March 20, 2025 • 40 mins
Find out how the simple act of feeling wind in your hair can transform a day of isolation into one filled with joy, connection, and even awakened memories.
Jennifer Reid, Co-Founder and Director of Vancouver Cycling Without Age Society, joins us to explore how specialized three-wheeled 'trishaws' are creating magical moments for seniors across British Columbia. What began with one bike named after Jennifer's mother has grown into a fleet of six trishaws serving 12 partner facilities throughout Vancouver, and chapters operating in 14 communities across BC. The program, which started in Denmark, now thrives in 41 countries with 3,500 chapters worldwide.
To learn how you can help bring the wind-in-your-hair experience to seniors in Vancouver and throughout British Columbia visit
cyclingwithoutage.ca/vancouver
facebook.com/cwavancouver
instagram.com/cwa_vancouver
linkedin.com/company/cwavancouver
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Contact Jennifer Reid at jenreid@cyclingwithoutage.ca
***********************************************
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Peter Ladner (00:07):
Welcome to Bike Sense, the BC Cycling
Coalition's podcast, where wetalk about all things related to
active transportation advocacyin BC.
I'm your host, peter Ladner,chair of the Board of the BC
Cycling Coalition.
I hope you enjoy the show.
(00:40):
I first found out about CyclingWithout Age when my friend Stu
his wife was very ill and facingthe end of her days and he was
taking her out on bike rides ina tri-shaw.
She was unable to move on herown but she could sit in the
front of this tri-shaw and beout in the outdoors riding
around in Vancouver with thewind in her hair, and she and he
(01:01):
both loved doing this.
And then I found out there's awhole organization of people who
do this on a regular basis.
So I brought in today to talkto us about it, jennifer Reed,
who's the co-founder anddirector of the Vancouver
Cycling Without Age Society,which is one of 14 societies
like this around BC, and indeedthere are many in Canada and
(01:23):
countries around the world.
This around BC, and indeedthere are many in the world.
Jennifer, welcome to thepodcast.
Could you describe to me amoment that sticks in your mind
when everything was going rightwith one of your rides.
Jennifer Reid (01:42):
Well, we established vancouver cycling
without age society in 2018, soit would have been 2019, just
before the pandemic.
I was taking a gentleman andhis wife, Harold and Maureen,
for a trishaw ride and, um thecare home where harold lived, uh
called me and asked if we couldlift because he no longer
(02:05):
walked.
So we had to use a special lift.
That is a machine that helpspick them up, put them in the
tri-shaw.
Maureen sat beside him.
We went for a lovely ride alongthe seawall here in Falls Creek
and we got to where one of themarinas was and I pulled over
and sort of I don't know, theywere enjoying the scenery, they
were holding hands, it wasreally lovely, nice big blanket
(02:26):
and cozy.
And so I said, hey, how did youtwo meet anyway?
And Maureen sort of looked upat me, cause we sit behind them
on the bike, and she looked atme.
She kind of winked and said,hey, let's see if he says
anything.
Harold suffered dementia and wedidn't know if he was going to
communicate or not.
And he slapped his leg and said, yeah, that's a great story.
(02:47):
And off he went to talk abouttheir first date, which
precipitated a conversationabout White Rock and parking
tickets and pubs and reallygreat.
And I turned and looked atMaureen and she had tears
running down her face and shewas obviously very, very happy.
And he, from that point on hejust kept talking.
And so I learned that he was avery famous hairdresser in
(03:08):
Karesdale.
He did all the hair for all themovie stars that came to town
that were on movie sets way backwhen.
And yeah, he was just a lovelyguy.
I think what really impacted mewhen I took them back to the
care home was the care homestaff said what did you do to
this guy?
And I said what do you mean?
And they said he came in, hewas hungry, he hadn't eaten in
(03:30):
days and he slept well thatnight.
His wife was super happy and Isaid I think it was just the
fresh air and feeling theconnection to community and and
being feeling alive and uh, andit just brought great joy to all
of us and so that's the mostmemorable one.
We get a lot of couples thatlive in care homes together and
(03:52):
they love to sit together andhold hands and cozy up with a
blanket and talk about stories.
So many many stories to tellyou, peter.
Peter Ladner (04:02):
So what is a tri-shaw and how does it work
when you're in it?
Jennifer Reid (04:06):
So a tri-shaw is a three-wheel bike.
