HUB Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows meeting dates in 2015

Here are our meeting dates for 2015. We meet on the second Thursday of each month.

Location: Maple Ridge Library, Alouette Room (note that the location of the January meeting has changed. We will not be able to use the Alouette Room that evening, and will be somewhere in the open space area upstairs, most likely on the side of the library entrance.

Time: 6:45 pm - 8:45 pm.

Jan. 8 (see above) 

Feb. 12

Mar 12

Apr. 9

May 14

June 11

July 9

Aug. 13

Sept. 10

Oct. 8

Nov. 12 Note: Alouette room probably not available for this date. Look for us in the open space area upstairs in the library.

The meeting on Dec. 10 will be canceled.

GETI Fest 2014, Sept. 20: bike decorating, bike rodeo and much more!

GETI Fest 2014 is fast approaching. Click on the link to find out more about all the exciting stuff that's happening this year.

Of course, we're back for the 4th year in a row with our bike decorating and bike rodeo station: 

We're hoping to see lots of kids this year. Bring the kids' bikes so they can make them look great and practice their skills while having loads of fun. We have two small bikes and a few helmets available, so even if you don't bring any bikes, please drop by and use ours.

I'm excited that eProdigy will be at the Station with some electric bikes for people to try out. Electric bikes are getting quite popular, especially in places that have traditionally seen more cycling. Besides regular bikes, electric bikes offer huge potential for communities that want to start transitioning away from our over-reliance on cars onto more sustainable and healthier modes of transportation. In more sprawling communities, like Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, with e-bikes more people will be able to bike for transportation more often, since they can more easily cover longer distances and hills are much easier to tackle. They also enable people with physical limitations to continue to stay active.

The GETI Fest volunteer coordinator is still looking for lots of volunteers. We can use some too! If you volunteer through the volunteer coordinator, a free lunch is provided. It's good to state your preference if you want to volunteer with HUB, but it's kind of nice at the same time to be flexible and have something to do all the time. The numbers of kids at our station may vary throughout the day. I've arranged with the volunteer coordinator that she will send me volunteers as I need them, so hopefully that'll work out best for everyone. Please let Chelsa know if you would like to volunteer: cwebb@mapleridge.ca.

To see the photos I took at last year's GETI Fest, click here.

Bike to Farms ride, Sunday Sept. 7

Join Golden Ears Community Co-op and our HUB committee for our second Bike to Farms ride on Sunday, Sept. 7. We'll be leaving from Big Feast restaurant (11920 227 St., Maple Ridge) at about 1:00 pm, and we should return there by about 4:30 pm.  

The length of the ride is about 15 kms. Here is a map of the route:

This year's participating farms are:

• *NEW* Brookfield Farm, a historic farm owned and operated by Matthew and Deanna Laity. Lots of animals and lots of interesting stories!
• Lorea McCready, who lives on a lovely property overlooking the Golden Ears mountains, where she, with the help of her kids, lovingly and expertly grows, and preserves, an amazing variety of vegetables and fruits to feed her family. 
• Red Barn Plants and Produce. This is where much of the produce is grown that owners Elke and Ken Knechtel sell through their CSA program, as well as at the farm gate and at the Haney Farmers Market.

This year's ride is sponsored by the Maple Ridge Agricultural Advisory Committee.

Donations to the Golden Ears Community Co-op would be much appreciated.

For those of you who were wondering: out of safety concerns we decided not to visit Golden Ears Cheesecrafters this year, but we're hoping to once again include this yummy destination in future Bike to Farms rides once the planned multi-use path along 128th Ave. is completed.

Participants will be required to sign a waiver at the start of the ride. Of course we will all be expected to follow the rules of the road, such as wearing a helmet, riding single file when riding on the road, and pulling over when an emergency vehicle is approaching.

You can view a description and photos of last year's ride here.

My husband and I participated in the Slow Food Cycle Tour in Agassiz a few weeks ago. Same idea, only much bigger! Hundreds of people participate every year. I wrote about it in my last column in the Maple Ridge News.

It would be appreciated if you could register for the Bike to Farms ride in advance, so we have an idea how many people we can expect. Please send me an e-mail at jchow23708@yahoo.ca.

