Community
6 September, 2024
A three-year cycle for Douglas
'Gazza's Gossip' "I’ve covered the Gran Fondo Festival for the last two years, since its inception, and I’m pleased to say the bike event is set to return again this coming weekend for the third time, in Port Douglas, with the main day being this Sunday September 8."
“Everything is on track for another amazing event this year,” said festival director Bade Stapleton.
“We have riders coming from every state and territory in Australia and from across the globe to visit and enjoy everything our region has to offer. The ride is just the perfect excuse to visit,” he said.
To add to the excitement, last week Douglas Shire Mayor Lisa Scomazzon announced that the Douglas Shire Council had secured the festival for another three years until 2027.
Cr Scomazzon said the council had no hesitation in continuing its support for the festival.
“The event is steadily growing and so too is our reputation as a tourism destination for cyclists and mountain bike riders. The combined economic benefit of the 2022/2023 events is more than $2.8 million and visitor numbers exceeding 4000,” she said.
Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive officer Mark Olsen welcomed the support for the event to run another three years.
“Port Douglas Gran Fondo is part of a healthy Tropical North Queensland event calendar and over the past three years has broadened its reach bringing in more interstate visitors,” he said.
“This certainty will assist with marketing even further afield, especially in places like Japan where there is strong interest in participating in sporting events in the only place where the ancient rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef.”
From a traffic point of view, The Great Barrier Reef Drive will be closed for half a day this Sunday, with timed 136km and 100km return Gran Fondo rides from Port Douglas to Palm Cove, a 60km Semi Fondo ride from Port Douglas to Wangetti and back and a 48km one-way leisurely Medio Fondo ride from Palm Cove to Port Douglas. A highlight for the weekend is the Choo Choos free family ride where each child participating receives a free ice cream from Choo Choos Ice Creamery. This will go down well, no doubt, with the hotter spring days now here.
People are encouraged to dress up as they have some great prizes for best dressed family, best dressed individual and best dressed bike.
The festival actually hits the road this Saturday, with the Hartley’s to Port 40km mountain bike race, starting from Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures and finishing on Four Mile Beach in Port Douglas.
This is followed by the Lexus of Cairns Criterium, a 2.2km lap circuit starting and finishing outside the Crystalbrook Superyacht Marina, the Choo Choos Free Family Ride and finally the Wharf Street Sprint Race, held under lights along the 250m Wharf Street straight, all done to the sound of local live music.
Mr Stapleton said Tropical North Queensland residents could get $20 off their entry cost by using the code LOCALS when registering.
Registrations can be made at www.portdouglasgranfondo.com.au
I’m off to grease my chain, so for now it’s Gazza signing out.
Send your stories to gazza@cairnslocalnews.com.au