Two passengers sit in the frontand the person riding the bike,
which we call a pilot, isbehind and they get pushed
around.
So it's a bit different than arickshaw, which would have the
person pedaling in front ratherthan behind, and so that way the
people in the front get all ofthe scenery.
They see everything in front ofthem.
(04:27):
It's purposely designed Trishaw.
They come from Copenhagen sothey're imported.
I think the people in Denmarkknow how to make bikes and
they've got these blankets.
They have little hoods, they'revery safe and very comfortable.
They're also electric assist,so as we're pedaling around, we
(04:48):
do get a little bit of powerassist when we're on a hill
climb and yeah, so they're agreat bike.
So how the care homes gotinvolved I guess I'm going to
take you right back to thebeginning is my mom was in
long-term care and at the time Iwould go and drive to the care
home and take her for a drive inthe car, and that then
(05:12):
precipitated a whole bunch ofother seniors standing at the
window gazing out longingly,saying take me with you.
So I got a van and I startedtaking people for rides and I
just realized that being insidea machine or inside a vehicle
wasn't the same experience asbeing outside, and it was during
that time.
(05:32):
A friend of mine said hey, jen,have you heard about cycling
without age?
And I said no, I hadn't.
So did the research, signed upto be one of the chapters here
in British Columbia and gotapproval to do that, and then we
started fundraising for ourfirst bike.
During that time of fundraisingfor the first bike, I thought I
better go talk to some carehomes and see what they think of
(05:54):
this idea about us riding upand taking people outside for a
bike ride.
And every care home that Ichatted with was on board with
the idea.
What they really liked aboutthe idea was the conversation
that happens with people sittingside by side, and also the
fresh air, and also the idea ofa bit of respite for the
(06:14):
caregivers, the families, andthe families sometimes come with
us and it allows them thefamilies, not to have to focus
on, you know, feeding ortoileting or any of those other
things.
They just get to sit and enjoythe experience with their loved
ones.
So between the research that Idid early on with the care homes
, active adult daycare centers,I also spent some time with the
(06:37):
city of Vancouver asking aboutthe bike lanes and how they
would feel about our tri-shaws,because they're quite wide.
Peter Ladner (06:43):
When you say they're quite wide, are they
wider than a cargo bike?
Jennifer Reid (06:48):
Yes, because two people are sitting side by side
with them.
So envision the bike lanes herearound Falls Creek or around
Stanley Park.
Well, first of all, we don't goaround the Stanley Park seawall
.
Peter Ladner (06:59):
Because of those barriers.
Jennifer Reid (07:00):
The barriers correct.
Where we actually spend ourtime in Stanley Park is inside
the park around the lake.
They love the nature and theoutdoors.
So Beaver Lake.
Having said that, the City ofVancouver and the Park Board at
the time, back in 2018, kind ofwent what was coming into play
(07:28):
with bikes and scooters andother things.
Once they understood that ourbikes are electric assist and
not a sort of throttle drive,then we wanted to go eight to 10
kilometers.
So we do not want to go fast,we want to go slow.
And then they understood ourcargo, which are seniors and the
ability to get seniors out andenjoying fresh air and back in
community.
They were very supportive andto the point where they actually
(07:49):
helped us financially with oneof the first bikes that we got.
Peter Ladner (07:55):
Have you heard from other chapters in BC how
they're managing these issueswhen they don't have protected
bike lanes?
Jennifer Reid (08:05):
Vancouver is probably in my experience of
talking with the other chaptersaround British Columbia which,
by the way, they're in somepretty amazing places like
Fernie and Rosland and Trail andPenticton I'm pointing out the
ones that are quite hilly butalso in Kamloops and Vernon and
other places so those areasaren't as well structured with
(08:26):
bike lanes yet I would sayVancouver is.
So I think our tri-shaws helpcreate that conversation in
their communities, which I thinkis a really lovely combination
of recreational senior activityand cycling.
I think almost every seniorthat we've taken has ridden a
bike at some point in their lifeand so they understand that
(08:49):
feeling and that freedom thatyou get when you're on a bike.
Peter Ladner (08:53):
I love the fact that this runs counter to the
narrative that you've got to besome sort of sort of very fit
young man to be a cyclist.
This is showing how cycling canserve people of all ages and
all abilities and alldisabilities.
So talk about the finances, Jen.
You mentioned that the cityhelped you out with purchasing
(09:14):
your first bike.
These bikes you mentioned aremade in Denmark.
