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Bikes4Fun

Thinking outside

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Bikes4Fun

NEW ZEALAND TO SINGAPORE

January, 2015, a container truck backs into Mace Lane, Arrowtown, New Zealand. Sixty-plus bikes are loaded up under the supervision of their creator, John Potts. He is sad to see them go but excited they have a whole new venture ahead of them, travelling the world, maybe. They have been part of his life for more than 20 years. Who knows what their future holds. PARTY TIME

A farmer living in Riversdale, Northern Southland, John Potts was invited to lots of parties – beer, barbecues, mates and farm talk. Sometimes they got a bit boring so he made up a series of different bikes for entertainment.

He was inspired by a chap riding into the Blossom Festival in Alexandra, Central Otago, on this ‘turn left, go right’ bike, with a backpack and a peg which he put in the ground. He put up a sign - “$20 if you can ride past this peg”. John was fascinated – a man could ride in on this damned bike, set it up, and a woman regularly pass by in a Mini and collect the money. By the end of day he put on his backpack and rode home. John worked out he must have made several hundred dollars and it was so smart, required so little effort and gave so much fun to a lot of people. It was not just about the money.

It was in the early 1990s, bikes were a readily sourced material, easy to get, easy to lift and carry around and everybody relates to them. John was in his early 40s, he and his wife Chris had two young children and the community was rich in events and social gatherings. With an extensive farm workshop and well versed in using a welder for farm repairs, John made his own ‘turn left, go right’ bike and took it to a party.

Turn right to go left – it’s easy, says a practised John Potts 4

A $20 note was nailed to a post and the challenge issued – you ride to the post, you can keep the money.

Many tried but John kept his $20 note. It was great fun but the riders soon tired of that - what else did he have? A bike with a swivel in the middle trundled out of the workshop, followed by a with two little trainer wheels on the back.

After a while the bikes were invited to parties rather than John, so he made some rules insisting that if the bikes went out, so did he. The events were generally birthday parties, 21sts and other celebrations. He was also actively farming sheep and cattle on 420 acres at Waimea, near Riversdale, and a further 180 acres up the road near Balfour, which he converted into a deer farm.

John remained mostly in good health despite functioning on a portion of only one kidney – the result of a childhood illness that nearly claimed his life and resulted in a six-month stay in hospital. He suffered more from an encounter in his 40s between a farm bike and dogs rushing out to greet him, resulting in the bike, dog and rider all ending up in various workshops. John paid for the rest of his life with knee problems that lead to two new titanium knees and a hip replacement. This also hampered his own bike riding activities and his pleasure was in making the bikes rather than riding them.

Although the bike idea was for his mates – fellow farmers with a beer in their hand, the challenge quickly appealed to all ages – blokes, women, teenagers, children, wise old grandparents looking on and chuckling. John knew of no one else who did this. An occasional similar bike might pop up somewhere but there was nothing like this. By 2000 he had a ute load - six or seven bikes, and the ideas kept growing.

The challenge on the ‘left-right’ bike went up to $1000 but still no one could ride it past the post. John had secretly mastered the challenge and would occasionally demonstrate that it could be done, then stand back and watch.

“It is hard to get the brain to do the opposite to its instincts – turn right to go right, instead of turn left to go right,” he says.

Bikes4Fun was just a hobby – always has been, John says, but retirement from farming was imminent and the bikes could be a means of doing something after he and Chris left the farm.

Tractors, sheep, cattle, deer, dogs and chooks went up for sale in 2006 and John, Chris, Leigh and Alana moved to Arrowtown.

These party bikes were fun…. but not always easy…. (sorry, George) 5

A new house with big workshop was needed and that in itself was a problem. Finding a site with enough space for a workshop was difficult but Butel Park presented a solution under the guise of a second double garage. A purpose-built workshop was created with space and facilities that were never available on a farm, but it was still not big enough – and never would be.

More than 20 bikes were now being loaded onto the two-tonne tandem flat deck farm trailer and pulled by the farm ute. Up to 100 ‘work in progress’ bike bodies spilled in and out of the new garage. It was a full-time job for the retired farmer. BACK TO SCHOOL

The bike collection was then discovered by Jo Robinson, a schools road safety education co-ordinator. She employed Bikes4Fun for the first time to visit schools. The collection was too big for one person as the number of bikes was now up to 30 and included a water bike, scooters, changed and altered bikes – all unique in their own design. An old Balfour farming mate, Colin McKenzie, offered to join John.

