Cyclorama is New Zealand’s First E-Bike Festival running from the 13th to the 14th November 2021. Our vision is for Cyclorama to become a nationally celebrated e-bike festival. Keen to hear more? Keep reading as we delve deeper into the world of Cyclorama NZ with Dave Gibson, the festival founder.
So why an e-bike festival, why in Arrowtown, and oh, what happens at an e-bike festival?
These are the questions I am asked about the genesis of Cyclorama, a festival we are currently promoting as the first e-bike festival in New Zealand. I am an ex-TV and film producer, who spent most of my working life in Wellington, with my recreational biking largely confined to city riding. Now semi-retired and living just out of Arrowtown I now find myself riding the beautiful local trails on my doorstep. After upgrading to an e-bike, and during the whole online research period I became aware of similar festivals in Europe, stemming from the growing number of e-bikes being sold on the continent. Verbier is a perfect example. The Swiss village known for its winter ski fields and charm is increasingly popular with the biking community. The last few summers increasing numbers of e-bike enthusiasts have descended on Verbier to attend its annual e-bike festival.
Encouraged by it's obvious success I felt the desire to create something similar here, adding unique Arrowtown elements with a strong community focus. We have the most incredible natural landscape and some awesome trails here, pair that with terrific beer, local wine, and food offerings, we have the grounds for a pretty unique festival.
We have spent months planning a selection of trails (9 in this first year) with variety, to attract a wide range of riders. For example, Cyclopath, a two battery, all-day ride appeals to the serious rider however the self-explanatory rides like Tour de Gourmet and the Hop Trail are for those who want some time off their bikes as well as on them.
We don’t stop at the rides though. Butlers Green in Arrowtown will become a festival hub where you will find bikes, equipment, rentals, sellers, food stalls, and fun activities. The icing on the cake that will create the full festival vibe.
My persuasion skills have landed Cyclorama NZ with an array of experienced experts to help. My partner, Iris Webber has helped create the ride programme and organised the nitty-gritty with DOC and landowners. We have Rae Baker, an experienced event organiser at the helm, and Willie from the Queenstown Trails Trust helping behind the scenes and leading Cyclopath and Sneak Peek riders on the day. Bruce McLeod from the QTMBC is planning the Gold Trail orienteering event, an event for individual riders or families.
Our research into the e-bike festival world always looped back round to fun and capturing people in their element and we will be applying this same ethos to our festival.
November may seem a long time away, but we guarantee it will be here before we know it. Our website is fully functional with all the rides detailed and with an integrated booking site, you can reserve your tickets with or without an e-bike hire today.
Still keen to hear more? Head to our website to check out the rides and about us section. The whole Cyclorama NZ team can’t wait to have you in Arrowtown this November for the festival.
Website - https://www.cyclorama.co.nz
Contact Details - hello@cyclorama.co.nz
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