How much do they cost?
Jennifer Reid (09:19):
They're about 25 grand to purchase it, to get it
here and also to insure it andstore it.
So we also add a little bit ofannual bike maintenance that we
need.
On the trishaws.
You can well imagine that wehave a lot of flat tires, and
brake pads are a big deal whenyou're carrying up to 500 pounds
of weight, um.
(09:40):
So that's that's the hardcorecost for us is 25 grand, um.
The other high cost for us, uh,between the bike, the insurance,
the operations, there isstorage because they are so
large.
We're very, very grateful thatwe have a partner here in
Vancouver right now that, uh, wepay rent to store our bikes,
but we are looking for otherstorage areas around the city,
(10:03):
primarily in for other storageareas around the city, primarily
in the west side or the westend and also the east side.
It would just make it a lotquicker and a lot easier for us
to go from a hub somewherewithin a community out to where
those senior care homes andparks and recreation areas are.
So, yeah, that's going to meanthat it's a lease or some rent
(10:27):
or a really great partner thatwants to get behind the
initiative that we got going on.
Peter Ladner (10:32):
Do the people who take these rides pay anything?
Jennifer Reid (10:38):
So we have service agreements with the care
homes and the adult daycarecenters, just as the families
would pay for their loved one togo on a bus ride around Stanley
Park.
It's very nominal what they pay, but the agreement is there as
a contribution to ourorganization to keep our bikes
on the road through things likeinsurance and maintenance and
(10:58):
those types of things.
So there's two major programs.
One is our partner programwhich includes those care homes,
community centers, neighborhoodhouses, adult daycare centers,
wherever you're going to findseniors hanging out.
That's where we kind of hangout into running this program.
(11:25):
I was getting phone calls fromfamily members who were looking
after their loved ones at home,not in a long-term care home,
and they said, hey, how do webring our loved one to you to
take them for a ride?
Like we can put them in a carand bring them to Jericho Beach,
for example, could you takethem for a ride?
And we said absolutely so.
We built out a communityprogram which just allows us to
have a scheduled location,pickup point and time so people
(11:48):
can join us, and that's bydonation.
So most of the folks justfigure out what a nominal fee is
.
That helps us with ouroperations.
Peter Ladner (11:58):
To give us some idea of the scale of this, could
you tell me how many bikes youhave and how many bikes they
have in, I don't know, fernie orKamloops or somewhere?
By comparison, how big is thisoperation?
Jennifer Reid (12:11):
Well, worldwide, I can tell you that it's in 41
countries around the world in3,500 chapters.
So a chapter is like us.
We're the Vancouver chapter,no-transcript the scotland
(12:52):
chapter, who organized thatrelationship with the government
to understand how they do it.
And here in british columbia weare talking with our own
government to see what thatmight look like so we can expand
our operations as well.
But, but to answer yourquestion, in 2018, we started
with one tri-shaw.
It's named after my mom, sinceshe died, so it's called the
Jill.
(13:14):
And then we are now at sixtri-shaws and we have 12
partners that we schedule on aweekly basis and community ride
program.
We haven't set it up yet for2025, but usually it's a weekly.
We pop up somewhere usually theWest end or the West side or
trout Lake or somewhere in thosedifferent areas to uh.
(13:37):
We usually connect ourself to asenior community activity going
on so we can be there tosupport, to support the seniors
that just can't walk anymore.
Sometimes it's fun just to showup at the farmer's markets and
spend some time, you know,hanging out there as well, so
there's always a conversationhappening.
(13:57):
It takes us a lot longer thanthe average person to get
through a farmer's market.
Peter Ladner (14:01):
So you bring your, your riders to the pilots,
bring the riders to the farmer'smarket and then just chat with
people, or you just bring theempty tri-shaw to show them how
it works.
Jennifer Reid (14:12):
Yeah, so, um, during the pandemic it was, it
was more people showing up there.
I mean, once we were clear toride again in 2021, um, we,
riley park was the main leadwhere we would go and people
would meet us there.
They were already going to goto the farmer's market anyway
and I just said, well, hey,bring your senior loved one,
(14:32):
parent, grandparent, whatever,and we'll just go slow, you know
, through the booths and chatwith people, and it just made a
nice conversation and a feelingof connection to the community
that they're in conversation anda feeling of connection to the
community that they're in.
Peter Ladner (14:50):
So these are clearly different than the rides
that most of us do every dayfor recreation or commuting or
whatever.