He was also recently retired after 45 years in the agricultural spraying business in Northern Southland. In his mid 60s, Colin didn’t want to have too much to do with running, maintaining, managing or repairing bikes. He just wanted to help. As a long-serving St John volunteer he also had the essential first aid qualifications. In his early 60s and hobbling with surgically-altered knees and hips, John had been involved with Scouts and Young Farmers but nothing like these youngsters – it was a whole new world.

Jo was also involved with other children’s fun school programmes, some combined with Police talks about road safety. The first school was Cromwell Primary in 2006. She briefed the two urban newbies on school road safety rules and health and safety requirements.

It wasn’t until Bikes4Fun were invited to join Invercargill’s Kids Zone winter holiday programme that it was pointed out helmets were essential. Bikes4Fun could not take part unless riders had helmets and John and Colin were prepared to ‘throw it all away’ because of the cost of providing about 60 helmets. Jo came to their rescue with financial assistance from the Government and local authorities to buy the helmets which retailed at about $70 – $80 each, and John negotiated an even better deal.

John Potts (left) and colleague Colin McKenzie, ready to meet the hundreds of school kids anxiously waiting to try Bikes4Fun 6

Now all John and Colin needed was a tennis court or concrete area and kids could then take turns to ride the bikes.

By 2010 Bikes4Fun had about 60 bikes; one tonne of bikes that had to be loaded and unloaded at each event (each bike weighs about 15kg).

Colin had spare sheds in Balfour – central to the area Bikes4Fun was covering - to store the bikes between assignments.

The travelling road show was now being used by 25,000 children a year from schools throughout the whole of the South Island, from Stewart Island to Blenheim. Usually the journeys would involve several schools in the same area, then on to the next area. At Kids Zone alone it was 1800 kids a day for six days. Schools were usually one-day visits and could involve between 400 – 500 children. They included kindergartens, primary and secondary schools and universities.

Bikes4Fun never had a website and did not advertise – they never had to but were always booked several years ahead.

One tonne of bikes that had to be unloaded and loaded with each school visit… it was tough work on these two guys in their 60s!

For the Arrowtown Autumn Festival all Bikes4Fun needed was a blocked off section of the road, and plenty of kids. 7

TOUGH FUN

John and Colin tried to work no more than three days a week, but they were still shattered. Then there was the fixing and repairing when they were not on the road. The kids were also pretty tough on the bikes – they would throw them down and run on to the next one.

The bikes mainly came from the local tips, recycle centres or anywhere bikes were dumped. The Salvation Army was helpful, then people would get to hear about the project and drop unwanted bikes off. It didn’t matter what turned up, if the bikes were in good order they were tidied up and given to the Buddy Programme or Happy House for disadvantaged families.

An Orange County Chopper designed in America 1990s Raleigh Chopper designed in the UK

The adults bikes were generally passed on to Buddies but the smaller bikes were of more interest for wrecking. There were lots of ‘gems’ – no bikes were turned down. Sometimes they were absolute dungers that went straight into the tip, but they did score a 1969 chopper worth about $1000 and a 1970s dragster worth about $2500 even though they were in pretty rough condition.

Invercargill wanted to make a profit from their tip and would try to charge us even if it had no frames, wheels or handlebars!!

The bike frames that weren’t needed were sold as scrap metal and the proceeds went to child cancer but that was given up after a while as the best market was $18 a tonne.

John could easily have a stack of about 100 dead bikes and a further 100 ‘good’ bikes. Sixty plus of these were on the main trailer and 40 odd on the second trailer for second events. 8

“We got into a second trailer because of the intensity of the bookings –sometimes we asked the people organizing the other event to pick up the second trailer and run it themselves. These were usually birthday parties and small events.”

For John and Colin is was usually bigger galas, schools, festivals, A & P shows, air shows, corporate events, Crank Up day, field days etc.

A bizarre request was for a wedding and the idea initially was to have entertainment for the children while the adults enjoyed the wedding. The bride and groom were people and so were their friends. Few children actually attended the event so they decided to have a ‘wedding race’. The bride choose the old ladies bike, the groom was on a penny farthing and the guests jumped on everything else to race across the Lake Hayes oval.

John had safety cones to mark the start and end of the race but he quickly had to widen the track as the number of guests all lined up eagerly on all manner of bikes. His biggest worry was the bride’s and guests’ finery becoming tangled in bike chains. Tourist buses stopped to take photos and some also wanted to have a go but John explained it was a private party. It often happened that the bikes were initially hired for children but adults would hop on instead.

