About

Cycling in Auckland

Cycling in Auckland was launched at the beginning of April 2009 to promote, encourage and support cycling as a means of getting from A to B within the greater Auckland area. The website has been hugely popular and now has a high domestic following as well as a strong international audience.

We have a sister organisation, Cycling in Wellington, and together we are Cycling Places.

The aim of Cycling in Auckland is twofold:

Cycling in Auckland is written by a diverse group of people with different perspectives on cycling based on their own experiences of riding in Auckland. We have a wide variety of expertise in areas such as engineering, urban planning, marketing, education, and management.

Unity Finesmith

Unity is the Founder and Editor of Cycling in Auckland.

Having been a ‘lower case c’ cyclist for most of my life in the UK, France, Australia and New Zealand, I saw a real need for the promotion of utility cycling in Auckland. Once the idea for this website had crystallized and the plan had been committed to the back of an envelope, I roped in a few friends and Cycling in Auckland was born.

I also have a photographic cycling blog called Auckland Cycle Chic, and I’m closely involved with Frocks on Bikes. You can find me on Twitter.

 

Su Yin Khoo

Su Yin is one of the original team and set up Cycling in Auckland with Unity. She is the technical brain behind the website.

Here I am, aged six, on my first bicycle. Cycling all over the neighbourhood (on the road without parental supervision) was rad. At twelve I got a shiny Raleigh and used that to get to school.

I design stuff for a living and get to work in the CBD on my Merida hybrid commuter. You may have seen it—look out for the hamburger bell. Outside of this blog, I curate bicycle winsomeness and you can also find me on Twitter.

 

Antoine Pethers

Our resident ‘Artist’, Antoine designed the new Cycling in Auckland logo and sniffs out bicycle-art from around the world for his Friday Frivolity posts. 

“Some years ago I dusted-off my old mountainbike and started riding to work. I liked it, I REALLY REALLY liked it. Pretty soon I was using my bike for all those small trips you do around town; taking the kids to school, going to the park, grocery shopping, and it was all more fun on a bike, often quicker too. I’m an avid mountainbiker (and quite fond of road-riding too) but my focus these days is on encouraging more Aucklanders to use their bikes for everyday transport.”

His own cycling adventures can be found on Bike Friendly North Shore, an urban-cycling blog for those north of the Coathanger.

 

Mark Bracey

Mark is a core blogger on Cycling in Auckland and is responsible for a staggering number of posts!

I have always ridden a bike, well at least since I can remember anyway; I rode a fixed wheel bike to high school (in the days before it was cool!); and when I lived in Japan, riding a bike was simply part of daily life; my bicycle remains my preferred form of transport. When I am not riding my bicycle I can be found at the chalkface with a classroom full of six year olds. Yes, a bloke in a NZ primary school; a rare breed these days.

 

Lucy JH

Lucy is an important member of the team by virtue of being one of the rare female variety and she brings a wealth of environmental and political knowledge to the team having worked for various environmental organizations and political parties.

I’m passionate about preventing climate change and reducing the impact of our transport choices on the environment. I started riding a bike in Auckland when I was 19 for environmental reasons. At first I found it terrifying. However, these days I ride my bike because it is easily the cheapest, quickest and healthiest way for me to get around. When my bike goes in for servicing I realize how much (in the words of the song) my life would suck without it! Recently I’ve also started doing some recreational cycling to keep fit. I am finishing a Masters in Environmental Management.

 

Max

Max is our resident infrastructure ‘expert’. He is a transport engineer by profession and “Infrastructure Liaison” for Cycle Action Auckland.

Being a key part of the various groups that achieved a cycleway for the Waterview Project, saving the North Shore Lake Road cycle lanes, or working on better cycling for Tamaki Drive is a good antidote to the regular frustrations inherent in being a cycling advocate. Making Auckland friendlier to this marvellous form of transport is my goal – one new bike path at a time.

 

Tim White

Tim is our retail representative and adds the ‘cool’ factor. He runs the excellent bike shop, T. White’s Bikes, on Symonds Street.

Growing up in Grey Lynn we used bikes every day to explore the city and surrounding areas. BMX has been the biggest influence for me, with the last 5 years split between track bikes, cruisers and BMX.

Now with my shop, T.White’s bikes, I can be found keeping Auckland’s bikes on the streets and out of the dump.

 

Tim Gummer

My cycling rebirth happened when I rode out on a rusty clunker, pulled up at the lights and realized I was having more fun than the jerk in the lamborghini next to me. Then I did again at the next set of lights. And the next.

Since then it’s been a matter of unlearning the sports ethos that most kiwi’s identify with cycling, leaning back, and taking it slow. Owning a car became increasingly pointless to my partner and I and now we are found out and about almost exclusively on two wheels. The only downside: aching for Aucklanders trapped in their 4 wheel bubbles to get a sense of how much better commuting – and moreover, city life in general – can be, via civilized cycling.



The Wheeled Pedestrian

TWP is well known for a perspective that is controversial in NZs ‘sports dominated’ cycle culture but normal in countries where cycling is mainstream.

I promote slow, everyday cycling in Auckland. Going beyond the margin of error. Cycling, it’s as easy as walking, but faster… helmet, lycra & fluro free.

 

Alex Raichev

Alex is closely involved with Tumeke Cycle Space and is the ‘go to’ person for bicycle do-it-yourself.

Boy, do i like cycling. Ever since i was a kid i’ve enjoyed the free,flying feel of riding bikes. But it was only after moving to Auckland from the USA in 2006 that i really discovered bicycle culture: finding new friends at Critical Mass, learning bike maintenance and repair —thank you, Sheldon Brown!— staging big themed rides, and, most recently, co-founding Tumeke Cycle Space, Auckland’s DIY bicycle workshop.

And so i’ve been caught in the groundswell, a felicitous return in the tide. Cycling 2.0. Viva la velorution!

 

Richard Barter

I have been cycling since I can remember. First memory (4 yrs) were country cousins (older!) tying a cushion to my rearend, pushing me off down a gravel drive on a fixed pedal two wheeler only to crash in a rose garden.

I am married to my first wife Susan (for 30 years) and have two adult children Jess and Ben. I’ve been a commuter cyclist for 40 years. I chair the Puketapapa (Mt Roskill) Local Board and hold portfolio’s for Environment, Sustainability and Transport.

 

Morecityplease

I believe cities provide the solution to our greatest problems. How we arrange ourselves and conduct our daily lives needs to be radically reconsidered. Cycling will become one of the key tools that will be used to transform our cities for the better. On a personal level I ride since it gives me incredible freedom of movement– it both shrinks the suburban form of Auckland and saves me money so that I can travel globally.

 

We also have a number of ‘alumni’ and ‘occasional’ bloggers:

 

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