Could you describe some of thefeatures of these rides?
How are they different?
Jennifer Reid (14:57):
we go slow.
I would say that's the biggestpiece when we're training people
.
Right now, we're in the middleof training 30 new pilots for
the 2025 season and the biggestaha, I think, of everybody is
first of all, you're on threewheels, so they're tippy right.
You have to go slow because youcan't take a corner like you
would on a two wheel bike, um,but I would say that, uh, the
(15:20):
weight and it's the, it's theability to um, command the
tri-shaw in a way where you'reusing the power application to
your advantage and not thinking,oh well, I'll just stand up and
, you know, use my body power tomake it work.
Almost everybody realizes prettyquickly you can't stand up and
ride on these things.
You have to sit, and it'sreally about you getting the
(15:45):
understanding of the mechanicsin a way that that the bike is
working with you because it'sall when you put, you know, a
few hundred pounds of weight init, it's, it's an experience,
right.
So we learned that it takes along time.
You know our training programeach new pilot gets, you know,
15 hours of training time tolearn how to ride these things,
(16:07):
and that's not even with theseniors.
You know, that's justunderstanding the bikes, and
then on top of that, we alsohelp train them on working with
seniors and what it's like towork with people with dementia
and what the conversation may ormay not sound like working with
somebody with dementia.
So we're grateful that our carehome partners actually partner
with our training program tohelp us with that.
Peter Ladner (16:29):
It reminds me of.
One of my relatives gotinvolved with something where
you're comforting people intimes of trouble and going for
walks with them, she said wasvery good because you didn't
have to talk all the time, and Iwould expect to be the same
with this.
You can just ride and not worryabout engaging in conversation,
(16:49):
and as you might if you werejust having a coffee with
somebody.
Jennifer Reid (16:54):
Yeah, it reminds me of Joseph and Margaret.
That's one of the couples thatgoes for a ride with us almost
weekly during the summertime andJoseph isn't on verbal anymore
and dementia, but he sees thebike because it's red and so
there's something about thecolor of red that he lights up,
he gets a smile on his face andwe know he's happy.
And then when his wife snugglesin next to him and he looks at
(17:18):
her and like I get to go withthe ride, so he, he just loves
it.
She talks the whole time.
Um, funny story about her isfirst time I took her for a ride
, she brought a pair of littlescissors with her and I was like
why is she bringing scissorswith her?
And she kept saying her Englishwas broken, so she's a English,
cantonese, and so I said,margaret, why do you have
(17:40):
scissors?
And she kept pointing at theflowers in the gardens and she
wanted to cut them and I said wecan't do that, these are public
parks.
So she said shh, just do itanyway.
And I said no, no, no, we can'tdo that.
I felt bad.
And so the next time I went tothe care home I took her some
flowers that I had purchased.
And it was funny because thecare home staff said Jen, come
look at this, and I walk in andthe whole kitchen area and the
(18:03):
whole dining room were justcovered in flowers.
It turns out Margaret was a veryfamous florist and she just
wanted to just keep makingflower arrangements.
And so when you take her for aride and she saw the tulips or
whatever was out in bloom at thetime, she just felt compelled
to have to cut them down.
So in the very long end of thatstory is that there's a few
(18:24):
floral shops that when they'reready to throw out flowers or
sort of end of life, they justkind of ship them over to that
care home and she just makesthese amazing flower
arrangements and shares themwith everybody in the care home.
But so I had to sort of tellour staff hey, if Margaret ever
comes with a pair of scissors,please don't let her cut the
flowers.
That's not what they're therefor, but anyway.
(18:45):
So once I diverted herattention away from that cause,
she too had dementia and got herthinking about her husband and
and what was going on.
And she's very, very chatty,waves at everybody like the
queen and um, but her husbandwas just happy to sit, you know,
and uh, and you knew he washappy, you know, just being with
her.
So he recognized her and so heloves to go out.
Peter Ladner (19:11):
Jen, one of the things that strikes me as you're
talking is this notion of thejoy and happiness that comes
from cycling, which those of uswho cycle understand intuitively
.
But when you're trying to sellthis to, let's say, a government
that wants you, think you wantto get to support you, they like
data, like can you prove to methat people are happy?
(19:34):
Can you show me data on joy, orwhat is your measurable that
you can use to get support forthis?
Jennifer Reid (19:46):
You know, statistically, fortunately, we
have a new person in the seniorsinitiative at the city of
Vancouver who's doing some greatwork on behalf of seniors in
the province.
