Watching farmers count sheep fascinates me.
And, generally, they are surprisingly accurate.
Most of these “sheep counters” have, it seems, a strategy, with some preferring to count in twos, others in threes, but whatever it is, it works.
To me, the leaping and bounding sheep rushing by are pretty much just a white blur.
Aware of my shortcomings in counting sheep, I agreed several years ago to count bicycles for Victoria’s Bicycle Network and have been joined in the past few years by other members of the Shepparton-based Slap Tomorrow, a group that encourages people to think about and act on climate change.
Counting bicycles, certainly in regional areas such as Shepparton, is significantly easier than what our counterparts are confronted with in metropolitan areas, where it would be more akin to counting sheep.
Each counter is allocated a particular intersection in either Shepparton or Mooroopna, noting on a provided count sheet how many bicycles enter the intersection, from what street and in what direction they exit the junction.
The counts start at 7am and last for two hours, hopefully capturing the morning “rush period”.
Here in Shepparton and Mooroopna, we barely have that so-called “rush period”. In my time, the highest count was about 25, which included a bunch of recreational cyclists who just happened to use the intersection on which I was stationed.
A few of us from Slap Tomorrow were involved with the recent count, called ‘Super Tuesday’, and payment has just appeared in the group’s bank account.
Yes, Bicycle Network pay the counters, with the original fee of $30 an hour rising this year to $35, and so for two hours standing by the roadside, in whatever the weather might be, your group can earn $70.
Of course, the payment cannot be made directly to an individual; rather, it must be directed to a not-for-profit group, or it can be used to pay for personal registration with Bicycle Network.
Bicycle Network passes on information from the counts to the relevant councils, in this case, Greater Shepparton City Council, with the idea that it will help them formulate their bicycle strategy.
The emergence of electric scooters and bikes in recent times has changed a little, especially the count strategy.
Along with noting the direction in which riders enter and leave the intersection and whether they are male or female, space is now allowed on the count form for the recording of both electric scooters and bikes.
The count form is divided into 15-minute sections, and while that is unquestionably critical in cities, here in the country, whole chunks of the form can remain blank.
Cycling enthuses me, and Shepparton being so flat, it is a cyclist’s paradise regardless of what direction you take, as you are never confronted by a hill.
Electric bikes have changed the landscape of cycling, making it a wonderful first step towards transitioning into the exciting world of electric mobility.
A friend has a rather sophisticated electric bike with a range of about 350km, but as statistics show, the average car use in Australia is about 30km a day, and even the cheapest electric bikes can cover that distance with ease.
Counting sheep is something I marvel at, but counting bikes is something I can do and get paid for, and the city, my city, gets valuable information.
Robert McLean is a former editor of The News.