There was always time for some arresting fun… … and age was no barrier to a good left-right challenge

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TWO WHEELS GONE MAD

The kids loved the different bikes. Teachers were warned to wear suitable clothing – especially when avoiding getting wet

The range of bikes included two sets of wheels up and you had to pedal backwards to go forwards – that was a kid’s idea. The water bike was a stationary bike driving a geared water pump and the nozzle coming out of the seat. The 200 litre water container stayed on the trailer and would last a day. Passing teachers and parents were usually the target! The bike also had a possum tail behind the seat that a child could wiggle by squeezing the clutch.

The tails were always being pulled off and eventually John gave up. Horse bike had an off-centred back wheel and would move along with a horse motion. wheels and a bike centre post with pedals were blended into a hilarious combination with the cyclist clutching a handle under the front seat and pedaling like mad….

Something for everyone…pedal, treadle, work together, turn together 10

You pedal backwards, I’ll pedal forwards… The tuktuk The tuktuk was always a favourite

The front of two bikes welded together enabled the cycling duo to sit back to back….. one pedaling forward, the other pedaling backwards… then reversing roles…

Size of a bike design was paramount because it had to be lifted and packed onto the trailer. The tuktuk was the biggest but it was popular because kids wanted to take Grandma for a ride. It was constantly in use. The biggest problem was keeping the number of passengers off it – wasn’t uncommon to see 15 kids stacked on the back. They often also tried to roll it.

Another trikebike had Batman’s cape welded onto its back (right) to stop little passengers clambering onto the back axle to see how many could score a ride. John and Colin needed eyes in the back of their heads. A short plastic red stick tapped on the ground regularly was used to gain control – it got the young pedlars’ attention.

Part of the school programme was for the children to come up with design concepts which John would attempt to build. This was how many of the design ideas grew. The preschoolers and new entrants were the best kids for ideas – their minds are so free and uncluttered, he says.

He would have to take off the rocket to the moon, space ships and boost blasters but in behind that would be a twist in the frame or design concept – a change that would enable a bike to perform differently.

The 100-year-old ladies bike was donated by the Grant family in Balfour and it was used to show the kids how bikes could last if they were looked after. The bike would be tipped upside down alongside a modern bikes and both wheels set spinning. The old bike would spin for about 20 minutes and the modern bike would last about 10 minutes – the difference being the bearings and beautiful craftsmanship of the old bikes, John explains. 11

The recumbent bikes that are occasionally seen on New Zealand roads as international cyclists pedal their way around the countryside in a reclining position could not be sourced for children. John had to make them. These adult-size bikes retailed at $6000 to $7000. Legs out front, lie back and pedal, the arm rests having some control over the bike’s direction but mostly you steer it with your bum, he says.

The ‘spin-it’ bike was another recumbent bike with shopping trolley wheels on the back and ordinary wheels on front. Pedal, turn and spin it 360 degrees. It could whip around in circles in an area no bigger than the flat deck of the trailer. That was a top favourite.

The first ‘penny farthing’ was a replica – the front wheel was made in America and the rest of the bike was built in Oamaru. Colin sourced that - it cost $2200 which was quite expensive for Bikes4Fun but a real one would have cost $5000.

“People had no idea it cost us that much and would ride it and crash it or dump it down,” John says. “We would remind them it cost us $2200 and they would be amazed – they thought we got it from the tip.”

A few more three-quarter penny farthings were then added to the fleet.

There are a handful of these full-sized bikes in New Zealand but mostly in museums.

The rest are mostly in private collections and not accessible to the public to ride. It’s very easy to go over the handlebars on these, and mounting and dismounting are also a challenge 12

The little Stepper… The little Peewee…

There is a penny-farthing in the Dunedin museum that it is mounted so visitors can climb up and pedal it.

Another favourite is the little Peewee 47cc motorbike that had died – John took the motor out and put pedals on it. Then he made up some ‘twisters’. They move by rocking backwards and forwards, the same as a Ripstick, a two-wheeled skate board which uses the body motion to make it move. There are ‘look alike’ Harley Davidson bikes and a large Speights Chopper. Some of these were picked up second hand at a bike shop clearing sale. Bikes4Fun paid about $100 for these but they were worth a whole lot more than that because of their novelty value and kids really really really liked them.

