The cycling group connecting CALD communities across Melbourne

New research from RMIT reveals how outdoor activities can reduce loneliness among culturally and linguistically diverse women – here’s how one community group is making that happen.

When Arianna Lim started getting into adventure cycling, she loved how the freedom of gravel riding and the striking setting of regional Victoria offered an escape from the drudgery of commuting as a cyclist in Melbourne.

But she felt there was something missing from the experience.

“The group of people that I was riding with was not reflective of my own group of friends off bikes,” Arianna tells Docklands News.

“I have a very multicultural group of friends, and I guess I wanted to see those same people represented in the outdoor spaces that I was enjoying so much, and I was trying to work out why that wasn't happening.”

The groups that exist in that space, the more adventurous, outdoors type of riding, it's a very white cohort. It also tends to be very male dominated.

So, in January 2024, Arianna founded Bite Sized Rides, a social cycling group for people of colour.

Bite Sized Rides runs beginner-friendly rides around Melbourne, usually paired with lunches at migrant-owned food venues.

“It's a group for people of colour, so we want that represented in the food as well,” Arianna said.

“When I was riding my bike by myself, it was often to go to food destinations around Melbourne, and I thought that was a great way to bring in more migrant and people of colour communities, because who doesn't love an adventure to have food?”

So far, the group has journeyed to Egyptian-owned Half Moon Café in Coburg for falafels, and to A1 in Fairfield for Lebanese baked goods; a Nepalese restaurant in Glenroy is planned for this weekend’s “Slow and Steady” ride.

The name “Bite Sized Rides” is in reference to both the food adventures the group embarks on as well as the approachable nature of the rides, which are usually a maximum of around 15 kilometres long.

“The rides are quite small and more accessible than your usual group ride that’s huge and fast. I really wanted it to be friendly and welcoming,” Arianna said.

“We don't want it to be something that feels really long and scary for someone who might be new to riding.”

The rides typically start near public transport so that they’re accessible to get to without a car.

The volunteer-run group also offers cycling-related workshops.

In the past, these have included workshops on the basics of roadside mechanics and “bikepacking”, which is the cycling equivalent of ultralight hiking and camping.

“We've also done overnighters, so putting everyone on a V/Line train, riding around regional Victoria, camping overnight and coming back. That's been really fun as well,” Arianna said.

“Road riding in Melbourne can be pretty scary just because of all of the cars. We’ve run info sessions on how to be safe on the road, and we have one person who now commutes to work from Ascot Vale to the city multiple times a week, and has said that she never would have done that last year.”

Each ride is usually capped at around 15 cyclists to keep the atmosphere approachable.

“It's been such a lovely community building experience, because a lot of people that come to the rides are new to cycling or have been scared to do group rides. One person has said that they really wouldn't be a cyclist without the group, and now they're doing big gravel rides on the weekend and things like that. The feedback has been that it's been a real confidence booster for people,” Arianna said.

“In the Philippines, I was pretty outdoorsy. I loved to hike. And I think the best part about getting to live in Australia is access to all of the great nature everywhere, and that it's so easy and fairly affordable. You really don't need a car to get to a lot of places. So being able to combine the biking aspect of it to get to parts of Victoria that I never would have because I don't own a car was such a nice way to experience nature at a slower pace.”

The importance of initiatives like Bite Sized Rides is ever more clear in light of RMIT research led by Dr Ancy Gamage.

The study, titled Social, Accessible, Fun, and Equitable: Outdoor Participation by CALD Women, found that while outdoor activities are highly beneficial for increasing feelings of community and reducing loneliness in culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities, these opportunities for connection and their associated benefits were not well understood or well supported.

Arianna said the study’s findings mirrored her own experiences in adventure cycling.

“While the outdoors is marketed as being for everyone in theory, in practice the research found various barriers that limited CALD women participation,” Arianna said.

She hopes Bite Sized Rides demonstrates how outdoor spaces can be built to be inclusive.

“The study also found that some women tried to make it work. This is a finding around empowerment, and an example of this is how Bite Sized Rides is so passionate about the outdoors that we wanted to make it accessible to broader CALD communities who are not always across all the opportunities available in Victoria.”

Visit @bitesizedrides on Instagram for more details. •