In decades past, summer was for bike riding. Iconic movies like E.T. the Extra Terrestrial and nostalgic shows like Stranger Things serve as reminders to yesterday’s children of summers spent endlessly roaming around with friends on a trusty bicycle.
To capture this same feeling for today’s kids, GreenUP launched Summer Ride Club in 2023, a summer program that helps motivate kids and families to bike further and more often over the summer break.
Summer Ride Club is a self-directed program that offers nine open-ended cycling challenges, one for each week of summer.
Participants can register for the club online and pick up a Summer Ride Club passport at one of three locations — the GreenUP office, B!KE the Community Bike Shop, or Ecology Park — to begin recording their adventures. Registrants also receive weekly online newsletters full of cycling how-tos, route ideas, and safety tips.
The passport includes suggested destinations for exploration and is a great way collect kilometres, achievements, and summer bike-riding memories.
One challenge prompts participants to “Bike to a Beach” — but the nearest splash pad, pool, or even a sprinkler at a friend’s house count, too. Another invites riders to “Bike Across a Bridge,” of which there are many to choose from in Peterborough.
“Working through the Summer Ride Club (passport) has put bike riding at the centre of our summer plans and has allowed us to explore new areas of our community,” says Heather, a local parent who has been participating with her two children for three years, adding there’s “an increase in the enthusiasm of the kids to get out and bike, even on hot days.”
“The kids are also more willing to travel longer distances on their bikes in order to complete a challenge. Completing the challenges each week has helped our family to get more time outside, be more physically active, and spend quality time as a family. The kids are also very motivated at the chance to win prizes each summer.”
Participants who submit their completed passports to GreenUP at 378 Aylmer Street North in downtown Peterborough before Thursday, August 28 at 4 p.m. are entered into a draw to win a $500 gift card to any local bike shop.
This grand prize was generously sponsored by Trent Health in Motion, a multidisciplinary clinic offering a wide range of health services.
“As local business owners and active transportation advocates, we’re thrilled to support a program that promotes fun, fitness, and community connection,” says Trent Health in Motion co-owner Michael Williams. “We see firsthand the physical, mental, and social benefits of physical activity, especially when it’s outdoors and shared with others.”
Michael and co-owner Reanna Montopoli are champions for cycling culture in Peterborough. As members of Green Economy Peterborough — a network of businesses who work to reduce their carbon footprint and lead the way to a greener future — their business received a bike-friendly business audit in 2024. This audit revealed ways to be more supportive of clients and staff who arrive at the clinic by bike, on foot, or via public transit, rather than driving a car.
One recommendation resulting from the audit was to support events and initiatives that promote the community benefits of cycling, referred to as “bike culture promotion.” Being daily cycle commuters themselves, Michael and Reanna jumped on board by sponsoring the Peterborough Bicycle Advisory’s Cycling Summit: Safe Streets for Everyone in 2024, and later supported the CMHA HKPR Change the Cycle mental health ride.
When Michael reached out to GreenUP seeking an opportunity to get involved in 2025, Summer Ride Club was a great fit.
“Programs like Summer Ride Club create opportunities for kids to fall in love with biking early, laying the foundation for lifelong healthy habits,” Michael says. “Supporting this initiative aligns beautifully with both our personal values and our clinic’s mission of helping people move more, move better, and feel better.”
Encouraging families to ride together offers an opportunity to build life skills and cycling habits, resulting in more young people cycling into adulthood. In a busy world where time and money for physical activity is at a premium, it can be refreshing to slow down and create intentional memories with family or friends by biking together.
“I would highly recommend adding the program to everyone’s summer plans,” says Heather. “(Summer Ride Club) is accessible to all ages and abilities. It’s a great way to see our city from a new perspective and add some cost-free fun to the summer.”
Summer Ride Club passports are available all summer long at GreenUP (378 Aylmer St. N.), B!KE: The Community Bike Shop (293 George St. N), and GreenUP Ecology Park Native Plant & Tree Nursery (1899 Ashburnham Dr.). For more information and to register for the club, visit greenup.on.ca/summer-ride-club/.