The twisters….

These ‘really cool’ bikes are quite impractical but a lot of fun to ride 13

The ‘ride-on mower’ (right) was also fun. Humour was always John’s close companion. He had lots of puzzles, kites and novelties on hand for any quiet moment.

John was given an ‘oogle’ squeeze horn for one of his bikes. He had a better idea. A keen skier, he was sometimes frustrated when racing downhill to find in his path a cluster of skiers having a good old chat.

The horn fixed to his ski pole would be a great way to warn of his approach or communicate with a fellow skier.

Within a few days the local bike shop had a run on these horns and all over Coronet Peak he could hear horns honking down the slopes.

Twist, wiggle and off you go. Sometimes size does matter 14

ONE-WHEEL WONDERS

Colin also dusted off a unicycle made for him in 1959 by Les Ferris of Ferris’s Bike Shop in Gore for £20. Colin’s wage then was £4-17-6 a week. were not easily available and Colin could still ride his – at 60! The first unicycle purchased by Bikes4Fun was sourced through Trademe. They were then quite unique. Such was the demand an importer in New Plymouth offered to supply more unicycles, tyres, chains and all necessary running stuff at wholesale prices.

The unicycles then took a life of their own with Bikes4Fun purchasing in the early 2000 two lots of five and leaving them at the schools for a term, before they were moved to the next school. As children couldn’t just ‘jump on’ a unicycle special classes were initiated and the year 7 and 8 children (12 – 13-year-olds) were taught how to ride them and rewarded with a certificate of achievement for mastering a unicycle.

They conquered the unicycle then the giraffe unicycle which puts the rider two metres off the ground. Schools were very cagey for a start because they thought their pupils were a risk, but the kids learned balance, coordination and motor skills which helped them immensely in their sport and other schooling activities, John says. 15

Bikes4Fun then introduced games with ‘Bullrush’ where everyone tackles everyone and the winner is the last man standing - the rest are knocked off their unicycles. The idea was to teach riders to maneuver while at risk - mostly if they were about to be pushed off they would quietly step clear onto the grass. Then there was hockey, netball and tennis, ukuleles, bagpipes, juggling, toss the oversized tennis ball or plastic blow-up ball, frisbees – the children all added these challenges themselves.

After a term about 200 pupils in the year 7 and 8 classes at each school would have tried the unicycles and about 60 per cent gained their ‘licenses’.

Parents often told John they were overjoyed to see their kids outside doing things instead of being inside glued to the computer or television.

At one stage he built ‘trainer wheels’ for the unicycles for those struggling to learn but he found the children were relying too much on these. It can take a kid a week to learn to ride a unicycle, others take a month to conquer it – it isn’t easy. Several hundred kids have been taught to ride unicycles and in Arrowtown some 20 children have their own, supplied by Bikes4Fun at wholesale rates. A local lad was spotted on his unicycle pedaling down to the fish and chip shop in Arrowtown and eating his tea as he pedaled back home.

Some kids took their unicycles to Stewart Island as part of a class trip and John soon received a phone call from the Stewart Island school - please come and visit. It blew their mind. They paid for him to go over to teach unicycles and soon after the trailer load of bikes followed. Colin and John were given a car, accommodation, transport to the island by ferry and the bikes were freighted over .

Pass the ball, play the ukulele, bounce onto the box… all good fun 16

They were told the keys for their car would be in the ignition and it was a red one parked in the school grounds. Stewart Island has a population of less than 400 and limited kilometres of roads. There were three red cars parked with keys in the ignition and they all had gumboots, rods and fishing gear inside. Bikes4Fun received a tremendous welcome and the visits were repeated about three times.

“John was very good at tutoring a class,” Coin says. “He had their undivided attention.”

The problem was that John and Colin had to go over on a Thursday freighter but couldn’t get back until the next sailing on Tuesday, so they had to go fishing.

The pupils at Arrowtown Primary have a lot to be proud of in conquering the difficult unicycle.

Dear Mr Potts, I love the unicycle, its one wheel is a big challenge. You have been the best and I hope you will come back. That’s m me and Cooper doing the two man spin and thanks for teaching us!!! 17

ATTENTION, CLASS

Some schools did not welcome Bikes4Fun, others completely embraced them into their curriculum. A talk included the bike’s history: The penny farthing was invented in England by Mr George Singer around 1870, the bike increased in popularity around the world and its many uses contributed towards development of the automobile.

