Ballarat is home to a plethora of rides that raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the local community each year, and the city has proudly established itself as the cycling capital of Australia.

But this is an issue that needs to be viewed locally from a far broader perspective by lateral thinkers who appreciate the fact that what Ballarat is gaining from, we are presently losing.

The weekend’s forced cancellation of the Bendigo International Madisons cycling program is no doubt a setback for the voluntary madison committee, complicated by the fact that many of the expenses associated with running such an event had already been incurred prior to the cycling being called off.

But without this world-renowned carnival, there would be a gaping hole in our city’s tourism calendar and many vacant motel rooms on the March long weekend.

But the madison is just one part of the bigger picture for cycling in this city. The City of Ballarat has a fully costed five-year plan for the sport of cycling in its region and is well on the way to achieving the goals prescribed in what is a comprehensive and very detailed document.

This plan is delivering benefits for Ballarat that go way beyond the bike.

Next year is the 40th anniversary of our madison carnival and it is imperative that our civic, business and sporting leaders sit down as soon as possible to map out what should be the best ever madison and the most successful yet.

What do you think? Write a letter to the editor, or e-mail editor@bendigoadvertiser .com.au