Montefiore gets moving with seniors’ cycling program
Montefiore Randwick is proud to be first in the Eastern Suburbs, and only the second organisation in Sydney, to be part of Cycling Without Age, a not-for-profit pairing cyclists with people living in aged care.
Adrian Boss, Sybil Goldberg and Phyllis Glasser
Cycling Without Age’s battery-assisted, custom-built trishaws (three-wheeled bikes) are ridden by a pilot and hold two passengers in front. The aim is to give older people the chance to experience the freedom of riding a bike and exploring their local area, as well as helping to create social connections between younger riders and aged care residents.
Speaking at the July 24 launch of the Montefiore program, visiting co-founder Dorthe Pedersen said: “What our passengers tell us they enjoy most isn’t the cycling, it’s the social aspect. It’s about moving slowly, seeing life at street level, interacting with neighbours and using your senses to take in the sights and sounds. The trishaw itself is a conversation starter, too, people want to know what it’s all about.”
The Cycling Without Age program launched in 2012 in Denmark, and now extends to 37 countries around the world, with around 20 groups now operating in Australia.
The initiative was first brought to Montefiore’s attention by local cycling group BikEast, whose members went on to source a generous anonymous donor for the trishaw. BikEast will also provide a willing roster of volunteer pilots who will help to make rides through nearby Centennial Park and surrounding neighbourhood a regular part of the Montefiore Leisure & Lifestyle program.
BikEast Cycling without Age coordinator Adrian Boss says: “We’ve been working towards this since we first heard Dorthe speak in 2016, and our members are lining up to volunteer their time as pilots. We can’t wait to get started at Montefiore, and are in talks with local councils to fund further trishaws, too.
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I remember riding in a trishaw, with 3 wheels, (often incorrectly called a rickshaw, 2 wheels, in Australia) in Malaysia when deployed there in the Army at former RAAF Base Butterworth in 1975.
The driver often pushed the trishaw into car traffic on Penang Island which would make you inclined to be wary as the passengers may get hit first. Great memories though as we sometimes had races in them, back to the RAAF base, with us doing the pedaling and the driver getting a rest.