Cycling is a thread that weaves through and knits together the Colombian/Australian family of Clara, Ben and Oliver.

Clara was born in Medellin, Colombia and met Ben when he was backpacking in Peru. Ben was a keen and enthusiastic cyclist and couldn’t wait to introduce Clara to the joy of cycle touring. When they first met, Ben proudly recounted a story of how his cycling prowess helped him get VIP tickets to the Falls Music Festival in Victoria. Ben was a poor student living in Wollongong at the time and couldn’t afford to purchase the festival tickets. In a brazen move, he contacted the organisers and asked whether they would give him a free ticket if he rode his bicycle to Victoria and advertised the Falls Festival along the way. The organisers embraced his entrepreneurialism and rewarded Ben with VIP tickets for his effort.

Clara joined Ben in Australia in 2005 and one of her first purchases was a bicycle. Ben researched the best model and took Clara to buy a bike. However, when Clara saw the price tag she was shocked. Even though the bicycle Ben had chosen for her wasn’t top of the range it was still equivalent to 2 months of salary for an average Colombian worker.  

Clara bought the bike and she and Ben had many great adventures cycling together. Their first cycling tour was in Tasmania where they cycled from Hobart to Launceston. That was the trip that made Clara realise how wonderful it was to tour on a bicycle. Clara also used the bike to commute to work before she learnt to drive a car. That bicycle now belongs to their son Oliver, who uses it to ride to school each day.

Oliver started cycling as soon as he could, getting his first bike at the age of 3 years and he proved to be a daredevil from the start. 

Oliver has travelled many times to Colombia with his Mum and Dad and this is where his enthusiasm for mountain bike riding and endurance cycle races really took off. Colombia is a mountainous country and the city that Clara comes from, Medellin, is built on the sides of two mountain ranges. Every pathway is hilly and Oliver has ridden all over the side of those hills.

Clara, Ben and Oliver have many joyous memories of cycling together in Colombia. On muddy trails sharing them with mules and walkers, riding on mountain roads busy with Sunday afternoon traffic, and riding long distances coming home at dark to a hearty dinner of pizza and a soft bed.

Cycling and training in Colombia has helped Oliver to race in Australia. He is now sponsored and competes in cross country, downhill and enduro downhill races across Australia. His dream is to become a professional.

In the meantime, cycling remains an intrinsic part of this family, drawing them together for adventures as they search for space for just one more bike in the garage.