O’Shaughnessy Center to Host Cycling and Paddling Adventure Film Festivals

The O’Shaughnessy Cultural Arts Center in Whitefish will host two adventure films next week highlighting paddling and cycling sports to support local nonprofits.

On Wednesday, April 24, the Children’s House Montessori School will present the inaugural Filmed By Bike Festival, which features adventure bike shorts and includes scenes shot in northwest Montana. Tickets cost $20 for adults and $10 for kids ages 5 to 10.

Audience members who arrive in a sustainable way, which includes walking, biking or carpooling, will receive a free raffle ticket. Local businesses like Glacier Cyclery, Great Northern Cycle and Ski, A7 Cycles, Wheaton’s Cycle and Smile Montana Dental Center will offer raffle prizes.

The following day on Thursday, April 25, the 19th annual World Tour Paddling Film Festival tour will bring water sports to the screen with whitewater and sea kayaking, canoeing, rafting, stand-up paddle boarding and environmental documentaries.

Ticket purchases will support the Flathead Rivers Alliance (FRA), a nonprofit that promotes river education and stewardship, and Montana Kayak Academy (MKA), a separate nonprofit that brings free youth paddling instruction opportunities to the Flathead. Tickets cost $15 in advance, which can be found at Lary’s Fly & Supply in Columbia Falls and Sportsman & Ski Haus in Kalispell and Whitefish and they are $20 at the door.

Raffle prizes at the film include a Red Eagle Aviation flight to Schafer Meadows in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, a $250 gift card to Backcountry Packraft Rentals, an NRS stand-up paddle board, a Kokopelli packraft, a gift certificate to Bedrock Sandals and more.

FRA was formed in 2019 in response to a spike in river recreation and the anticipated release of the multi-agency Comprehensive River Management Plan to protect the three forks of the Flathead River.

Stakeholders, including river outfitters, nonprofit leaders, river users and officials with Flathead National Forest and Glacier National Park, work with FRA to provide education and outreach to the public. The partnership is designed to improve management and protect the 219 miles of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act-designated system, which includes the North, Middle, and South forks of the Flathead River.

MKA launched in 2016 and provides free youth kayaking instruction and a variety of classes, ranging from kayak-rolling clinics to adult and women’s specific classes.

Film Festival Schedule and Tickets

What: Filmed By Bike Festival
Where: O’Shaugnessy Center, Whitefish
When: Wednesday, April 24 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Buy tickets here.

What: World Tour Paddling Film Festival
Where: O’Shaugnessy Center, Whitefish
When: Thursday, April 25 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Buy tickets here.