From Grassroots to Growth – A Look Back from Pedal Power’s First Executive Director

2004 was a very big year!

Dr Dennis Puniard | First Executive Director - 2003 to 2006

2004 was 30 years after the founding of Pedal Power.

For all of that first 30 years Pedal Power was run entirely by volunteers.

The office was located in the old Griffin Centre and opened 2 half days a week.

At the time Phil Price was President, Jeff Ibbotson was Vice President, Luke Wenzing was Secretary and webmaster. Tony Shields was the Advocacy chair and John and Julia Widdup were on the Board.

As part of my consultancy business in 2003, I responded to an advertisement in the Canberra Times to conduct a review of the operations of Pedal Power ACT, and was awarded the (meagre) contract. Pedal Power was (and still is) the organisation in Canberra and surrounds catering to the needs of recreational cyclists. At the time it had about 1500 members.

My review recommended, that to take the organisation forward, they needed a full time administration person, and a part time Executive Director.  They offered me the role of Executive Director (initially 10 hours a week).  I recruited Matt Elliston to run the office. Matt had been an army soldier who had served in East Timor, and took to the role with great enthusiasm and effectiveness.

Over a period of 3 years my role increased to 25 paid hours a week (more like 50 hours working) and we built the organisation into a much more professionally managed operation.  The organisation at the time was funded primarily from membership fees and some income from events.

In this period we created a number of new events and initiatives. Pedal Power already had 2 major events that they ran, the Big Canberra Bike ride on the Canberra day weekend and Fitz’s challenge in November. We built these into serious fund raising events with a significant increase in participation from the region and beyond.

I created the Big Queanbeyan Bike ride that ran in a 2 year window, and in conjunction with the Rotary Club of Bungendore, the Bungendore family fun ride.

A major initiative in 2005, set up by Tourism ACT,  was the Brindabella Challenge event, where for two years running, we brought all major cycling disciplines together for a weekend of cycling events in Canberra. I was the Pedal Power representative on the committee for what was a really great event, that attracted many interstate participants. (It died after two years because the key drivers “moved on” and the budget disappeared!)

As part of my role at Pedal Power, I was nominated to be their representative on the ACT Roads Bicycle Advisory Group (BAG), where major initiatives for cycling infrastructure were developed in the ACT. A very rewarding role to “make a difference” for cyclists in the ACT.

One of most rewarding initiatives undertaken whilst I was at Pedal Power was to develop  a Bike Education program in Primary Schools in the ACT. I secured some funding through the NRMA Trust for this, which allowed me to train some educators and pay them a small fee to run an 8 week Bike Education program in primary schools in the ACT.  I developed this course based on a Victorian program, which I was trained for, and used their documentation and models. Schools that participated in this early bike education  program included Red Hill Primary, Mawson Primary and St Jude’s in Holder.

When the old Griffin Centre was demolished we acquired a much better space in the “new” Griffin Centre just across the road, which is still the Pedal Power office today.

I moved on in 2006 when I commenced a Ph D at University of Canberra studying  Cycling and Tourism.