Children may have to line up with their bikes for a maintenance and safety inspection. Mostly they were all in need of some form of repair – chains too loose, flat tyres, brakes that didn’t work, seats and handlebars needing adjustment. In many cases it was just lack of knowledge and the youngsters would be shown how to fix a tyre. This sort of support wasn’t always forthcoming at home, and the bikes were generally not flash.

Part of the in-class session was for the children - from new entrants to universities - to completely dismantle a small BMX bike then reassemble it themselves. They had to watch the order of dismantling and would prompt each other as to what part could go back next. This was usually their first understanding of where all the bike parts came from.

Many children had little knowledge of a bike’s working parts. At one stage John threw into the mix a battery-powered kitset motor that showed how engine parts worked. He bought that for $50 from Repco, assembled it and mounted it on a board and lads would all hunker down to watch the pistons and cylinders spring into action at the flick of a switch.

Their enthusiasm was incredible and they were very attentive. The children were also invited to do bike art, designing new bikes or perhaps using a box of cogs which they drew around to join up lines around a sheet of paper. In more advanced classes they were challenged to work out ratios and speeds. Then it was time to ride the bikes sitting tantalizingly outside. As far as Colin and John are aware no one else offered anything like this in the schools.

They visited rural and city schools, and in the case of the isolated Makarora School, north of Wanaka on the way to West Coast, many of its 40 children still pedaled to school and needed to be as much aware of road safety as their more urban classmates. The rural schools were usually more fun – the kids were more game to try things and had a better grasp of what wheels did, John says. All Bikes4Fun needed was an area of tarseal – the size of two tennis courts was ideal, or they could be in a school hall if it was wet, sometimes on a grass area if there was not enough concrete. 18

LET THE CHILDREN RIDE

The lineup of 60-plus different bikes would be met with a general air of excitement. The children had usually heard about them or seen them before and holding them back was a problem. They all had to have helmets and hairnets ‘when required’ before they could grab a bike, and there could be 30 kids at a time all raring to go. They would be taken to the centre of the court and could only walk to the bike of their choice, but they had it well soused out in advance what they wanted. The riding sessions were usually in 45 minute segments and the children were briefed to try each bike for a few minutes then move onto another one. Sometimes the kids would work out their favourites and in little groups try to hog them among themselves. They were usually busted!

“I can’t wait,” they would say, as they jostled at the lineup. They wanted fun and excitement, doing something they have never done before. Every bike was different. John and Colin would often try to work out which bike they could take out and replace with a new one but what was favourite or least preferred at one school would be different at another school. Mostly the children wanted something that could spin and rotate – recumbents were the first out.

For some kids the bikes were sooo different they would be a little cagey – some would try one, get two or three metres, throw it down, and go back for another. The biggest single fear was a bike lying on its side in the pathway and kids wouldn’t see it or just walk over it as they raced for the next one in their excitement. The main task for John, Colin and helpers was to pick the bikes up. It needed at least two of them all the time – one managing the helmets and payment if necessary and the other keeping control of the bikes in the field or removing those dropped. These positions were swapped regularly and it was bloody hard work. Everyone was quite exhausted by the end of the day.

The decision was made to do no more than three events a week, and each event involved unloading and reloading one tonne of bikes. John even had to buy a bigger ute to help tow the growing load. It was quite an act. Some young lads were enlisted to help the ‘two old fellas’ – to be their eyes and ears in the event of bullying.

If one kid was bothering another kid the names of the offender and parents were sought and the child warned to stop or their mother would be rung.

(There goes that tongue – it helps with concentration) 19

By observation boys were more aggressive - they would rush out, grab a bike and fly into it, usually to come a complete crash. Girls would observe, quietly proceed and outstrip the boys. More plasters were applied on boys’ knees than girls’ knees. Colin, as the resident St John representative, treated minor scrapes and bruises on site. A couple of broken arms – greenstick breaks – occurred from kids tripping over the bikes rather than riding.

The teachers were generally very supportive and encouraged to ride with the kids. They were given advance notice not to wear tight dresses to school and generally had about as much fun as the kids. The protruding tongue (of riders of all ages) was a great indicator of concentration.

If hanging out the left side the riders were usually horrified. On the right side – they were winning…

If the school had a pre-school department these children were also invited to take part during lunch hour and bikes with holders out the back, and small double bikes for those learning to ride, were added to the collection. Even some ‘walker’ bikes were added for the real littlies aged around two.