In the province of BritishColumbia alone there's over a
million seniors and it's justgoing to grow with the baby
boomers getting older, so weknow there's going to be more
and more demand.
(20:07):
Having spoken to the ministryand which ministry is this?
It's the seniors group.
I'm sorry, I don't rememberexactly what.
Peter Ladner (20:17):
It's the seniors ministry, but not the
transportation ministry.
Jennifer Reid (20:20):
I don't remember exactly what the seniors
ministry but not thetransportation ministry, no, no,
we tend to.
That's kind of an interestingconversation, peter, because
years ago we got very alignedwith the transportation side of
cycling and that helped when wewere advocate for better bike
(20:43):
lanes, better access to, youknow, disabilities, to people
that are blind, to autism, toall these other things, and I
thought, well, I thought, wow,yeah, we could go anywhere
anytime.
But I said I wanted to staystrong with why we started the
program in the first place, andCycling Without Age has always
been about the seniors and thosewith disabilities as well.
(21:05):
I think the pandemic did it.
I think when all those seniorswere passing away in long-term
care, we started really payingattention to how we house our
seniors in care homes and whatlife is going to look like for
them as they age.
So we're looking at aging inplace, we're looking at ways to
(21:26):
keep seniors connected to thecommunities that they have lived
and worked in, we're looking atways to keep seniors living at
home longer before they have tomove their transition to
somewhere else, and so theconversations are getting deeper
, which I'm appreciative of, sothat we can figure out together,
you know, how our program, as arecreation program can support
some of the desires of carehomes and their recreational
needs, and we just need morebikes and more spaces to be able
(21:47):
to do that.
Peter Ladner (21:49):
What are the barriers to scaling it?
Finances, I'm sure is a big one, and how are you dealing with
that?
Jennifer Reid (21:57):
We have fantastic fundraising initiatives that go
on.
I think the awareness isgetting better over time.
We've been actively operatingfor over five years, I think,
being a part of something that'sa global initiative.
All of us can relate.
We all have a senior in ourlife at some point in time that
is aging or passing away.
So when people hear about us,they you know we always get the
(22:22):
thumbs up, we always get thewave, we always.
But you can see the wheelsturning like, oh, that's really
cool.
And then you know behind thatcomes our story, behind that
comes a great be a part, help usfigure out how this works.
So our biggest barrier right nowis looking at locations that we
can expand to in thecommunities where we ride.
(22:44):
So, again, thinking of the WestSide or the West End in
particular, we work with theSouth Vancouver Seniors Network,
which is fantastic, and theyare a huge, strong group of
people that are advocating forseniors and seniors needs
especially the low incomeseniors and housing and things
like that.
So we get into thoseconversations with them all and
(23:05):
what we're looking for is likehey, do you have a warehouse?
Hey, you know, do you have astorage space in a recreation
center in a community center.
I mean, wouldn't it be great ifwe could connect all the
community centers aroundVancouver and build a program
with them?
I think that would be becausethe seniors are already coming
to those locations.
So all those conversations arehappening, but it takes time.
Peter Ladner (23:26):
We're focusing on the riders, but tell me
something about the pilotsbecause, going back to my friend
Stu, he's in his 80s, he hasdifficulty walking but he can
ride that bike still and Igather you told me you know him
and he's still taking people forrides.
Are the pilots also benefitingfrom this?
(23:47):
Are they two typically seniorsor who pilots Family members?
Jennifer Reid (23:51):
Yes, stu's actually an interesting story.
So, stu and his wife, theyended up with one of the
tri-shaws that we were going topurchase and it was at the time
where his wife was no longermobile and and he really wanted
to take her out and and get thefresh air and the enjoyment and
he would ride all the way tosteves and for fish and chips.
You know, I'm nothing, he's afondo rider.
(24:12):
So, just so you know, he justhad a double knee replacement.
So he's ready to roll, he'sready to go.
He still rides with us.
Go, he still rides with us.
He still owns his own tri-shaw.
He comes with us, he helps usout whenever we need, so he
gives us the seventh bike thathelps us.
Be lovely if we had some publicthat wanted to buy a tri-shaw
for their own and then theywanted to be involved in our
(24:33):
program.
I think that would be great.
Like you say, he's a veryactive man.
He's probably our oldest pilotand our youngest pilot.
