BACK FOR THE FUTURE

Bathurst is one of several regional inland cities holding historic-trades fairs, tapping into growing enthusiasm for a slower, more sustainable way of living and of making things..

- NICKY CATLEY

L ITTLE MORE THAN a century ago, the glorious heritage-listed Beau Brown Pavilion in Bathurst Showground – arguably Australia’s oldest rural showground – was a rollerskating rink, and the town gave rise in 1909 to world record–breaking skater Mr J. Kaye.

Rollerskating is enjoying a revival in Bathurst, but it’s not the only recreational activity to come back into vogue in this historic inland city. Last March, local teenagers were navigating with flair the same space on modern-day penny-farthings, as part of a revival of interest in old arts, crafts and trades, once central to life but now largely lost.

Penny-farthing maker John Kitchen has worked with bikes for more than 40 years. He’s built – from scratch, and to order – 20 of these high wheelers during the past decade in Bathurst. That’s included hand-forging the 64 spokes in each of the huge front wheels. It’s a slow process engineering these marvels by hand. But that’s characteristic of each of the old crafts and trades showcased locally every autumn as part of the Bathurst Heritage Trades Trail.

Bathurst is one of several regional inland cities, including Bendigo and Toowoomba, to hold historic-trades fairs during recent years. The fairs celebrate a growing enthusiasm for a slower, more sustainable way of living, whereby goods, including saddles, buttons or chairs, are made by hand. They’re conspicuous in a mass-produced world underpinned by cheap manufacturing and consumerism.