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Monash staff in user-friendly win

9 November 2005

Education faculty staff are part of the team that has won the Victorian Government's Sport and Recreation Industry Awards for the Most User-Friendly Club.

Dr O'Connor (centre) with Minister for Sport and Recreation the Honourable Justin Madden and Ms Janne Errington-Smith, a member of the Australian Paralympic Basketball team, at the awards ceremony.

Dr Justen O'Connor and Dr Trent Brown, as members of the Warragul Cycling Club, were part of the winning team.

Dr O'Connor, club president and Education faculty lecturer, and fellow club member and lecturer Dr Brown have been investigating how cycling clubs such as Warragul can meet the needs of recreational and competitive cyclists.

Their research contributed to the club winning its Most User-Friendly title. Its membership has increased by 50 per cent in the past year.

"It's not that people have stopped riding," Dr O'Connor said. "In fact, cycling is booming in Australia. You only need to look along the Nepean Highway on any given Sunday to see that people are very serious about cycling, kitted out in the latest gear and on very expensive bikes. The difference is that they are not necessarily affiliated with a club."

The research found that people enjoyed the opportunity to ride in groups and competed against each other in their own way and on their own terms.

"These cyclists don't need a trophy or club recognition," Dr O'Connor said. "It is enough to just charge up a hill and boast about it over coffee."

The Go For Your Life Sport and Recreation awards are aimed at encouraging and rewarding outstanding contributions to the Victorian sport, fitness, racing, outdoor recreation and community recreation sectors.