Our meeting dates for the coming year

Good news! We're once again getting a free meeting room in the Maple Ridge Library from the District of Maple Ridge for the coming year! We're still getting the same room: the Alouette Room, which is upstairs.

We have one more meeting on the 3rd Thursday of the month in August, on the 21st. We'll be in Memorial Peace Park for this meeting for our annual "Pizza in the Park". So if anyone is thinking of joining us, please let me know ahead of time so I can make sure we have enough food and drink (my e-mail: jchow23708@yahoo.ca).

Starting in September we're back to the 2nd Thursday of the month, and our meeting schedule will be as follows:

Sept. 11
Oct. 9
Nov. 13
No regular meeting in December
No room available in January; meeting in open space area upstairs
Feb. 12
Mar 12
Apr. 9
May 14
June 11
July 9
Aug. 13

Time: 6:45 to 8:45 pm

July 19: bike tour of the Katzie Slough

Here's a map of the routes we'll be following:

For more information:

• Watershed Watch Salmon Society 
• Katzie Slough restoration project
• HUB cycling column in The News

Earth Day 2014: HUB's Cycle Recycle photos

Here are some photos of our annual Cycle Recycle at Earth Day 2014 in Maple Ridge:

Bikes have all been cleaned and are ready to go

Barry trucked all 16 bikes and the parts box over to Memorial Peace Park - photo: Geoff Hancock

Hmmm...what's this all about? Free bikes? Really?

There are Gerry Pinel of GETI and John McKenzie, who's keeping a close eye on his bike.

Dave takes his job as Chief Mechanic pretty serious... - photo Geoff Hancock

with Geoff as his assistant.

Barry checking some brakes and Dave looking for more work - photo Geoff Hancock

Dave replacing a broken pedal - photo Geoff Hancock

Barry pumped all the tires to perfection - photo Geoff Hancock

Lindy Sisson, Exec. Dir. of the ACT, announcing the winners of the draw - photo Geoff Hancock

The best part of the event: the happy faces! - photo Geoff Hancock

FREE Spring Bike Tune-up Workshop, May 10

At the Haney Farmers Market, HUB volunteers will be teaching basic bike repair and maintenance to whoever wants to learn!

Where: Bandstand, Memorial Peace Park
When: Saturday, May 10
Time: 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

Just drop by!

Update April 28: the first 25 people to arrive by bike at the market will receive a $5 coupon, donated by the Haney Farmers Market!

Cycle Recycle at Earth Day 2014 on April 26

HUB will be back at Maple Ridge Earth Day 2014 with our Cycle Recycle. The Earth Day event happens this year on April 26, from 10 am to 2 pm.

It looks like we may have more than 10 used bikes to give away.  Some kid's bikes, some adult bikes; a great selection.

I just found out today that we'll get a prime location this time in Memorial Peace Park instead of our regular, rather hidden location in front of the Leisure Centre; this time we'll be between the bandstand and the ACT, right in the middle of all the action.

Drop by in the morning to take a look at the bikes we have. Enter a ticket for each bike you're interested in. You can only win one bike though! The draw will be at 1:00 pm, by Lindy Sisson, Executive Director of the ACT. The winners of the bikes will have to be present during the draw; if not, we'll have to draw another ticket.

Some of the bikes may need some minor repairs, so we'll be busy with that in the morning. Good opportunity to learn something about bike mechanics!

We'll borrow the bike engraver from the RCMP Crime Prevention Unit. Good idea to have your name or driver's licence engraved on your bike. If it ever gets stolen, it'll be easy for the RCMP to find its rightful owner. Good reason to bike to Earth Day, if doing it just for the benefit of the environment and your health weren't good enough reasons yet!

To find out more about what's happening at this year's Earth Day, check out the information on the Ridge Meadows Recycle website, and the Celebrate Earth Day in Maple Ridge facebook page.

