As the weather cools and days get shorter, many people are putting their bicycles away for the year. But at B!KE: The Peterborough Community Bike Shop, things are just ramping up for the winter cycling season.
For the seventh year, Peterborough’s community non-profit bike shop is offering Winter Wheels, a program to encourage and support riding through the winter. The program, funded by the City of Peterborough, provides participants with winter riding equipment, information, skills, and opportunities to ride. Broadly, Winter Wheels aims to build a community of winter riders and making winter riding more visible in Peterborough.
“Winter Wheels fits well with the city’s new cycling master plan, which includes encouraging year-round riding as one of its major goals,” says B!KE program manager Jean Greig. Greig and B!KE communications coordinator Ness Pringle state that safety and visibility are just as important to Winter Wheels as getting users out on the city roads.
Applications for the 2023 Winter Wheels program closed in October. As the next round of participants get geared up, GreenUP was encouraged to ask a 2022 participant, “What’s it like to ride your bike in the winter?”
Luckily for us, Green-Up store coordinator Eileen Kimmett was a Winter Wheels participant last year. Her experience offers a taste of just how joyful winter riding can be.
“Have you ever thought about cycling in the winter?” Kimmett asks. “For years, this was the last thing I would do during that season — icy roads, darkness, slush, traffic, all being terrifying obstacles for me. Then again, I always ran in the winter, and in all kinds of winter weather, too. So really, I had no excuse not to try winter cycling.”
With the encouragement of many colleagues, Kimmett submitted an application to B!KE’s 2022 Winter Wheels program and was accepted. Her goal was to commute daily and go for recreational bike rides at least four times a week, far exceeding the program goal to reach one commute a week.
“To be honest, I was nervous about commuting home in the dark after work,” she recalls. “The sun has long since set by the time my work day is over. I had all my gear ready for cycling at night — rechargeable bike lights, a helmet with lights, and reflective clothing. You could see me from far away.”
“But to my surprise, I discovered that I loved cycling in the dark! I did not feel unsafe at all. The level of awareness of my surroundings increased. And in the day, when there was traffic, I felt safe and my studded tires equipped me to move off the road and onto the sidewalk when I needed to.”
During the Winter Wheels program, the staff and volunteers at B!KE provide instruction and guidance on winter handling skills and bike maintenance, and offer many fun events like evening glow rides (cycling with decorative lights) and group rides during the day.
Kimmett says she even commuted on days when it was -20°C out. With proper clothing, she adds, there is a deep sense of accomplishment being out in cold, snowy, and windy weather.
Kimmett, who lives with major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, encourages winter cycling for anyone who finds motivation to be low during the winter season. Feeling energized by getting out for a bike ride, regardless of winter weather challenges, was an unexpected positive for Kimmett that came from participating in B!KE’s Winter Wheels program.
“Many suffer with SAD — seasonal affective disorder,” she notes. “During the winter months, it does get difficult to get motivated to go outside and enjoy the cold weather and the dark hours, let alone cycle to work.”
“Taking part in Winter Wheels ensured that I got outside on a weekly basis. Not only was cycling great physical exercise, it was great mental exercise. I really enjoyed the post-ride feeling of having lots of energy — energy which motivated me to get out cycling again.”
Cycling was not only a way to get to work and back home safely, Kimmett says, but a way to enjoy nature and the community.
“There is something about being in nature during the winter when everything is quiet except for the sounds of the birds and animals. Cycling on the many trails in Peterborough, in the winter, can be very relaxing.”
B!KE: The Peterborough Community Bike Shop, is a longtime partner of GreenUP. No matter what age or stage you are at in riding, B!KE can help you select a bicycle, discuss winter cycling clothing, and will suggest safety tips, trails, and routes that can help you enjoy riding a bike in winter.
For more information about B!KE, visit communitybikeshop.org.
