April 16th, 2024Prepare to tweed: Ballarat hosts niche stylish cycling event

Cylists across the region are being invited to brush off their best fetching tweed outfits and prepare to participate in Ballarat’s annual Tweed Ride which returns Saturday May 18 as part of the Ballarat Heritage Festival.

For the unitiatiated, it’s a cycling event of style, conducted at a leisurely pace through the autumn streets, with fashion awards and … tweed.

A Tweed Ride is a bike ride where a group of cyclists dress in historic and vintage attire and ride through local city streets with Tweed Ride events are held all around the world.

The Ballarat Tweed Ride has been running annually since 2012. The riders take a leisurely pedal or scoot around Ballarat’s autumn streets.

The pace is relaxed, the company is light-hearted and the route is flat. The complete ride route will be around 3km long with the opportunity for less experienced or fit riders to take breaks and pause easily.

Spectators are very welcome along the ride route, or at the Tweed Fair location at Cathederal Hall on Dawsonn Street South, where the ride will begin and end.

The ride will begin after a presentation of fashion award rosettes for the best-dressed riders and participants at the Tweed Fair. All bikes are welcome on a Tweed Ride but vintage and interesting bikes aren’t just welcomed, they are celebrated.

The Tweed Fair and Dance happens at the Cathedral Hall, Dawson Street South with a dancefloor, fashion parade, pantomime, refreshments and sweet treats, handmade bespoke items and vintage collectable stalls.

Registrations are essential for riders and they opened on April 1.