Dozens of local residents joined Mayor Scott Aitchison at River Mill Park last night (June 20) for the fourth annual Mayor’s Bike Ride.
The event—a partnership between the The SportLab, the Town of Huntsville, and the OPP—promotes healthy, active living while demonstrating Huntsville’s desire to be a bike-friendly community.
“It’s a great event because this is about living healthy, active lives. I learned how important that was last year when I had bypass surgery and they said ‘you’re young for this, you should get out and exercise more,’ so here we are,” said Aitchison. “The Town has invested lots and lots of money in things like trails and trying to encourage people to live healthy, active lives.”
He thanked Lowell Greib of The SportLab for initiating the event four years ago.
“We really do this to help mobilize our community,” said Greib. “All of us are athletes at The SportLab and this is an important way that we can give back to the community and get some of our clients out with the mayor.”
About 50 participants rode 12 kilometres through the streets around downtown Huntsville accompanied by an OPP cruiser. Greib added that the event is a good reminder for both cyclists and drivers that bikes and cars coexist on roads—cyclists should ride single file and motorists are required by law to give them a one-metre berth when passing.
Earlier in the month, The SportLab, the Town of Huntsville, and the OPP also hosted a Kids’ Bike Rodeo to promote cycling and road safety. Young cyclists aged five to 12 completed a 30-minute circuit of stations designed to teach them about things like helmet and bike safety checks, road signs and hand signals, and navigating intersections, and gave them opportunities to practice their agility. At the end, they received a certificate of completion and some bike goodies. (Photos below courtesy of The SportLab.)
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