The concept is quite simple. If you’ve heard of a bike bus (a group of young cyclists and some parents riding in a group to get to or from school), this is almost the same thing. The only difference would be that the bus that Pedal and Play is emulating is a city bus, rather than a school bus. We will be starting from a planned time and location each weekend and exploring our community on two wheels, before ending up at a pre-determined local park or other destination. Once we arrive at the destination, the kids can stay and play, have a snack, and we can all get to know each other better.
Some families in the neighbourhood have cargo bikes or bakfiets of different varieties. If you’ve ever been curious about taking cargo with you (precious or otherwise), you should come to get a good sense of the options available.
How Will This Work?
We kicked off the season of weekly rides with a meet and greet event on April 27. We made sure everybody had what they needed to make sure future rides go off without a hitch: a bike that rides safely, helmet, bell, good shoes, etc. We will aim to have bike mechanics and/or safety advisors available at some of these events to describe proper riding safety and etiquette, and to check bikes for any major issues.
After the kickoff meet and greet, we will establish a clear and consistent schedule (with some variety to be more inclusive) and set up a handful of backup chaperone/parents who can take over a ride in the event someone is on holiday or busy on a given day.
Obviously, if you’ve missed the kickoff, you’re still welcome to join any ride we do throughout the rest of the year, you’ll just have to make sure your bike and accessories are ready to go!
Can I Help?
There are a couple of things that would help these rides run smoothly.
For one, we should have a few volunteer chaperones: either parents of kids who are either quite comfortable riding, or have their kids riding with them on their bikes. Adults who just want to get out and help keep the kids organized are welcome too. This might involve stopping when crossing roads and making sure kids get across safely, or just leading the pack with directions or bringing up the rear with any stragglers.
Aside from that, we’d like to provide snacks for the kids at the end of each ride, so if you’re able to throw in a few dollars per child when you come, or ‘raise your hand’ in advance one week to bring a snack, we can make sure any costs like this that the event incurs are covered.
