Mount Hutt Man Returns Home to Christchurch

A Mount Hutt man is part of a team of eight cyclists riding the length of New Zealand to promote a strategy for addressing issues of “at-risk” behaviour among young people.

Steve Kenelly is manager of the Mount Hutt Retreat who admits he is somewhat under-prepared for the 2374-kilometre, four-week journey from Bluff to Cape Reinga.

‘I’m a relative new-comer to the team,” he says. “I was only asked to join the ride two weeks ago after another rider pulled out.”

With such short notice, Mr Kenelly had to balance the urgent need for training with not wearing himself out before he started. “I did about 350 kilometres training,” he says. “In a way, this is my training run. I’m glad the first few days were easing-in but so far it’s going fine.”

Thirty-five-year-old Mr Kenelly admits he had not been on a bike for quite some time but as a younger person in Christchurch he used to organised bike rides from coast to coast. He has now been working at Mount Hutt Retreat for eight years and says his interest in working with young people was behind his decision to leave a building job to work at the Retreat. It is this same interest that has motivated Mr Kenelly’s involvement in the Circle of Courage cycle tour.

“As well as looking forward to losing some weight and getting fit, I am looking forward to seeing the response from the communities we will visit,” he says.

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The team arrives into Christchurch on Friday, February 16 and leaves Sunday, February 18. Want to interview Steve?