Great Big Pedal participants make their way down a trail along the South Saskatchewan River near the old Medicine Hat Arena in this July 2019 fie photo. This year's event is set for Monday and will kick off Bike Week.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
lthomson@medicinehatnews.com
The Great Big Pedal, hosted by Bike Medicine Hat and Tourism Medicine Hat on Monday, will mark the kick-off event for Bike Week.
“The Great Big Pedal is going to be on July 19 from Kin Coulee Park at 6:30 (p.m.),” said Shelley Acheson, event director of Bike Medicine Hat.
The event is free of charge but Acheson urges participants to register online so they can fill out the waiver. You can find the registration through the bikemedicinehat.com event page or on EventBrite. All participants should wear a helmet for safety.
Riders will meet at the Kin Coulee Park Bandshell for a 6:30 pm departure.
“We’re going to have something for everyone with a short route, a medium route and a longer route,” Acheson explained. “So all ages and abilities are welcome to come and ride with us.”
Mo Cranker of Tourism Medicine Hat says, “There’s a sliding scale of difficulty. The short one is for people who may have small kids who are learning to bike and then the long one will be for the hardcore cyclist or for people who just want more of a challenge.”
After the ride, participants are welcome to stay in the park for a gathering, complete with food trucks, a $5 voucher for each person to spend at any of the trucks and some prizes as well.
The ride kicks off Bike Week, during which Acheson says you can follow the social media accounts for Tourism Medicine Hat and Bike Medicine Hat to play bike bingo.
“(We want to) get people thinking about commuting to their destinations by bike instead of by car always,” said Acheson. “So just getting out and enjoying the different aspects of our city by bike instead of by car.”
Another free event on July 23 will be a film shown at the Esplanade in the Black Box Theatre.
“That is on our website to sign up for as well, as there’s only 170 seats available,” said Acheson. “It’s going to be for everybody. Come enjoy a family friendly bicycle film called ‘Bike Love’ from the Film by Bike Festival.”
Cranker says The Great Big Paddle, another recent city event co-hosted by Tourism Medicine Hat, was the largest it has ever been, with more than 200 participants.
“What we’re hoping is (The Great Big Pedal) is just as big and great and that people come out and celebrate biking in the city,” said Cranker. “We have 115 kilometres of trail in the city and they’re worth celebrating. They’re great to bike on.”
