The Wanganui District Council will decide on January 29 whether to go ahead with a final application for the establishment of Bike New Zealand's High Performance Centre in the River City. That would entail a development of the present velodrome into a full-scale events centre capable of holding numerous sports - and also containing administration offices and sports science facilities. In this article, we have a look at where it all started - many years ago. David Ogilvie talks to Wanganui cycling icon Ron Cheatley about Wanganui's extensive cycling history - and whether that sets up the city ideally for such a venture. In the following days, the Chronicle will continue to look at the project - and the reasons for and against. It's been around for a while, in fact it was one of his late father Les' membership badges from his days as a member of the Wanganui Cycling Club.
"You used to get one of these when you paid your sub every year," said Cheatley. "It's amazing how many of these guys like us used to accumulate.
"In most cases, you used to throw it in the rubbish tin, because you had so many. But now they're like hen's teeth, like a collector's item. I wish I had kept all mine now."
The year 1877 is on them - that's the year the Wanganui Amateur Athletic and Cycling Club was formed. The track part.
The road section didn't come until 1928, and the two sections amalgamated, Ron remembers, around 1994 - the same time the initial drive for the wooden velodrome was under way.
Athletics Wanganui also became a separate identity at the same time (1994), and the new running track was laid in 1996.
"We've got shirts with 'Cycling Wanganui' on them, but the Wanganui Cycling Club Inc is still the official name," Cheatley said.
And so it should be, because the club is synonymous with cycling history and stories throughout New Zealand. There's been a culture of excellence from the very start - good organisation, skilled officials, smart riders - and international-class riders.
"We've run more New Zealand track championships [15] and road championships [10] than any other club in New Zealand. We ran the first Oceania Championship in 1976 and we've had six more since then."
But this is what the present Wanganui campaign for the centre is all about.
Those championships on the track have dried up considerably because of Invercargill's indoor velodrome. Wanganui needs to win the toss to host the new national High Performance Cycling Centre, to enhance its already formidable reputation.
If Wanganui misses, the velodrome might never be covered. And if you want to go to the big cycling meets, be prepared to travel to any of Palmerston North, Hastings, Cambridge or Waitakere.
What helps in winning such a cycling plum is a history, a culture, a determination that the local community has what it takes, loves the sport and gets right behind it. And this city has all of those.
So take this in.
Apart from the national and international events, Cheatley remembers some of the other great events run by Wanganui:
1. "The Palmerston North to Wanganui road race, first run in 1928 with the last in 1964. Then it became the River City Grand Prix - we had been wanting to get off the main road (there was pressure to do so). It's now run around different circuits here."
2. The River City Wheel Race (track): "As far as we know, or that Bill Main can remember, the first was in 1948, and that's been run every year since."
3. "The International Junior Tour - that was run for 25 years."
4. "Numerous promotions such as the New Zealand-Australia test series, the International Night of the Stars, West Coast North Island championships, other major carnivals."
And during Cheatley's 21-year reign as national road and track coach (seven years road, 14 track), national squads trained consistently in Wanganui - as indeed they would if Wanganui wins the new centre.
But it hasn't all been about running events.
Star riders produced include:
George Giles - sprint, 1936 Olympics, Berlin.
Colin Dickinson - beaten tandem quarters, sprint repecharge 1952 Olympics, Helsinki, 6th kilo, 1954 Commonwealth Games, Vancouver.
Gary Anderson - Olympics 1988, Seoul; 1992 Barcelona, bronze individual pursuit; 1996 Athens; 2000, Sydney; numerous Commonwealth Games, with three golds and a silver at Auckland 1990, and two silvers and two bronze at Edinburgh 1986 when just out of juniors.
Madonna Harris - road race, 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Catherine Cheatley - road, points race on track, 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Plus many, many national title winners in all grades.
On the officials side, there have been five New Zealand presidents: Cliff Chainey, Wattie Pidwell, Bill Main, Gordon Sharrock and John McDonnell.
