Picture it as a roaming, rolling, rave on wheels, except replace the sketchy warehouse location and droning music with families and hot chocolate.
That’s the premise behind this weekend’s inaugural Bike the Night event, which kicks off Friday evening at Granville Park and follows a 10-kilometre route through Kitsilano.
Organized by HUB Cycling, the event is equal parts fitness and fact finding: participants will be taught the finer points of cycling while also getting a chance to familiarize themselves with the future of the Arbutus Greenway.
“It’s family-friendly and kids under 12 are free — all you need is to be able to ride a bike in a fairly straight line,” said Laura Jane, HUB’s director of corporate engagement and events. “It’s a good way to get people on their bikes to start with and hopefully they continue riding their bikes for other reasons afterwards as well.”
Bike the Night is modelled after Tour La Nuit, an annual event that has exploded in popularity in Ottawa and Montreal in particular. Participant numbers in La Belle Province have hit north of 17,000, though organizers in Vancouver will cap their numbers at 1,500 for their first kick at the can.
“It’s huge in Montreal and it’s grown massively, but it started small,” Jane said. “That’s what we’re hoping to do here as well — start with a smaller event of about 1,000 people and see it grow in the years to come.”
Friday’s ride will take place under a full moon and participants are encouraged to play up the visual spectacle by adding lights and decorations to their bikes. Costumes, music and other accoutrements are also fair game.
The event is being dovetailed into the same week as a massive gathering in Vancouver called the Pro Walk Pro Bike Pro Place Conference, which runs Sept. 12 to 15. Established more than three decades ago, the conference brings together more than 1,000 delegates from across the globe to address issues around complete streets, safe routes to school, active community design and protected bicycling infrastructure.
Having a bike bonanza of that scale happening in Vancouver provides the perfect backdrop to delve into the finer points of the Arbutus Greenway for the uninitiated. The greenway is currently being reviewed by city staff as to how to best balance the needs of all user groups: cyclists, pedestrians, those with mobility issues and urban gardeners.
“We are excited to show people that path so that they can see that it’s there and hopefully that encourages them to be a part of the consultation process as well for the future of the path,” Jane said. “We would like to see a pathway that’s safe for all users — for people on bikes and for people walking. We think it’s a great opportunity for it to be transportation corridor to get across Vancouver and also for recreation much like the Seawall is. This is a really cool opportunity for us to showcase it.”
Bike the Night will kick off at 6 p.m. with a pre-party featuring free snacks, bike repairs and giveaways for registered participants.
The ride begins at 7:30 p.m., with the route encompassing parts of the West Side, Kitsilano and ending at Connaught Park. Volunteers will be at varying checkpoints throughout the route to provide directions, encouragement and traffic management.
Tickets for the Bike The Night go for $25 for regular participants or $15 for HUB Members, and include a free copy of Momentum Magazine, a gift card for a free flat repair from Reckless Bike shops, snacks, giveaways and an entry to win an e-bike.
Participants over the age of 19 will also be invited to the Manchester Pub after the event.
For information and tickets, go to bikehub.ca/bikethenight.
@JohnKurucz