Handicapped children were a priority. Those with or balance difficulties were identified by the schools and Bikes4Fun would match the best bikes suitable for these children before the main rush of bodies so they could be part of the fun. Every school had about half a dozen of these children and for some it was the first time ever they had been able to ride a bike, particularly on a three-wheeler where their balance was not an issue. John made up quite a few special bikes for these children.

A special request was also made by local artist Angus Watson, a quadriplegic who wanted mobility added to his . Specific hand controls and an were added to his wheelchair, believed to be the first in the world in that department. There are motorized but Angus wanted his own fold up one motorized, then he could put it on the roof of his car and drive somewhere, lift it down, put the motorized gear on then get to the sites he wanted to paint.

Copies were made from this proto-type and John welcomed it – this was not where he wanted the business to grow.

Even the really little children wanted to have a go and another collection of bikes was added to the mix 20

BEYOND THE SCHOOL GATE

What was the best bike? The children were constantly asked what was their most joyful part of the day – for some it was art rather than the riding but the general comment was “This is the best day of my life”’ - that was scary, John says.

There were constant requests for the concept of Bikes4Fun to be franchised but neither John nor Colin wanted the workload, grief – or the profits – this may involve.

The concept was basically ‘not for profit’ and all they wanted was to cover their running expenses. Sponsorship offers were turned down because they would then lose control of what they were doing.

The implications of anything that might involve safety regulations or constraints was also a worry although the bikes were still all chain driven and mostly retained their manufacturers’ specifications, so bureaucracy mostly left them alone – after all, there are some four million bikes in New Zealand.

Another highlight was when Bikes4Fun were invited to be part of a Bike to Work campaign in Dunedin where people got a free breakfast if they came in at 6.30 in morning, played on the bikes and attended a road safety briefing. That was a screaming success, John says. They also worked with Sport Otago, a Dunedin promotions group, The Fringe Festival and Otago University on three occasions to ‘teach very very smart kids’ all about the wheel. These were all highly successful events as they involved education back to ground-level thinking with messages of sustainable transport, the carbon footprint and physical exercise.

Bike shops were seldom interested in Bikes4Fun. They turned down requests for a discount rate for bike parts yet John and Colin were often asked by young enthusiasts where they should go for new bikes.

Their biggest support was from Wensley’s Cycles in Invercargill – a bike shop which was incredibly supportive with helmets, parts and supplies.

Anyone who wanted a bike was directed there.

Another problem that tempered the idea of franchising the concept was anyone contemplating being involved had to have an interest in children, business management skills, first aid requirements and good workshop skills. This was a big ask. Even firemen were up for the challenge (and there goes that tongue!) 21

WORKSHOP SKILLS ESSENTIAL

John was a farmer – usually someone asset rich and cash poor, he says. Any machinery needed they had to build themselves, hence a good workshop and a history of welding, brazing and manufacturing to create or repair requirements for the farm. John did most of this from an early age, his farming career beginning as a 16-year-old on the family farm in Longridge North, near Lumsden. It was at the time when farm motorbikes were replacing horses and the bikes were often in the workshop. Encounters with rocks and stock would constantly remove any protruding rear vision mirrors, indicator lights, foot pedals, headlights and even handlebars.

A lot of hay gear, ploughing implements and general machinery also needed time in the farm workshop. John built a hay feed-out wagon and it won second prize in an Australian farm machinery competition. The prize was a welder.

Basic metal work was taught at high school, in John’s case James Hargest in Invercargill where he learnt a little, but mostly his skills were self- taught and gleaned from asking local engineers. All maintenance was after hours and the light burnt into the night in the large old workshop with no heating and the doors wide open. It was a necessary part of farm life for John but very satisfying. Other farmers did not do this so the local engineering shop was well supported. The engineers were also very supportive of this young farmer because he was interested in their work. Some of the best gear possible was acquired for the farm as it had a lot of work to do.

When John and his wife Chris moved onto their own farm in Waimea, Riversdale, in 1990, a new workshop was built but it was never big enough. People often asked John to fix or weld things and he was more than happy to do this.

Welding is a craft. It takes years to learn and involves metal thickness, quality to the heat and temperature needed to weld with the variety of rods available.

Skateboard wheels, old bike, opossum tail,…. Anything goes 22

It was very difficult to maintain a clean neat weld. John did a lot of brazing – using the gas and brass rods to put two lots of pipe together. This old art is now generally lost to the world, having been replaced mostly with the new plastic plumbing connections that are now available. It was expensive to go to the blacksmith so John had to do a good job.

