Parents, stop taking your kids to school in the car - get them a bike instead.
That's an appeal from Lyneke Onderwater, a member of the Whanganui Bike Users Group and organiser of a Go By Bike Day breakfast stop, held at the Cornmarket Reserve on Wednesday.
A study this week found that most Kiwi children and teenagers fail to get the national physical activity guideline of at least one hour of moderate to vigorous aerobic physical activity each day.
"Riding a bike," Ms Onderwater said, "is a great way to incorporate exercise into your life without feeling like you are exercising."
Head winds can be a challenge, "but then you get tail winds ... wooooh!"
Go By Bike Day is a national event promoted by the NZTA. Breakfast stops were also held yesterday at Whanganui Hospital and at Gonville library.
Pancakes were a new offering this year at the Cornmarket Reserve stop, along with healthier options including fruit.
About 70 cyclists stopped by on their way to school or work.
Ms Onderwater said the numbers of children who bike to school was in decline which she felt was sad.
Whanganui District Council transport facilitator Norman Gruebsch, also a regular cyclist, said council and other agencies were working closely with primary schools to promote cycling and to teach children bike skills and safety.
Ms Onderwater said safety was a concern and there were some roads she would not want her children to cycle along, such as Mosston Rd. "But there's usually another, safer, route."
Whanganui was generally a great city for biking, with many bicycle lanes, mostly flat terrain and recreational facilities like the new partly constructed cycle way that will extend from the city out to the port area.
She encouraged more people to cycle to work as well as to school "and just for fun."
February is Bike Wise month and a number of bike-related activities are planned. More information can be found on the Bike Wise website www.bikewise.co.nz.