There are three current life members of BNZ: Bill Main, Gordon Sharrock and Ron Cheatley.
Present BikeNZ positions are held by Bryan Simmonds (high performance officer) and Dayle Cheatley, national women's coach.
Roy Anderson is another who's given a lifetime of service.
So Ron, what has made the Wanganui Cycling Club tick so well over the years?
"Bloody good officials and good facilities.
"We've always had people who were in high standing in the national body. In my day they used to line up - we used to have three or four votes for president.
"In fact, we've always had strong, highly qualified officials - that's why they've always run good events here.
"It's a culture that's gone on through the ages - it was started way back in the 1930s and '40s, and it's carried on through. Particularly for major events, people are prepared to lend a hand."
Cheatley remembers some people of influence in his time:
1. "Basically the Pidwells. Harry was the president, he was the local god of Wanganui cycling in my day. He was national, rather than international, very much focused on Wanganui."
2. "Bill Main - You can't talk about the history of New Zealand cycling without talking about a guy who received an OBE for his efforts in bringing the Junior World Champs to Wanganui. And Gordon Sharrock, who was starter at the 1974 Commonwealth Games, managed many New Zealand teams over a long period."
And further back:
"Cliff Chainey - his cohort was Harry Gedye. They were in opposition with each other in the cycle industry in Wanganui, which was big in those days. But they were great friends at the track."
Recently there's been John McDonnell, who was the starter at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Highly skilled and highly-regarded, McDonnell would have gained many further big appointments except for his lack of French language.
McDonnell has recently taken up an appointment at Cambridge High, going there before he knew Cambridge had entered the race for the Centre.
And Ian Bullock has qualified as a UCI International Commissaire.
Summing-up, Cheatley puts it this way: "I don't think there's any doubt that Wanganui has always been looked upon as being the premier area for cycling - and I believe we've lost it a bit in the past five or six years since they covered Invercargill.
"Southland has come right up. But whoever gets appointed for this particular High Performance Centre will become the premier site.
"Wanganui has such a proud history of cycling that I hope we can keep it up there.
"This is by far the biggest sporting opportunity Wanganui has had in its history - to gain such a formidable international and national profile. On an ongoing basis, that win will bring huge economic benefits to our city."
"You used to get one of these when you paid your sub every year," said Cheatley. "It's amazing how many of these guys like us used to accumulate.
"In most cases, you used to throw it in the rubbish tin, because you had so many. But now they're like hen's teeth, like a collector's item. I wish I had kept all mine now."
The year 1877 is on them - that's the year the Wanganui Amateur Athletic and Cycling Club was formed. The track part.
The road section didn't come until 1928, and the two sections amalgamated, Ron remembers, around 1994 - the same time the initial drive for the wooden velodrome was under way.
Athletics Wanganui also became a separate identity at the same time (1994), and the new running track was laid in 1996.
"We've got shirts with 'Cycling Wanganui' on them, but the Wanganui Cycling Club Inc is still the official name," Cheatley said.
And so it should be, because the club is synonymous with cycling history and stories throughout New Zealand. There's been a culture of excellence from the very start - good organisation, skilled officials, smart riders - and international-class riders.
"We've run more New Zealand track championships [15] and road championships [10] than any other club in New Zealand. We ran the first Oceania Championship in 1976 and we've had six more since then."
But this is what the present Wanganui campaign for the centre is all about.
Those championships on the track have dried up considerably because of Invercargill's indoor velodrome. Wanganui needs to win the toss to host the new national High Performance Cycling Centre, to enhance its already formidable reputation.
If Wanganui misses, the velodrome might never be covered. And if you want to go to the big cycling meets, be prepared to travel to any of Palmerston North, Hastings, Cambridge or Waitakere.
What helps in winning such a cycling plum is a history, a culture, a determination that the local community has what it takes, loves the sport and gets right behind it. And this city has all of those.
