Another year, another 8550 km, just a little more distance than last year. This is the summary of my riding for this year according to VeloViewer.
Cyclemeter estimates my mileage at a slightly higher total of 8716 km.
Here are a few highlights of my riding year.
January
I participated on the New Year’s Day Ride for the first time.
February
Coldest day of the year ride, 2023 edition. It was a balmy +5°C and there was a huge turnout.
March
After a significant storm, a bunch of us got together to clear snow from the downtown streetcar stops along Dundas. This post on twitter was viewed over 200,000 times!
First ghost bike installation of the year, this time on Upper Middle Rd. in Oakville.
The first TBN Urban Roller ride of the year.
Public consultations on the High Park Movement Strategy, and the westward extension of the Bloor bike lanes. Both of these meetings resulted in changes being made by the end of this year!
April
A quick trip to my old stomping groups, dropping in on a bike jamboree at Michigan State University.
May
Revenge of the Sixth Ride (a sequel to last year’s May the fourth ride).
Visiting Tokyo. First a visit to four bike shops, the highlight being Blue Lug Hatagaya.
Next, some riding around Tokyo, including crossing downtown at rush hour. Here I am with the U Tokyo – U Toronto – McMaster group at the Shibuya Crossing.
Another ghost bike installation, this time in Burlington.
June
The annual Bike to Work Day group commute.
Ride for Brain Health 2023. This time I was a rider, rather than working support. Here’s a picture with some of my colleagues
First ghost bike installation within city limits, this time on Scarlett Rd.
June
Tucked in a half day of mountain biking in Sedona AZ during a trip to the southwest US.
July
Another ghost bike ride, this time in Mississauga for a recent immigrant from India.
Riding to City Hall with Mayor-Elect Olivia Chow. This felt more celebratory than the earlier group commute.
Playing on the runway at Downsview for the second year in a row.
Checking out the weekly Wednesday evening ride run by Dismount Bike Shop.
August
A Full moon ride with the Toronto Brompton Owners Group
A TBN ride in the Niagara area.
Our goldendoodle Lucy, who tolerated coming on bike rides, passed away.
Cannonball 300. I split this 300 km ride into two days.
August 2023 Critical Mass. These critical mass rides had not been happening for several years in Toronto.
My longest ride of the year: the TBN Hairshirt Lite.
September
Yet another ghost bike ride, this time near the airport.
Another week spent at the World Human Powered Speed Challenge.
Ride for Road Safety. NDP MPP Joel Harden rode from Ottawa to Toronto to promote Bill 40 which was VRU legislation.
October
The Big Toronto Bike Ride. This is the annual fundraiser for Cycle Toronto. This year I had the honour of riding my tandem with Daniella Levi-Pinto, a longtime advocate for sight impaired people, particularly with regards to pedestrian safety.
A ghost bike installation in downtown Hamilton.
A ride to celebrate the mostly complete quick build extension of the Bloor bike lanes to Aberfoyle Cres.
November
Pushing back on Premier Doug Ford’s statement that only one cyclist a year would use the Bloor bike lanes in Etobicoke.
A bike rally in support of the Bloor bike lane extension.
Birthday ride 2023. The tradition is to ride my age in km within a week or so of my birthday. This one was a 70 km mostly gravel ride out of Orangeville. To misquote Indiana Jones, I’m not sure if it was the years or the mileage.
World Day for Remembrance of Road Traffic Victims. This year’s event was centred around Etobicoke and Six Points.
December
Our annual ride down Yonge St with Santa. This time we were joined by Councillor Lily Cheng who represents the Willowdale area.
There has been an issue with the metal ramps associated with raised platforms on some of the cycle tracks along Bloor. The blades of the mini snow plows used to clear the lanes can catch on the edges of these ramps, creating a serious hazard.
The good news is that the metal ramps are being replaced with a new design that should not have the same issue.
Here’s hoping that the new design stands up to use over many seasons.
Bike advocate Rob Zaichowski interviewed me for his blog, Two Wheeled Politics. BTW he has a very nice summary of the year on his blog.
Finally, we adopted a new puppy, Loki, and the vet said that we should expose him to many different experiences as soon as possible. Of course that meant getting him comfortable with the cargo bike.
Here we are riding home from Pet Valu and enjoying the fact that we can shop easily by bike because of the bike lanes extended into Bloor West Village.
Overall, a good mix of riding. The other highlights were improvements to bike infrastructure all over the city, with the new sections of the Bloor and College St. bike lanes being particularly outstanding. In terms of my neighbourhood, it was great to see the Bloor bike lanes extended into Etobicoke.
Looking forward to more of the same for 2024. Here’s wishing you all tailwinds and good riding in the New Year!
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