He also enjoyed creating art work with left-over junk – turning them into all sorts of interesting things. Woodturning projects claimed a corner of the workshop but metal was more interesting.

By his early 20s John had built his own 14 foot steel panel jet boat and he and his mates had a lot of fun on that. Previous fibreglass boats kept breaking on him because they were not strong enough for crashing up the Southland rivers and weaving through (or up) the willows.

“We had a lot of fun on ‘Steelo’ and she lasted about five years before she was sold because John was getting tired of the rivers and wanted a lake-based boat to take their children water skiing. Boating was always part of his recreation, as was skiing, deer stalking, fishing and the company of family and friends. He had also enjoyed working with or the company of children – they were very honest and straight with their thinking. If they thought it was good they would say so, or if it stunk they would say so – a raw honesty that is not often found, John says.

He had previously volunteered with Young Farmers, including hunting trips and encouraging youth development, but none of it matched this.

Youngsters still end up in John’s Arrowtown workshop welding and learning the crafts of steel. Some schools no longer teach metalwork or woodwork classes.

Local kids interested in things mechanical come around to fix their bike or put something on it. They have an idea of what they want – they just need someone to help them.

Kids with learning difficulties are often particularly interested in what John is doing and building. They can’t wait until their project is finished. Instructions are given about their parents knowing their whereabouts and what time they have to be home. Parents are encouraged to visit and help their kids. Quite a few do. The trick is to stop the parents from doing the task and taking over.

What on earth??? Many design ideas came from the children 23

Some ideas worked, such as this bike-powered washing machine for a Scout Jamboree – it was in great demand as the kids could wash and spin their swim wear.

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LOOKING AHEAD

With the advent of internet John is now looking world-wide at what is happening in bike design. The whole industry has taken off in a new direction with , bike trails, marathons, other ‘daft’ bike designs and the Government initiative to create a New Zealand-wide cycle network.

The resurgence of bikes is amazing, John says. There has been a whole new look and acceptance of design innovation. One of these is the single unicycle wheel with no seat and no post – only the wheel and pedals. John saw it and made it. The kids’ first reaction was total indignation that he could do that to a unicycle and present something so crazily hard, but that was John with a completely radical bike wheel he was inspired to build and the whole idea. They tried it and rode challenge the children to ride it and said “anything is possible,” which has always been John’s mantra.

Children’s attention span is about 1.3 minutes long and each year it drops off by .3 seconds, he says. This means that any rideable challenge presented to them has to have three quarters of accomplishment within that 1.3 minute boundary otherwise they throw it away and that is that. A lot of good inventions are thrown away because they don’t meet this criterion – even though they are fantastic bikes.

One called the ‘invisible bike’ involved the rider siting over the structure with all the wheels underneath. It worked but it took too long to be mastered so out it went. The kids wouldn’t ride it and adults were too inflexible to take up this challenge.

A generator bike that could have fired out sparks was also seriously looked at but massive equipment was needed and this restricted its

Another new mode of transport… just stand and wobble 25

use. A wind bike that filled an airport-type airsock consumed too much space on the trailer and also had a problem with its rudeness….

Another problem was the number of kids who wanted to buy the bikes. They would be told they weren’t for sale and one was subsequently flogged. John considered that an honour and simply built another one.

Balfour Primary pupils wanted a twister bike so they sold muffins until they had $400 to buy it – one of the few that were actually sold and that was only because the children made much an effort. They had to build their own rules and manage it – it never slept.

Bikes4Fun gained quite a lot of interest from the media and in 2013 were nominated for TV One’s Good Sorts programme by several kids in Arrowtown School, unbeknown to each other. The Good Sorts film crew turned up, much to the delight of the kids and the deal was they had to be the feature of the film and not John and Colin. The reaction was been huge – there couldn’t have been many TV viewers who didn’t see it, says John, and he still get comments about that. It was played twice by request. THANK YOU

Thank you letters started arriving after each school visit, especially from the unicyclists. Their term-long allocations would be followed by pages of neat thank you letters, photos, artwork, writing, poems and sometimes videos made by the schools own production unit.

The joy of the smiling face and seeing kids happy and determined to know all about it was more than enough for John and Colin. By the end of 2014 the road show had visited many schools throughout the South Island. 26

It was totally unique and had no opposition but it was exhausting and both John (67) and Colin (74) were slowing up.

