Parents wanting to bike with their kids but who are concerned about safety and are not sure how to start, now have a “leg up”, with help by Capital Bike.
This summer, Capital Bike’s All-Aboard Family Cycling program returns for the second year, funded by Island Health’s Community Wellness program.
“Many parents want to ride bikes as a family but have a lot of questions about equipment and how to ride safely,” explains Adam Krupper, Executive Director at Capital Bike. “So we designed this really fun, interactive, and modular program so that families can ‘drop-in’ on sessions most relevant to them.”
Through All-Aboard, parents and children gain the knowledge and skills to safely incorporate cycling into their family life. The program consists of informational workshops on riding with kids and riding while pregnant, cycling skills courses for different ages (adults, kids, and youth), and a guided family ride. All events are free for families registered in the program, though many can still be attended on an ad hoc basis without charge. Events are held on more than one date through July and August.
“Our kids just started biking earlier this year and it would be so great to improve our skills biking with them,” says Tina Tam, mother of two young boys. “Our older son, who is 9 years old, learned how to bike from the Capital Bike program held at our school and that inspired our little one to try it too! We are so happy to be able to participate in the All-Aboard program and our kids will be so excited!”
Susanna Grimes, Bike Education Coordinator at Capital Bike, is thrilled to offer the program to families in the region as it removes barriers to high-quality family time. “It’s understandable that parents have concerns about their little ones riding bikes. But – they remember how much fun it was to bike when they were young and want their children to have the same opportunity. With the growing AAA Cycling Network, more amazing, beautiful places are accessible by bike than ever before. We want to help families take advantage of that.”
Interested families interested should register in advance at https://capitalbike.ca/family-cycling-program/
For more information, contact:
Susanna Grimes
Bike Education Coordinator, Capital Bike
(250)-920-5775
Susanna.Grimes@capitalbike.ca