Change of local HUB Committee meeting place + time

Like other groups, unfortunately we are no longer able to use a Maple Ridge library meeting room for free for our monthly meetings, and this has resulted in a change of dates and meeting venue. Starting in January 2014 we are meeting in the Alouette Room (upstairs) in the library, on the 3rd Thursday of the month, instead of the 2nd Thursday. Our meeting schedule and place has changed as follows:

Jan. 16
Feb. 20
Mar 20 (note: this meeting will take place in the Preschool Room at the Leisure Centre!
Apr. 17
May 15
Jun. 19
Jul. 17
Aug. 21

The meeting time has not changed and is still 6:45 - 8:45 pm.

These are the dates that have been booked so far. As soon as the schedule for the rest of the year becomes available, I will post it on the blog, and as usual I will request the local papers to advertise our meetings in their community calendars.

My hope for the New Year: it would be wonderful to see new (as well as familiar!) faces and lots of ideas and enthusiasm to help make cycling better in our communities. We welcome all who like to bike: young and old, novice and experienced, long-distance and short-distance alike. Cycling benefits all residents, even those who do not cycle. So why not make attending our meetings one of your New Year resolutions!

If you're not able to attend our meetings, but would still like to support HUB in our efforts to make cycling safer, more convenient and pleasant for all ages and abilities, please consider becoming a member.

You can also join our listserv. We send out e-mails about anything of interest to local cyclists, such as open houses by the District of Maple Ridge or the City of Pitt Meadows, group rides that we organize, etc. You can expect on average about 2 e-mails per month, perhaps a bit more in the summer, and less in the winter months. If you would like to receive our e-mails, please send me an e-mail at jchow23708@yahoo.ca. Of course you can always send me an e-mail with any suggestions or comments.

Column The News: Fewer young people are buying cars

By Jackie Chow - Maple Ridge News
Published: September 12, 2013

Something interesting that I read about this week: according to a survey done in the Netherlands earlier this year, nine per cent of respondents got rid of their cars last year to save money, to cope with the effects of the financial crisis.

Like in many other countries, the car is a bit of a status symbol in the Netherlands, so I think this is quite amazing. But a car is such a money guzzler, and not having one makes a huge difference to your pocketbook. Isn’t it nice if you have options other than the car, like the Dutch do?

Read more...

GETI Fest 2013: September 21

Join us for GETI Fest 2013!

People in Motion parade at GETI Fest 2012

GETI stands for "Golden Ears Transition Initiative", which is an umbrella organization for various groups in the community that work together to create a more resilient, vibrant, supportive and caring community, to help us meet our needs for food, energy, shelter and sustainable livelihoods, while reducing our carbon footprint and our dependence on fossil fuels. HUB is one of GETI's Action Groups. You can find out more about GETI on the GETI website. 

Read more about GETI Fest...

HUB input on Transportation Plan Update

Click here to view HUB's local committee's input on the Maple Ridge Transportation Plan Update.

Bike to School/Work Week

Just wanted to let you know about some upcoming events:

Bike to School Week: May 27 -  31

Here's a great opportunity for your kids to get active, and have fun at the same time! Which kid wouldn't prefer to bike to school rather than be driven to school by his parents! Better yet is biking to school with friends!

HUB and HASTe (Hub for Active School Travel) are promoting Bike to School Week. A parent or teacher - and for secondary schools also students - can sign up to be a team leader for their school, and HUB will send you an information kit with posters, stickers and safety and other tips. (Secondary students can also sign up individually: see Bike to Work Week below).

Our local chapter would also like to provide some support (perhaps a "snack station"?), so if you decide to register your school, please also contact me at jchow23708@yahoo.ca.

Bike to Work Week: May 27 - June 2

Check out how it works, register for Bike to Work Week and log your miles on HUB's Bike to Work website and find the locations of the celebration stations, tips and prizes to be won.