So take this in.
Apart from the national and international events, Cheatley remembers some of the other great events run by Wanganui:
1. "The Palmerston North to Wanganui road race, first run in 1928 with the last in 1964. Then it became the River City Grand Prix - we had been wanting to get off the main road (there was pressure to do so). It's now run around different circuits here."
2. The River City Wheel Race (track): "As far as we know, or that Bill Main can remember, the first was in 1948, and that's been run every year since."
3. "The International Junior Tour - that was run for 25 years."
4. "Numerous promotions such as the New Zealand-Australia test series, the International Night of the Stars, West Coast North Island championships, other major carnivals."
And during Cheatley's 21-year reign as national road and track coach (seven years road, 14 track), national squads trained consistently in Wanganui - as indeed they would if Wanganui wins the new centre.
But it hasn't all been about running events.
Star riders produced include:
George Giles - sprint, 1936 Olympics, Berlin.
Colin Dickinson - beaten tandem quarters, sprint repecharge 1952 Olympics, Helsinki, 6th kilo, 1954 Commonwealth Games, Vancouver.
Gary Anderson - Olympics 1988, Seoul; 1992 Barcelona, bronze individual pursuit; 1996 Athens; 2000, Sydney; numerous Commonwealth Games, with three golds and a silver at Auckland 1990, and two silvers and two bronze at Edinburgh 1986 when just out of juniors.
Madonna Harris - road race, 1988 Seoul Olympics.
Catherine Cheatley - road, points race on track, 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Plus many, many national title winners in all grades.
On the officials side, there have been five New Zealand presidents: Cliff Chainey, Wattie Pidwell, Bill Main, Gordon Sharrock and John McDonnell.
There are three current life members of BNZ: Bill Main, Gordon Sharrock and Ron Cheatley.
Present BikeNZ positions are held by Bryan Simmonds (high performance officer) and Dayle Cheatley, national women's coach.
Roy Anderson is another who's given a lifetime of service.
So Ron, what has made the Wanganui Cycling Club tick so well over the years?
"Bloody good officials and good facilities.
"We've always had people who were in high standing in the national body. In my day they used to line up - we used to have three or four votes for president.
"In fact, we've always had strong, highly qualified officials - that's why they've always run good events here.
"It's a culture that's gone on through the ages - it was started way back in the 1930s and '40s, and it's carried on through. Particularly for major events, people are prepared to lend a hand."
Cheatley remembers some people of influence in his time:
1. "Basically the Pidwells. Harry was the president, he was the local god of Wanganui cycling in my day. He was national, rather than international, very much focused on Wanganui."
2. "Bill Main - You can't talk about the history of New Zealand cycling without talking about a guy who received an OBE for his efforts in bringing the Junior World Champs to Wanganui. And Gordon Sharrock, who was starter at the 1974 Commonwealth Games, managed many New Zealand teams over a long period."
And further back:
"Cliff Chainey - his cohort was Harry Gedye. They were in opposition with each other in the cycle industry in Wanganui, which was big in those days. But they were great friends at the track."
Recently there's been John McDonnell, who was the starter at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Highly skilled and highly-regarded, McDonnell would have gained many further big appointments except for his lack of French language.
McDonnell has recently taken up an appointment at Cambridge High, going there before he knew Cambridge had entered the race for the Centre.
And Ian Bullock has qualified as a UCI International Commissaire.
Summing-up, Cheatley puts it this way: "I don't think there's any doubt that Wanganui has always been looked upon as being the premier area for cycling - and I believe we've lost it a bit in the past five or six years since they covered Invercargill.
"Southland has come right up. But whoever gets appointed for this particular High Performance Centre will become the premier site.
"Wanganui has such a proud history of cycling that I hope we can keep it up there.
"This is by far the biggest sporting opportunity Wanganui has had in its history - to gain such a formidable international and national profile. On an ongoing basis, that win will bring huge economic benefits to our city."
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