The last few years were quite a struggle, especially for John who was now dealing with kidney failure after a life- long problem of diseased kidneys. His lack of energy made the decision to sell easier, because the bikes were still his life’s passion.

Bikes4Fun was put on Trademe but no New Zealand buyers were interested which was very disappointing for John and Colin. The price of $20,000 was not the issue – the uniqueness of it was, plus the commitment it required and the mix of essential skills. It was not about profit.

In January, 2015, most of the bikes were bought by Mostapha Kamal, of Singapore. A few months earlier he was on holiday in Cromwell and saw the event in action. He loved the concept of Bikes4Fun and couldn’t believe his luck when it appeared on Trade Me.

Mostapha lives in Singapore. He is a physical education teacher and could see potential for Bikes4Fun as part of his Bikarnival Singapore Tour. A container arrived to gather up 67 of the bikes and they were shipped from Dunedin to Singapore direct. It cost $2000 to get the container from Dunedin to Arrowtown and back, and $800 to go from Dunedin to Singapore.

When the bikes were loaded it was very sad knowing they were leaving New Zealand for good, but John was also very proud that they could continue their role of fascinating and exciting kids the world over. His Bikarnival Singapore Tour has been created to visit local schools around his country and beyond with a local team of young engineers, mechanics and architects.

The main feature of Bikarnival is a centre circuit - a free-ride zone for riders to try out more than 60 of the world’s most inventive and unique ! In the Inventors Corner participants are invited to have their ideas sketched out by Bikarnival’s resident architect. If he can sketch it, we can probably build it, Mostapha says. (John has met his match!)

The Bike Blender machine is cycled relentlessly to make smoothies and in the Spin Art section a few pedal strokes spin a platter at over 2000 revolutions per minute to help create some amazing art with dazzling spirals and streaks! In the Bike Building Challenge kids team up with their parents to assemble a bike from scratch. The Bike Generator enables children to pedal to produce their own electricity. Legs are eight times stronger than arms and participants can show how efficient their legs are and how much power they can generate.

There is an amazing collection of different unicycles, a Bike History section and John Potts’s Bikes4Fun section. Well done, John.

By now John was in complete kidney failure, starting dialysis and constantly in Dunedin Hospital. Colin was also very pleased that they were sold because he was also finding it all too hard and there was an underused campervan in his shed. Bikes4Fun will continue what it was set out to do - to bring the joy of fun, learning and discovery to kids of all ages, Mostapha says.

Another 40 something bikes still remain in the garage in case John’s health comes right and a new kidney works. He still has some miles to pedal.

Written with love by his sister Carolyn Howden, March 2015, reprinted June 2015. 27

EMAILS May 26, 2015

Hi Mo, How are the bikes going, how many events have you put through? Seem to be into winter early here, 300 mms of snow surround the house and it’s very cold. Schools were closed on Tuesday and the kids From:enjoyed Mostapha the snow break. Kamal Have been working in the garage (heater on) rebuilding some old-type bikes – a 1965 Raleigh Budgie (12 inch wheels), a 1969 Raleigh Grifter, a 1970 Healing HMX 500 - this was the very first of the light weight BMX bikes – all now very sought after. Kidzone Invercargill next big event, July, winter holiday program. 1800 kids per day X 6 days. They will put a manager on, I will take the bikes down and stay a night or two, as it is too big for me to manage. Maybe come home, but I will be part of it, I do so much enjoy that. My health seems to be holding, and the dialysis is going OK. Plug in at 10pm, goes all night, unplug in the morning about 8.30am. This gives me my day.

Take Care

John

Sent: Thursday, May 28, 2015 To: John Potts

Hi John!

Good to hear from you! Glad to hear to your health is improving!

We have done 4 events so far and are getting more bookings every month.

The initial part took a longer time than expected as we had to set up appointments and meet with the various ministers and principals and elaborate more on our programme.

I was thoroughly surprised at the reception! Kids from all around the world I guess all behave the same way! It's the same excitement and curiosity all over. The only issues we have so far are crying kids who just don't want to leave the bicycles when it is time to pack up.

As with all things, there is a learning curve here for us as well, and we are improving on our processes, handling of the logistics, crowd control, managing time and activities etc.

We have purchased a mobile speaker amplifier and have been using it at our events, elaborating on the history of the bikes as kids cycle in the circuit.

Take care

Mo

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