Discovery Bike Ride to "Goodbye Chums"

Four of us - Dave, Barb, Tom and myself - braved the rain and cold today to ride to the Goodbye Chums event and the Grand Opening of the new Bell Irving Fish Hatchery on 256th Street. We started off ready to burn off some calories after the annual volunteer pancake breakfast at Red Robin, served by Mayor Daykin and his crew. We followed the 123 route up to 240th Street. Instead of continuing along Dewdney, we rode along the quiet, scenic back roads and down 256th to the hatchery. Great route, even though Dave was complaining that it wasn't exactly a direct route. It did add several more kms, but if you're not in a hurry it certainly beats busy Dewdney Trunk Road. It was getting kind of cold once the rain started soaking through towards the end, but there was life-saving coffee and timbits thanks to Timmy's once we got there, and after the enthusiastic presentations also great food, courtesy of Panago.

You kind of take it for granted that you can always go to the supermarket and find some tasty salmon for a special dinner. The passionate people at KEEPS (Kanaka Education and Environmental Partnership Society) are doing a really important job of helping to keep our rivers and oceans well stocked with salmon and they deserve a big thank you. I thought it was really neat for the kids to take the small salmon fry down to the river and release them, knowing that in a few years they'll be back to spawn and complete the cycle of life.

Only 2 photos to show of the ride:

Ready to start our ride

At the hatchery
Photo: Ross Davies of KEEPS

Earth Day 2013 Cycle Recycle

Thanks to the donors of the bikes: individuals, Maple Ridge Cycle and Ridge Meadows Recycling Society, and above all our volunteers Barry, Dave and Geoff for making this year's Earth Day Cycle Recycle once again a huge success! We had a record 15 bikes to give away, and they all found happy new owners!

Here are some pics of our Cycle Recycle:

Getting ready for the crowds

The bikes were pretty good quality this year

Lots of interest

Alex Pope dropped by to proudly show off his new vintage ride (no, he didn't get it from our Cycle Recycle!)
Photo: Ross Davies of KEEPS

Cycling: Just try shopping on your bike

The latest column in the Maple Ridge News by our Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Committee of HUB: Your Cycling Connection:

Published: February 22, 2013 8:00 AM

Our HUB members are quite excited about the wonderful news that we’re finally going to have a safe cycling connection along Lougheed Highway between 216th and Laity streets, now that funding has been made available by the province, the district and TransLink. The separated path is expected to be complete by the summer.

Another improvement for cyclists is Pitt Meadows’ safe multi-use path connecting Lougheed Hwy. via Ferry Slip Road to the dike system, which is ready to be used. It’s no longer necessary to bike alongside big trucks on Kennedy Road.

We’re often being told to shop local, to support local businesses –meaning small, locally owned businesses, many of which are having a hard time competing with big chain stores.

Our reliance on the car for everything we do changed the way we shop.

Read more...

Spend on cycling close to home

Latest HUB column in Maple Ridge News:

Published: December 13, 2012
We’ve been warned multiple times in recent months that Canadian household spending is causing us to be ever deeper in debt. But would that warning have any effect on this year’s spending by Canadian families? According to a Bank of Montreal survey, holiday shoppers are planning to spend on average $674 on gifts this year, up from $583 last year. And the average Canadian is expected to spend more than $85 on booze in December, also according to a Bank of Montreal report. Canada is among the wealthiest countries in the world, so it’s probably not a surprise.

According to Statistics Canada, Canadian households spend on average about $11,000 on transportation.

About $10,000 of that is spent on private transportation: cars, vans and trucks, including their operating cost.

Read more...

GETI Fest 2012 photos

GETI Fest 2012 was a lot of fun. According to estimates by the Haney Farmers Market, the number of visitors must have been close to 3000. Every year it gets bigger and better!

The purpose of GETI Fest is to raise awareness of the need to transition to a less fossil-fuel dependent economy, and cycling is one of the many ways for people to help themselves and their communities to do this. HUB is one of the many Action Groups of GETI, and as such we were involved in this 2nd annual GETI Fest.

At this year's GETI Fest, as a cycling advocacy group our HUB Committee was quite excited to join the Lougheed Area Girl Guides in celebrating the Day of the Girl. Women only comprise 25% of the cycling population in North America, and HUB would like to see more cycling infrastructure that will entice more women to start cycling for transportation. Women generally are more risk-averse than men, and feel more comfortable on separated facilities, away from car traffic.

