Pollies on pushbikes - good or bad?

With cycling receiving an atypical amount of mainstream press the past fortnight courtesy of two high-profile politicians, Anthony Tan discusses its merits.

A week ago, it was NSW Labor Premier Kristina Keneally, demonstrating her prowess on the bike en route to work, albeit accompanied by a stocky police officer.

Sunday, it was Federal Opposition leader Tony Abbott.

Shortly before 9 p.m., when most of us were in front of the box, slouched on the couch and perhaps thinking about getting up at the crack of dawn for a morning bike ride before work, 'Sluggo Abbott' crossed the finish line at the Port Macquarie Ironman.

It took the man who appears as comfortable in his budgie smugglers as he is when suited up in his parliamentary couture 13 hours, 57 minutes and one second to complete the 3.8 kilometre swim, 180km cycle leg and 42km run – which columnist and radio personality Mike Carlton described as a "curious, simian shuffle".

Speaking to journalist Laurie Oakes off-air, Queensland Nationals Senator Barnaby Joyce likened Abbott to a "gutted rabbit" when he got out of the water.

Nice imagery, Barnaby.

I, admittedly, was impressed by the 52-year-old's feat, whose diet for the day consisted of Uncle Toby's chocolate-chip muesli bars, Bakers Delight hot cross buns, four smoked salmon and avocado sandwiches, water, and sports drink.

Six hours earlier, among a field of 1,500, race winner Patrick Vernay of New Caledonia completed the same course.

The cut-off time was midnight Sunday, so technically, Mr Abbott had another three hours up his sleeve, er, I mean sluggos.

No doubt, though, he'll need those hours plus more to recover before another week in Canberra, where Prime Minister Rudd is his daily sparring partner.

After last week's joust at the National Press Club, where he turned up to a debate about health without a bee's bum of a policy, Abbott, who won two blues in boxing while at Oxford, probably wishes his encounters were physical rather than verbal.

But while talk continues of whether his weekend was well spent, my question is this: do politicians on bikes set a good example for the wider cycling community, and therefore importantly push the need for more urban cycle networks – or does general dislike and cynicism for pollies exacerbate motorists' already excessive levels of road rage?

There's definitely a level of narcissism to Abbott's penchant for photo opportunities when he's wearing Speedos or in Lycra. "Feigned indignation and lack of anything substantial to put forward suggest he is all smuggle and no budgie," cleverly wrote a Herald reader last Thursday.

Yet, you have to admit, in a sporting-mad nation that ironically suffers one of the highest obesity rates in the western world (according to statistics from the Department of Health, around seven million of us are classified as overweight or obese), Tony Abbott is leading by example.

And so is Kristina Keneally.

In addition to the City of Sydney's $76 million, four-year project to build a network of bike paths (onya Clover Moore), the premier announced the NSW State government would spend $158 million over 10 years on further cycle-related projects aimed at encouraging more people to ride to work.

Her detractors say that figure is inadequate to meet the government's goal of a six-fold increase in cycling trip numbers by 2016.

Said Greens MP Lee Rhiannon: "Kristina Keneally's love affair with bike riding stops at allocating sufficient funding to build world-class bike infrastructure for Sydney and meet the growing enthusiasm for cycling."

While she may have a minder who can literally stop traffic, at least Ms Keneally recognises women in particular are discouraged from riding to work because of the inherent risks.

Bike paths provide a win-win solution to Sydney's – and increasingly, other Australian cities' –traffic problems.

Particularly in Mr Abbott's case, it might not be pretty, but at least they're out there.