Mount Pleasant Family Biking Festival Recap

After months of preparation, blood (okay bruises), sweat, & tears... July 19 arrived, sunny & hot. The Mount Pleasant Family Biking Festival went off without any major hitches. I think people actually enjoyed themselves & the event served the purpose of giving families a chance to network about biking & gear.

Many parents test rode bikes--the bakfietsen seemed especially popular. One lucky family won the Evo Toddler Deluxe seat (donated by Tandem Bike Cafe) & will now have the gear to start riding with both their kids.

I was buzzing around dealing with photo releases, finding lost stuff, answering questions, & handing out drinks from the cooler, so the festival flew by in a flash for me. I think there were over a hundred people over the course of the event.

Our official photographer, Tom Wiebe, managed to get some great photos despite the high noon glare. Here are a few that give a sense of the event:

Chatting about the Babboe City bakfiets, one of over 20 family bikes on display
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Our face painter, Lesia decorated many a cheek
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

The bike decorating station was hopping
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

The spoke decorations disappeared quick & the streamers were tied to everything
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Chatting about the Surly Big Dummy & a Yepp Maxi on a 'regular' bike  
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Bike Doctor pinwheel on a Wike bakfiets
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

There was a lot of traffic in the little bike circuit
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

So many tips  & reasons for loving family biking posted
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Tandem Cafe co owner & prize donor Clint, talking about his Cetma bakfiets
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Our youngest volunteer (left) explaining the draw prizes
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Rearranging the cones on the bike circuit was extremely popular
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

Chatting about my Yuba with another bike-curious parent
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

We did it! Tonya & I near the end of the event
Photo Credit: Tom Wiebe

This festival was 'my baby' for many months, but I couldn't have done it without the generous help of many people. I'd like to extend a huge thank you to:

• Tonya for helping to hatch the plot & so many other things along the way.
• Lisa M, Dan, Joe, Melissa B, Chris, Brigitte, Lola, Gabe, Nicole, Melissa R, Clint, Neil, Matthew, Jens, Gwen, Anthony & a few others I know I'm forgetting for being in the Show & Shine
• Rob, Tonya, Gwen, Anthony, Nicole, Lisa M, Dan for helping set up
• The Floyd family in particular for sticking around the entire day & helping with pretty much everything at the event from transporting heavy stuff, to set up, to station staffing, to tear down
• Jens, Chris, Melissa B, for bringing the tables & chairs in your bakfietsen back to the family centre
• Our photographer Tom & face painter Lesia for providing their creative skills
• The Vancouver Foundation for providing us with a Greenest City Neighbourhood Small Grant & all the staff & grant coordinators who helped us along the way
• The Parks Board staff & Councillor Deal for helping us sort our our permit for an event that didn't really fit in any of the tick boxes on the forms
• Our bike shop sponsors Mighty Riders, The Bike Doctor, & Tandem Bike Cafe for loaning tents, providing funding & prizes
• The Mount Pleasant Family Centre for loaning us tables & chairs
• Last but definitely not least, my husband & children for putting up with the stress of me going into full festival-planning mode for quite a while before the event.

One last thing:

If you attended the event, I'd love to know what you thought of it. I want this to be an annual event & your feedback will help make it better next year! Please visit the Mount Pleasant Family Biking Festival Feedback survey--it will only take you five minutes. Thank you!

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