The Toronto Bicycling Network Inc.

Chain of Events
July 12, 2017

Last chance for August Long Weekend in Kingston

Cyclon registration closes this coming Monday July 17, so this is your final chance to register for our exciting long weekend in beautiful Kingston on August 4-7. You'll stay in the comfortable residences of Queens University, and enjoy a full weekend of rides and social events. Check out the Cyclon section of the TBN website for everything you need to know about routes, activities, food, and much more. The Kingston area is a great place to ride, combining quiet roads and gentle scenery, island hopping, as well as a few challenging hills. Just ask last year's participants about the Big Hill on the Sydenham Slide, a long, straight wall of asphalt that never seems to end.

Save at MEC

Mountain Equipment Corp is offering TBN members a special discount for one evening only -- Thursday July 20 -- from 6pm to 9pm. Show your valid TBN membership card to get 10 percent off your purchases at the MEC stores in downtown Toronto (400 King Street W) and at the new store in North York (784 Sheppard Avenue E).

Ready to picnic?

Please register now for our summer picnic, a beautiful barbecue lunch at Toogood Pond in Markham on Sunday August 13. You can ride to the picnic from a number of different start points, and then meet your TBN friends at the barbecue. The picnic is free, but we do ask you to register ahead of time so we know how much food to order. Check out the website for more details.

Getting out of town

Enjoy Cyclon in Kingston

Registration closes on July 17 for Cyclon, our annual weekend away from the big city. This year's Cyclon takes place from August 4-7 in Kingston, with comfortable accommodation in Queens University residences and rides to suit everyone. Check the TBN website for more details of the event, including breakfast menus at the residence, an easy walk (or ride) from Kingston's town centre. For a small extra charge, you can add a fridge to your room, to store iced drinks, snacks and other things.

Or take a look at Kingston's website to see how the historic city is celebrating Canada's 150th birthday.

Wending Awenda

Registration is open for our fall camping weekend in Awenda Provincial Park, with cycling along glorious Georgian Bay. Check the website for more details of the event, which takes place on Sept 15-17.

Bruce Peninsula hiking

Join a small group for an Oct 13-15 hiking trip to the Bruce Peninsula. We'll stay in the tiny Fitz Hostel, near Lion's Head and set out from there to enjoy hikes through the fall colours. Registration opens on August 1.

Contact Jeannie at weekendtrips@tbn.ca if you have any suggestions for a trip or if you wish to lead one. Trip leaders have their fees paid by TBN. For more information about Cyclon, check out the Cyclon page on the TBN website, or email cyclon@tbn.ca

Niagara train-to-bike and GO Home Rides

You already know about the "scheduled" weekly TBN events. We have evening rides three nights a week (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday) as well as the Ravine Ride on Tuesdays, Wednesday Wheelies, Freedom Fridays and too many weekend rides to list.

But did you know that TBN offers one-off rides as well? The next such event is this Saturday, July 15, a not-direct 60km ride from Niagara Falls to St Catharines, using the Niagara Express GO train. Check the website to register for this special ride, with planned stops that include a chocolate factory and a farm stand. And there are more downhills than uphills, because you start at the top of the Niagara Escarpment and finish near the bottom. You'll ride through vineyards and orchards, and travel through scenic Niagara on the Lake as well. Check the website for details, and to register.

Also just confirmed are the annual Toronto-Niagara-GO Home rides: Tourists August 19 and Urban Rollers August 26. Ride to Niagara Falls, enjoy a great view of The Falls, dine to your hearts content, and ride the comfortable GO train home. Space on the train is limited, so register soon: Tourists (fast) Urban Rollers (moderate)

Hardcore Hairshirt hustles through hail

A challenging year for Hairshirt this year, with a cold front, stiff west winds and rain and hail at times. A total of 85 riders started the 322km ride, from Mississauga to Niagara Falls and back, and the lead group took just 9 hours and 11 minutes to finish, a new record. Here's what one of those speedy riders had to say about the ride: "Then it started raining, then pouring, then biblical pouring, then hailing. West winds slowed us down, but we stayed strong on Fly Rd... Came in at 9:11 - cutting 22 minutes off the old record. Elated."

As always, check the website for details of all the rides and other events that are coming up, and remember to check back a couple of hours before a ride in case it's changed or cancelled because of poor weather, or other factors beyond our control.

Reminders:

Volunteers of the year

TBN wouldn't exist without its volunteers, and we want to be sure that we're not missing any of them when it comes to our thank you messages for the year. So now's the time to put forward any groups or individuals as our Volunteers of the Year, a nomination that the board will consider in the fall season. Please email Ian Rankin at president@tbn.ca with your suggestions. We will present our award(s) at a volunteers' party in the fall -- there is no task or individual too small to be considered.

TBN has an iPhone app

TBN has a brand new iPhone app, so you can see with a single click what rides are coming up with a single click. Just open up the AppStore and look for "Toronto Bicycling Network." We'll have an Android app soon as well, but for now if you don't have an iPhone, please bookmark our mobile friendly site -- you can reach the mobile site on http://www.tbnapplications.com/mobile/events.php

Free on Fridays?

Our Freedom Friday rides have started, the latest addition to TBN's stable of rides. These early morning rides use start locations within an hour's drive from central Toronto, and aim to let you get home before the weekend traffic builds up.These are tourist class rides -- there's no sweep and no regrouping. But some are on paved trails, so the pace will be slower than for a regular tourist ride.

New coordinator

TBN is looking for a new coordinator for our popular Friday night rides. Contact Dave Mader at touring@tbn.ca if you can help.

RWGPS

1. You must be a member of the club account at RWGPS to take advantage of some of the features outlined below. First, create your own personal account (either a free one, or a paid one) and then go to the club page (https://ridewithgps.com/clubs/27-toronto-bicycling-network), and submit a request to join. Membership gives you access to 300+ club rides, and you can filter those down to find the ride you want.

2. Check this comprehensive summary of how to use the TBN account on RWGPS to load a map and route onto your Garmin or to generate a printable map and cue sheet. As mentioned above, you must be a member of the club account at RWGPS to use these facilities.

3. Visit YouTube for an instructional video on how to create and print a customized map and cue sheet using TBN's RideWithGPS account.

4. And check out this video for details on how to load a TBN ride onto your smartphone -- a useful tool for people who don't own a separate GPS device.

Deals and special offers on bike stuff, tours, rides, and so on

TBN partners offer great deals for our members. Newer entries include a couple of bike shops, special bike tours outside Ontario, charity ride registration discounts, and much more. Please support TBN's great partners. There are so many new businesses out there that its tough to keep up and so If someone can help to keep this list up to date, please contact publicity@tbn.ca.

Remember you must present your valid TBN membership card for a discount at Hoopdriver or at any other TBN discount partner.

Remember to visit the TBN calendar of events to find out more about what's coming up. That little TTC logo below will help alert you to any subway closures, of which there may be many in 2017.

Chain of Events July 12, 2017