think it was because I had people behind me,” he said.
Part of the fun for some was what they were riding. Cody Thyne, an employee of Department of Conversation, who has recently moved from rural Waimana to urban Whakatāne, got into the spirit of things by kitting out his stylish pink Raleigh Twenty.
The procession of cyclists joined together for a free breakfast of bagels and salmon, coffee and cereal at a café in central Whakatane
