Christmas gifts for bike-lovers
Published 2022-12-09
Running out of gift ideas for the cyclists in your life? Here's a sack-full of ideas to get your Christmas shopping sorted.
Gift an experience
Why not treat a loved one to an experience they’ll never forget? How about e-bike hire for when they’re on holiday, or a guided cycle tour or mountain bike adventure? Check out our Great Ride official partners here.
Accommodation or travel vouchers are a wonderful way of helping friends or whānau get away and enjoy the trails too. Our national partners Heritage Hotels and Holiday Parks New Zealand have awesome accommodation for all tastes and budgets, with plenty of options on or near the Great Rides. Play, relax and save 15% when you book 2 nights with Heritage Hotels in Paihia, Auckland, Gisborne, New Plymouth, Wellington, or Nelson (valid for stays between 15 December 2022 – 31 January 2023; terms and conditions apply).
Or how about gift vouchers for the Great Journeys New Zealand world-famous scenic train services? The Northern Explorer, TranzAlpine and Coastal Pacific are memorable, lower-carbon ways of getting to or from a variety of Great Rides.
New Zealand's holiday parks – awesome cycle-friendly accommodation (Central Otago NZ)
Top trail merch
'My friend went biking and all they got me was this terrific t-shirt!' There’s some great trail merchandise available, from trendy tees to brilliant books, bike bottles, and marvellous mankies – hankies that double as maps!
Most proceeds go to the trails, so these gifts have the feel-good factor too! Check out Bike Taupō's range of goodies, including clothing and maps. Know anyone who wants to ride The Old Ghost Road? Get them in the mood with Spirit to the Stone – the captivating tale of how this legendary track came to be.
The Old Ghost Road – one of the world's great biking adventures.
Big Bike Film Night – 2023 NZ Tour
Give the gift of a great night out! This homegrown festival is dedicated to bringing you the best biking short-films from around the world. From February to May there will be screenings at around 45 locations throughout the motu. Buy a ticket for someone special, and why not treat yourself and make it a date at the movies? Visit the Big Bike Film Night website for locations/dates and tickets, and whet your appetite with this fab trailer from the 2022 tour.
Ngā Haerenga 23 Great Rides of New Zealand are proud to be presenting partner for the 2023 NZ tour.
Be entertained and inspired with spectacular short-films from around the globe.
The Bikes We Built by Jonathan Kennett
Got a buddy that’s bonkers about bikes? Spin their wheels with this brilliant book about New Zealand-made bicycles. It’s a fascinating ride through history celebrating Kiwi ingenuity, passion and determination. From the velocipede to the Jones Special, and the Raleigh Chopper to the BMX, discover how New Zealanders have been reinventing the wheel over the last 150 years.
Also hot off the press is the second edition of the Kennett Brothers’ Bikepacking Aotearoa – a guidebook showcasing 22 cycling adventures around this beautiful little country.
Available from the Kennett Brothers' online store, and good bookstores.
A fascinating ride through history celebrating Kiwi ingenuity, passion and determination
Hot off the Kennett Brothers press too is the Sounds to Sounds coffee-table book, packed with fabulous photos and inspiring stories from this year's inaugural Sounds to Sounds bikepacking event.
Bikepacking inspiration from Bronwen Wall and Jonathan Kennett (Kennett Brothers).
Dave Mitchell's mountain biking calendar
An affordable, inspirational gift for lovers of analogue scheduling, this 2023 calendar is jam-packed with photos of places we’d rather be. Produced by MTB legend Dave Mitchell, it's printed in Aotearoa, with a portion of proceeds going to the New Zealand Trail Fund. Since the first edition in 2000, Dave and his partner Ditte have been hard-out riding new trails and capturing great images for the next one.
Buy from good bookstores, or online from Ground Effect and Wilderness magazine.
Hang it in the toilet, give it to ya mate or wallpaper the study with NZ's best biking calendar (Dave Mitchell).
The gift of giving
It’s the giving not receiving, right? It certainly is if it means more kids on bikes or better trails for everyone to enjoy. Why not donate to your local bike group on behalf of a friend or family member? It’s a cool way to spend your cash on a gift that keeps on giving.
Check out the Cycling Action Network’s website to find your nearest biking organisation, and connect with the Great Rides trail trusts via their official trail websites, which can be found on the New Zealand Cycle Trails' website.
Cath Oldfield and the Kids Bike Taupō mascot have helped get 1000s of kids riding.
Bike skills course
Give the gift of greater skills, confidence, camaraderie and the promise of adventure to come! All sorts of bike skills courses are available now – from free, urban riding courses for all ages, to day-long or weekend, intensive camps for off-roaders. To get an idea of available courses, check out BikeReady (the government-funded national cycling education group), Joyride (women-specific group courses and private lessons), and WORD (MTB skills programmes for kids).
Learn the skills to love your riding on a Joyride mountain biking course (Joyride.co.nz).
FROM EVERYONE AT NGĀ HAERENGA GREAT RIDES OF NEW ZEALAND, WE WISH YOU HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND A REWARDING NEW YEAR!