We did another Cycle Recycle (free used bike give-away). 10 Bikes - some donated and some rescued from a sad fate of ending up as scrap metal at the Recycle Depot - got new owners. Some of the bikes that are dropped off at the Depot still have quite a bit of useful life left in them, and it makes one more aware of how wasteful our society has become. Dave and Barry taught some basic bike repair skills before the winners took home their bikes.

We also had a bike decorating station, and did a bike rodeo. I was quite happy about the numbers of bikes we saw. I didn't count them, but I think we probably had about 15 kids with their bicycles decorating their bikes and/or doing the rodeo. Next year we'll have even more!

We had an absolute hoot with the (non-fossil-fuel powered) People-in-Motion parade. A large group of kids on their bikes were at the head of the parade, following the District's electric truck. The kids were clearly in control, commandeering the driver of the truck, Director of Operations Russ Carmichael, to go "FASTER!! FASTER!!". He kindly obliged and sped up a little bit, but afterwards I heard that the poor Raging Grannies at the tail end of the parade were rather out of breath trying to keep up. Sorry, Grannies!

Here are some of the photos that we took:

practicing cycling skills, with the help of Girl Guide volunteers and some useful props

Slow Race

Lots of bikes in the People-in-Motion Parade!

HUB gave away 10 bicycles at our Cycle Recycle

HUB Bicycle Valet

MP Marc Dalton and Mayor Ernie Daykin performed the draw for the Cycle Recycle 

Click here for more photos.

GETI Fest 2012

We hope you'll join us for the 2nd annual GETI Fest, in Memorial Peace Park, on Sat. Sept. 22 (10 a.m. – 3 p.m.).

For those of you who don't know about GETI, it's an organization through which all individuals and groups in the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows (Golden Ears) area can work together in a co-ordinated fashion to create a resilient, vibrant, supportive and caring community. This is achieved through local Action Groups that help us meet our needs for food, energy, shelter, sustainable livelihoods and much more, while reducing our carbon footprint and our dependence on fossil fuels. Our local HUB Chapter is one of the many Action Groups of GETI.

Apart from the celebration at GETI Fest of GETI's achievements so far, our HUB Committee is especially excited this year to join the Lougheed Area Girl Guides in celebrating the Day of the Girl at GETI Fest. In order to overcome the many challenges that our world faces today, it’s important to recognize the important role girls and women can play in changing our world for the better. 

If you think cycling has nothing to do with women's emancipation, think again. In the late 19th and early 20th century, cycling has done a lot to give women more freedom and make them more independent. Here's a quote from women's rights activist Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906):"Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. It gives women a feeling of freedom and self-reliance. I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a wheel…the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood.” 

Presently, only about 25% of cyclists in North America are female. The "cycling infrastructure" that has been built here since mid last century or so has consisted of at the most some white lines and bike symbols on our roads, and it obviously hasn't appealed very much to most women, who generally are not looking for the adrenaline rush that you feel when competing with cars for space on the road. Most women prefer a more peaceful experience, away from car traffic. In countries where cycling is perceived to be safer, such as in the Netherlands, the number of women who bike is much higher. In the Netherlands about 55% of cyclists are women. Many of them own a car, but choose to use their bikes, because it's an enjoyable, convenient, fun and healthy way to get around.

More separated and safer infrastructure in our neck of the woods will give today's Girl Guides and women of all ages the ability to make that choice as well.

HUB's share in the activities at GETI Fest:

 9:30 - 10:30 Cycle Recycle (free bike give-away) #1*
10:00 -  3:00 Artisan Fair / Action Groups / free bike parking / food
10:00 - 11:30 Bike decorating
11:00 - 12:00 Parade
12:30 -  1:30 Cycle Recycle #2*
12:00 -  2:00 Bike rodeo (we have only a few bikes available for those kids who don't have their own bike with them)

*Cycle Recycle #1: tickets to be entered by 10:00. Draw between 10:00 and 10:30;
Cycle Recycle #2: tickets to be entered by 1:00. Draw between 1:00 and 1:30

Events like GETI Fest can only happen with the help of many volunteers. If you would like to help out, please send me an e-mail (jchow23708@yahoo.ca).

Looking forward to seeing you at GETI Fest!