Three ways to cycle means everyone, from two-year-olds to pros, can have a go

The Bathurst Cycling Festival will be held for the first time on May 11, 2024, with events taking place in Bathurst and its sister city of Cirencester, in the United Kingdom.

Preparations are well under way for the Bathurst event, with tickets set to go on sale before the end of January.

Rotary Club of Bathurst president Rob Barlow said there will be three components to the cycling festival, ensuring there is something to suit all ages and riding abilities.

"We're really aiming at people who are definitely what I call entry level, or not necessarily very confident on a bike in what they perceive as a cycling event," he said.

"There's certainly lots of people that will really love it in the sense that they are confident, but particularly the one-hour event, we're trying to attract people who might be a bit tentative or have never really participated in this sort of thing before."

The dream is for the event to attract thousands of participants, like the Blayney to Bathurst (B2B) was capable of at its peak.

"In its heyday the B2B had 2500 entrants. Well, if we got that in the first year I'd be totally over the moon," Mr Barlow said.

"But, honestly, to be fairly comfortable on the course for the first event, I'm hoping for 1000."

Keep reading to find out more about the Bathurst Cycling Festival's three events.

Kids as young as two years old, right up to 13, are eligible to participate in the first event of the day, which is named in honour of the festival's charity partner, Lifeline.

Mr Barlow said Together for Life will allow children, supervised by their parents or guardians, to ride laps of a safe, age-appropriate course.

"[They can] essentially do a little mini circuit around the car park. Very safe environment, very family-friendly, and just a little bit of active, loud music happening at the time and people on the side cheering," he said.

"That's, in a sense, our little curtain-raiser for the next event."

Named to be in keeping with Bathurst's big endurance races, the 12 Hour and the 6 Hour, this event will give people an opportunity to try out the 10-kilometre course specially designed for the festival.

Participants have one hour on the course to see how far they get, with most people expected to do either one or two laps.

"That is really aimed at people that might be getting the old mountain bike out of the shed that they haven't used for a few years and dust it off, oil it up, and go for a ride in a nice event-type of environment," Mr Barlow said.

"Maybe the people who haven't seen the course before can do a very slow lap and then do the main event."

The signature event of the festival, the #BathurstGravel is all about endurance and by no means is a race.

Mr Barlow said people will have two hours on the course to see how many laps they can do in that time.

Pacing yourself is the key.

"That's a bit more of a challenge, a continuous, energetic ride for two hours, but it's not a race," Mr Barlow said.

A website has been established for the Bathurst Cycling Festival and it will be the place to get important event information and to sign up.

Tickets will go on sale before the end of January, 2024 and, currently, the website allows people to express interest in the event.

Anyone who fills out the form will be notified when tickets go on sale.

The website also has a map of the course, which was designed by multiple people, including Bathurst cycling talent Mark Renshaw.