Move over, MAMILS... Jeff Davies
T
hose Middle Aged Men in Lycra with their
sleek road bikes and fancy, form-fitting togs are sharing Victoria roads with a cycling community that’s increasingly diverse. There are more women on the road, but also more families, more workers heading to and from job sites and offices, and more people making deliveries and hauling loads. Just check out the scene at the end the Johnson Street Bridge in the afternoon rush hour. Three road workers cycle by wearing safety vests. There’s a couple on a bicycle built for two; the woman in front does the hand signals. There’s another woman in patterned tights with a shoulder bag strapped to her carrier who looks like she’s been browsing the boutiques. Then there are other folks in rumpled street clothes who look new to the game of urban cycling. Zoltan Szoges pulls up at the light on a cargo e-bike hauling construction material, a plastic tote, suitcases, a bulging cardboard box fastened with duct tape, and even a cookie tin. “I’m just going to bring some stuff to a friend’s place because we don’t have room to store all our tools at our condo,” he says. “I’ve got some drywall and painting to do so I’m going to give them these tools and go pick up my drywall and painting stuff.” The cargo bike has plenty of carrying capacity: “I’ve had eight and ten foot lengths of lumber strapped to the side. As long as you have the same amount of weight on each side it’s nice and balanced.” Down at the north end of the Switch Bridge on the Galloping Goose Trail, Ryan Harris manages Recyclistas bike shop. In recent years, with the construction of new cycling infrastructure, he’s seeing a lot of changes. “I guess the most obvious one is electric bikes. From what I’m seeing on the trail, it’s getting way more popular. I’ve also noticed a lot more families, because I would imagine feeling safe has a big thing to do with it.” Harris says he’s seeing plumbers on bikes, coffee salesmen, and more bicycle campers stopping in for gear before setting out on overnight expeditions. Head out on the weekend on any of the trails around Victoria and you’ll see families cycling, sometimes with little ones tucked into carriers while older kids
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