November 2011
Hello Cycling Friend,
A Decade on a Roll
We're pleased to announce our 2012 schedule for cross-country events and the Cycle Canada Series. We know that people plan well ahead for these classic rides, so our priority is to set that part of the schedule first. We'll have information on our one-week trips over the next couple of weeks.
Our trips take us across the country every year and as we advance into the second decade of a new century we see more and more people traveling by bicycle. They are commuting, riding for fitness, running errands and going on cycling vacations. It makes sense to us that cycling is on a roll. People are more health conscious these days, especially the baby boomer generation. Gridlock and high oil prices have cooled the love affair with the car. It seems clear that people want more liveable cities and towns, places that make sense for travel by bike.
For Cycle Canada, the new decade so far has shown unprecedented growth. The trend began in 2010 with the launch of an ambitious new tour, Tour Arctic. In 2011, our second group of two-wheeled explorers made their way by bicycle to the Arctic Ocean. Travel to the far North by bike was not easily contemplated in the last century. It now is firmly established as a goal for touring cyclists. Thanks to all who joined us in 2011 to discover Canada. We look forward to welcoming returning and new cyclists in 2012. Join us to see the country at a human scale. Here is the line-up for the expedition trips, listed in order of starting dates:
Tour TransCanada – Orientation in Vancouver on June 14. Riders need to arrive on the 13th and the ride package includes accommodation that night. The formal closing ceremony in St. John’s, Newfoundland, will be on August 24. It is a 72-day schedule with 31 nights indoor accommodation and 41 nights camping. The package fee is $7,975 per person. On this ride we have staff-prepared and restaurant meals. The schedule has 11 rest days, all in major cities and with indoor accommodation.
Tour du Canada – Orientation in Vancouver on June 21. Riders need to arrive on the 20th and the ride package includes accommodation that night. The formal closing ceremony in St. John’s, Newfoundland, will be on August 31. It is a 72-day schedule with 62 nights camping and 10 nights indoor accommodation. The package fee is $4,150 per person. Tour du Canada is structured as a co-operative event and riders take turns preparing meals as members of galley crews. The schedule has 11 rest days and this classic ride explores historic Canadian routes.
Tour Pacific – Orientation in Vancouver on June 26. The only activity on that day is an afternoon orientation session and the first riding day is June 27. The ride concludes with a group dinner in Calgary on July 11, the final riding day. It is a 15-day schedule with 13 nights camping and three nights indoor accommodation. The package fee is $1,450. On this ride we have staff-prepared meals where we stay at campgrounds. Rest days are at Kamloops and Jasper. The Tour Pacific route includes the world-renowned Icefields Parkway.
Tour Arctic – Orientation in Vancouver on the afternoon of July 17. The first riding day is July 18. The ride concludes with a group dinner in Inuvik, NWT, on August 10, the final riding day on the Dempster Highway. It is a 24-day schedule with 18 nights camping and seven nights indoor accommodation. The package fee is $3,995 per person. On this ride we have staff-prepared and restaurant meals. The package fee includes ferry transportation from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert through the spectacular scenery of the Inside Passage and the equally scenic ferry trip from Prince Rupert to Skagway, Alaska. Rest days are at Whitehorse and Dawson in the Yukon.
Tour Atlantic – Orientation in Halifax on August 13. The only activity on that day is an afternoon orientation session and the first riding day is August 14. Our final ride segment is the spectacular and challenging Cabot Trail. We’ll celebrate the achievement at a lobster dinner in Baddeck, Cape Breton, on August 27, the final riding day. (Alternatives available for those with shellfish issues.) It is a 14-day schedule with 11 nights camping and four nights indoor accommodation. The package fee is $1,450. On this ride we have staff-prepared meals. Rest days are at Saint John, New Brunswick, and Charlottetown, PEI.
For more information about these rides, please visit CycleCanada or call us at 1-800-214-7798.
Setting Records
In 2011 we introduced two new tours, Tour Vert and Tour TransCanada to help more cyclists discover Canada. This past season year saw our largest number of tours, the greatest number of kilometres and the greatest number of riders in our 23 year history. And a record this year, with Isabel Martindale completing her cross-Canada ride at a youthful 73. Our demographics in '11 were as broad as in previous years — late teens to early 70s. From expressions of interest, we expect an even broader range in 2012. A trend? That's the plan — to help more people explore Canada by bicycle.
If you like stats, we encourage you to join CKAP as a way of keeping track of your annual distances. When you join CKAP you are asked for your club affiliation and you can count memberships in clubs towards a club prize, so please be sure to include Tour du Canada in that list.
If you haven't joined Tour du Canada yet, you can do so by completing the Tour du Canada membership form.
And please remember the Tour du Canada Bursary Fund. We welcome your interest in helping a young person discover Canada by bicycle.
Facebook Needs Cyclists
Like us at Cycle Canada! We'll be posting photos and trip highlights throughout the spring and summer.
