New friends in a beautiful city

Our mighty group of riders

Today marked the first of what I hope will be many Velo Family Diaries' group rides. We had some old and some new friends join us on a 5.5 km ride from Trout Lake through East Vancouver to Southeast False Creek Olympic Plaza in the Olympic Village. Luckily, the first rain in two weeks held out for the early afternoon and we were on our way! Riders today were as young as two years old, and it was an exciting trip as a small but enthusiastic group.

Coralie leading the way out of Trout Lake

Coralie making new friends with Lisa of The Sprog

Meet Diane, our small but mighty rider!

We travelled along the Tenth Avenue Bikeway, which is a beautiful ride along a thickly treed street, which provides a very peaceful and safe ride for even our youngest of riders. One in particular was young Diane, who was riding her first bike, still with training wheels. I think she surprised all of us, including her proud dad, as her little legs pedalled fast to keep up with the group, even in the more hilly areas!

Beautiful street art on St. George Street

To make our way down to the Olympic Village, we headed down St. George Street, at the recommendation of our new friend, Lisa (@blauelibelle), writer for the blog The Sprog, and my friend, Shahira, who lives in that area. She and her neighbours got together and created a beautiful piece of public art right on the street, which put smiles on everyone's faces. The project reminded my husband of an article he read about DIY street calming measures in the LA Times, and I think this is a fantastic way to calm streets while also adding beauty and colour to a neighbourhood. All us riders couldn't help but follow the artwork as it weaved across the road!

Following the path of the artwork

Nearly to our destination...what a great
start to new tradition!

Once we reached our destination, it was wonderful to sit and share stories with our new friends, some about cycling, some about our children and living in the city and getting around with them. It's always nice to expand your community and meet people who have many of the same experiences as you. I am also very proud of the children on the ride, whether they cycled on their own or with mom or dad. I feel very strongly that the best way to promote bikes as a normal mode of transportation is to show positive images of our next generation using them to enjoy a journey throughout the city. As we get older, many of us forget the pure joy of riding a bike, and hearing their excitement, including Coralie shouting "This is totally awesome!" as we coasted down one of the hills reminds me that riding a bike is simply fun and gives everyone, no matter their age or ability, true independence.