The spring thaw means bikes escape from the garages, basements and sheds of Yorkton families, ready to hit the road. After a winter without wheels, kids might need a reminder of how to ride safely, and their bikes might need a check-up to get back to road-worthiness. The Community Bike Rodeo was an opportunity to get kids back on their bikes and refreshed on how to ride safely.
Sheila Hryniuk, chair of the Yorkton Active Transportation Collaborative, said that the main priority was to educate and create awareness around bike safety. The goal was to create a family event, so parents can help their children ride safely and remind them of the rules of the road.
There were several attractions through the evening. Kids had their bikes inspected by members of the RCMP and Yorkton Fire Protective Services. The Yorkton Film Festival screened a short film about bike safety. The Yorkton Co-op donated food and drinks for the fire department to barbecue for families. The RCMP also set up the bike rodeo course. Sport Chek sponsored prizes, such as locks and helmets.
There have been bike rodeos in the school system for a number of years, but this is the first community rodeo. Hryniuk explained that since the school program focuses on grade 3, their goal with the community rodeo was to reach kids that don’t take part in the school program, such as very young kids which have not gone through the program, or older kids that might need a refresher of the rules of the road and how to ride safely.
The goal is also to include parents, so they can help their kids ride safely.
This is their first rodeo, and they plan on making it an annual event.
