A private women’s walking tour in Wollongong was left shaken on Sunday after a group of teenage boys on e-bikes surrounded and intimidated participants near the Flagstaff Point lighthouse.
The tour, run by She Shapes History, had been booked for a group of women, including mothers and their teenage daughters, and focused on celebrating the historical contributions women have made to the region.
Guide Lindsay Burlton said the trouble began when some of the boys approached the group.
“A couple of boys came over and asked to join the tour. When I said no, they persisted. One got off his bike and walked into the middle of the group,” Ms Burlton said.
She said the situation escalated as the women tried to leave.
“When the women tried to move away, the group of boys followed. They twisted words, mocked them, surrounded them. Someone in the tour group eventually called the police,” she said.
The confrontation lasted up to 15 minutes and left the group “shaken”.
Police were called, but the riders had left before officers arrived. NSW Police said: “Wollongong Police District responded to reports of approximately 15-20 e-bike riders harassing another group of people walking on Marine Drive, Wollongong.
“Police patrolled the area; however, both groups were unable to be located.”
Ms Burlton said the group’s behaviour showed “a real disrespect for women”.
“There were two boys leading the bad behaviour and the rest followed in an alarming display of gang or herd mentality. I don’t think most of those boys are inherently bad. I’d love to see society do more to educate and support boys on how to do the right thing in group peer settings.”
She Shapes History founder Sita Sargeant said the incident was especially troubling given the purpose of the tour.
“It was mainly mums and their teenage daughters on that tour. These are women who organised a private tour with us to hear stories of women who fought to be taken seriously in public life, and then they experienced exactly that fight. It truly felt like the past and the present colliding,” Ms Sargeant said.
She said the most upsetting part was that the teenage girls on the tour appeared unsurprised.
“The thing that stayed with us most as a team was that the teenage girls on the tour were the least surprised. They felt like this was normal. For me, that’s absolutely heartbreaking, because it tells us girls are learning very young that this kind of behaviour is something they just have to negotiate,” she said.
Despite the ordeal, Ms Sargeant said the women chose to continue the tour.
“What I love is that the women on that tour all decided to continue. They weren’t letting the incident stop them from taking up space in their own community,” she said.
She Shapes History later shared footage of the incident on social media to highlight the experiences women can face in public spaces, drawing widespread condemnation online. “This is vile, their parents should be shown this footage, and their schools and or employers contacted,” one person wrote.
The incident comes amid growing concern about reckless behaviour by groups of teens on e-bikes in Australian cities. Earlier this month, hundreds of teenagers reportedly took part in a Melbourne “ride out” that swarmed an apartment complex before riders performed dangerous stunts in CBD traffic. In January, footage from Sydney’s Oran Park appeared to show young riders doing wheelies near a police vehicle.
