Bike Festival dates announced

Dates for the fifth anniversary Rotorua Bike Festival have already been confirmed for next year.

The 10 days of biking events will take place from Friday February 10 to Sunday February 19.

Bike Festival Charitable Trust member David Crowley said mid-February had worked very well since 2013.

"Those dates have become an important part of the festival brand.

"A recent survey of event organisers and participants showed a strong preference for the festival remaining about 10 days long and in February," he said.

The festival has grown rapidly over the last four years, from around 2700 participants in 2013 to 5600 this year.

"The beauty of the festival is that it includes events for all types of bikes and biking enthusiasts," Mr Crowley said.

"We have elite sportsmen and women competing at a very high levels right through to mum, dad and the kids riding with the grandparents."

In 2016, the Giant 2W Gravity Enduro, MTB Beginners Ride and a workshop by local photographer Mead Norton all sold out well before the festival started.

Other events, like the Big Bike Film Night, also sold out.

Film night organiser Brett Cotter is currently touring the country with his Big Bike Film Night.

"The festival is supporting this. That's a real help getting full houses all over the North Island with Tauranga and Auckland up next."

The Mountain Biker's Ball was very successful with $15,000 donated to the James Dodds Memorial Fund.

This week a further $1900 was donated to the fundraiser for Laura Stuart, who was left a paraplegic after an accident on the eve of this year's festival.

The festival's biggest event, the Runway Project at Rotorua Airport, broke records with 1300 people taking the unique opportunity to ride the runway, up from 800 in 2015.

"Events like this bring a lot of non-competitive riders into the festival family," Mr Crowley said.

"That spirit of community and participation is what really drives our success."

He said a third of events over the last two festivals were new ones and the festival had received excellent backing from its partners.

"It's great to have a fresh range of events every year alongside all the well-established favourites.

"RotoruaNZ.com and the Rotorua Trust have been supporters since 2013, joined in 2016 by the Southern Trust, the Lion Foundation and Infinity Foundation.

"Along with our team and all the organisers, they're what makes our festival tick."
For regular updates visit www.facebook.com/RotoruaBikeFestival.