After living in Regina for more than a decade, Victoria Flores says she’s found places she never knew about while cycling, and invites others to do the same.
“Last year, when I was biking by myself, I liked to put on a podcast and go for a really long rides,” said Flores, organizer of Explore Regina on a Bike. “And during those times I realized how far bike paths go and I kept going. And the next thing I know, I’m at the end of the city. And in that ride, I saw so many really beautiful green spaces, picnic areas, all kinds of places that I had no idea were there. And I’ve lived in Regina for the past 14 years.”
Explore Regina on a Bike, an initiative that helps people who cycle explore various parts of the city, was launched this summer after Flores shared the idea with Bike Regina.
Their first ride was to explore Wascana Lake on the university side, Flores said. Then, they explored bike paths around the city in the Les Sherman Park area.
“Our next ride will be a nature ride so we’d focus on more nature areas in the city and that will be around AE Wilson Park.
“And then our last ride in September … we’re going to explore more of the east end of the city and end up watching the sunset from the Douglas Park Hill because we have amazing sunsets in Regina. It’s just a great time for that.”
She says the treks are open to everyone.
“This is open to anybody in the community that would like to join,” said Flores. “Basically, if you check out our events calendar on our website, you see when the rides are. So, the next one is Aug. 17 it’s a Wednesday I believe, just join us and come along with us.”
According to Flores the rides are about an hour long, averaging four to six kilometres at a time. They end where they start and there are stops along the way at points of interest to learn different things about the area they are exploring.
She says the rides can help people pick up a new activity and find new biking paths in the city that they never knew of. Group rides also support meeting new people and making new friends.
Other advantages include a way to stay active, and a faster method of transportation than walking or running, Flores said.
The ideal is for everyone to have a bike, but the initiative accommodates those who do not.
“We have Rides by Marv’s. They reached out to us earlier asking if we would like to take some bikes and the timing was just perfect,” said Flores. “We were able to get some bikes and donate those to our youth program participants who didn’t have a bike yet.”
For more information on this initiative and the next rides check out their website www.rods.sk.ca/events.
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