Cork Cycling Arts Festival

This week is the Cork Cycling Arts Festival, a 100% free seven-day event celebrating cycling culture in Cork! This is the second of its kind and geared toward citizens of all ages. Cork City offers bike-specific information in the Traffic Division section of their website.

If cycling is your thing or if you love free festivals, check out the official website or download the programme brochure. In the meantime, here are a few of the highlights that have not yet taken place:

• Cycle Through the Planets: Cycling goes cosmic on Wednesday 22nd (7pm) for a guided journey through the Solar System, starting in the city centre and finishing at Blackrock Castle Observatory.

• Cork Songs Cycle Tour: Enjoy a fun, friendly bicycle tour of Cork discovering the city’s songs and history on Thursday 23rd July (7pm) with Cork Folk Festival director William Hammond.

• “My Lovely Bike” Competition: Civic Trust House hosts on Friday 24th at 8pm Cork’s first ever beauty pageant for bicycles! It’s time to polish the chrome and wax the paint job… with host Ronan the-Man-with-the-Hat Leonard.

• Bicycle Spa: Fix up and pimp your bicycle in the Unitarian Church on Saturday 25th afternoon (1pm-5pm) – Think of it as a bicycle spa!

• Bicycle Treasure Hunt: Explore the city by bike and solve the riddles to discover hidden treasure! This enticing and family-friendly treasure hunt will leave at 2pm from the Unitarian Church on Saturday 25th.

• Bicycle Polo & BBQ: The city’s first Bicycle Polo contest is brought to us thanks to visiting players from the Bicycle Polo Association of Ireland, who will teach local cyclists the basics before the competition begins with BBQ refreshments available to keep up the energy. Show up at UCC, The Lower Grounds from 5pm on Saturday 25th.

• Cycling Picnic: Sunday 26th will be the perfect day to chill-out at the festival’s summer cycling picnic in Joe McHugh Park by the harbour at Mahon, organised in co-operation with Cork Food Web (1pm).

According to the Cork City website, more events like this are coming up:

• European Mobility Week (16-22 September 2008): European Mobility Week is an international event to highlight how you travel and what impact that has on your health, your finances and the Environment. People are invited to use sustainable transport options, including cycling, for their daily trips;
• Rebel Pedal! (20 September 2008): Cork Environmental Forum’s enticing and joyful bike parade in the city of Cork, as part of European Mobility Week;
• Bike Fashion Show (1 November 2008): a celebratory show and exhibition of the latest trends in innovative bikes, raingear, winter clothes and lights, as part of Design Week Cork.