June is Hamilton Bike Month
- Jayson Koblun
- 31 May 2018
Half the wheels, twice the fun! That’s what Bike Month Hamilton is all about.
Bike to Work Day was this past Monday and served as the kick-off to Bike Month — a month-long celebration in Hamilton of everything cycling that takes place from May 28 to June 30. Lots of events are happening throughout June to add to the celebrations.
On Monday, May 28, hundreds of Hamiltonians met at City Hall to kick off the month by biking to work where a few different local businesses offered free snacks and coffee. Donut Monster, a Hamilton favourite, was there with Coffeecology to spur on the crowds and give away free donuts and coffee.
Kindergarten teacher Chris Merkus says the Hamilton cycling crowd is really supportive and encouraging.
“It’s fun to come together as a cycling culture to celebrate the improvements Hamilton is making in promoting a greener environment and improving biking infrastructure,” says Merkus, who was at the kick-off event Monday with some friends. “Last year I participated in Bike to Work day for the first time and since then I’ve been making an effort to cycle or walk to work. Some days it might be cold or hot, but our city is becoming more bikeable and I think it’s a good move to help prevent another car being on the streets.”
This was Merkus’ second time participating in Bike to Work Day and plans on checking out some of the other events going on throughout June.
David Heska, director of Southwestern Ontario Building Sciences at WSP Canada, came out to the event too and said he enjoys the event partly due to its timeliness.
“I enjoy Bike to Work Month because it launches the summer of riding. After a long winter only biking once a week it’s great to get out three to five times a week. Bike to Work day is a great event at City Hall promoting biking and talking to others actively promoting cycling in Hamilton,” said Heska.
The City of Hamilton has been taking steps to help Hamilton become a city better suited for bikers or cyclists. If you’re wondering what the main difference between biking and cycling is, it’s often the level of “seriousness” someone has towards the activity. Biking sounds casual; cycling sounds informed and planned. Either type of enthusiast is encouraged to participate in the month-long celebrations.
Matt Sjaarda, active hiker/cycler, said he and his wife Jenny came out this year because they were invited by a friend.
“I heard there was free stuff and I love biking — I do it everyday. I like how low key the event was and you see peeps from the community. There were only good vibes,” said Matt.
Merkus says that even the City doing small things like adding a few kilometres of bike lane here and there makes a difference.
“We see that Hamilton is improving, take for example the Bay Street bike lanes,” said Merkus. The City recently changed a short section of Bay Street by replacing one of the car lanes to bike lanes, even adding a bike light at the intersection of Bay Street South and King Street West.
“Living downtown helps a lot and makes events like this easier to participate in. It’s fun to see how many days I can keep my car parked for and just use my bike or the SoBi’s [Hamilton’s bike share service],” says Merkus.
Let us know in the comments which events you’re excited to participate in and how often you bike to work!
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