Weirdly and excitingly at thesame time, she is a nurse that
is graduating university rightnow.
She came out with her grandmaon Grandma's Day, so we had a
(24:54):
three-generation ride withMadeline and she's, I would
guess, in her late 20s, early30s.
And when I asked her why?
Why do you want it?
You're a busy young woman,you're finishing your nursing.
I'm sure you would like to doway more fun things with your
own generation, and she said no,this is incredibly important.
She goes.
I only have a limited amount oftime with my own grandma.
(25:17):
I can imagine that most peopleonly have a limited amount of
time she goes.
I want to be a part of this.
Even if I can only ride once aweek, which is what we request
of our pilots.
I want to be a part of it.
It really helps me and she'sthinking about gerontology as
her nursing degree because ofher grandma.
And so one ride that we didlast September on Grandparents
(25:40):
Day got her hooked, and she oneride that we did last September
on grand grandparents day gother hooked, and she's in our
training program right now.
Peter Ladner (25:45):
So if I wanted to be a pilot, I would have to go
through a training program, andthen how long is the typical
ride like from the beginning toend of the pilot's time?
Jennifer Reid (25:59):
Yeah, so it's a three hour volunteer time slot
once a week.
That's what we request Most ofthe pilots.
So we started with myself andanother co founder and we built
it up to 22 pilots.
Last year with four trishaws,we now have six trishaws.
We're going to need probablyabout 40 different volunteers so
(26:22):
that we can go out to thedifferent areas.
Most of the time we're sendingtwo or three trishaws together
at a time because the socialaspect of riding together is
also fun, because we'll pull upto the Maritime Museum out in
Kitsilano and look out at theocean and start a conversation,
and so it's a safety thing forus us, but it's also a social
(26:42):
part of riding together.
So, point being, we're going tohave different pilots if we've
got all six bikes going um onseven days a week.
We need a lot of people.
You come to the warehouse andprepare a bike to go out and
then we get to a long-term carehome.
Most of the time what we'redoing is we arrive care home.
(27:04):
Most of the time what we'redoing is we arrive and we have
one hour slots and we do two ofthem back to back.
So we'll have a group of fouror six seniors come out.
We'll go for a one hour ride,come back, drop them off, take
another group, do another ride,drop them off, then the pilots
go back to the warehouse.
So it's about three hours eachshift.
Peter Ladner (27:20):
Is it weather dependent?
Jennifer Reid (27:22):
Yeah, yeah, that's funny.
We were just this weekend.
You saw the weather.
On Saturday I had to cancel thetraining because it was just so
wet and miserable.
We have gotten caught in therain with.
We've had seniors, but the thehoods that go over their head
don't cover the entire body andthe blanket doesn't either, and
most seniors, their metabolismand everything keeps them a
(27:44):
little cooler than the rest ofus.
So we're constantly trying tokeep them warm so we don't ride
in heavy, heavy rain.
I mean, if it's light rain andthe sun's going to come out,
we'll go, because they kind oflike it, they think it's a
little bit of fun, right?
Peter Ladner (27:58):
What about winter?
Jennifer Reid (28:00):
No, we only ride from May to October.
Right now we're in trainingfrom February to April and then
we get rolling full-time May toOctober.
Peter Ladner (28:10):
If I were in a smaller community in BC that
does not have one of thesechapters and I wanted to start
one up, what would I do?
Jennifer Reid (28:18):
Well, that's interesting because when we
didn't have a tri-shaw, I phonedCarson at the time in Victoria,
who had a tri-shaw, and I said,hey, carson.
Peter Ladner (28:26):
Who's Carson?
Jennifer Reid (28:27):
Oh, carson.
He was one of the founders ofthe Victoria chapter.
There's also a Sydney, britishColumbia.
There's a whole list ofchapters that you can find on
the website and also on theCanada website.
Well, it was hard to talk abouta bike when you didn't have one.
So I was going around to carehomes doing presentations saying
, hey, look, this would bewonderful.
And they're there.
They just couldn't sort of geta sense of it.
(28:49):
And so I realized very quicklyI needed a bike, I needed a
trishaw, and so I phoned Carson.
I said, hey, wheel that thingon a ferry and I'll come pick
you up with a moto van and um,and then I could then roll it
around the city and do demorides and it really, really
helps.
So all of us who run chaptershave that very that pay it
(29:09):
forward sense.
So, as a matter of fact, mapleRidge came and did a ride with
us and they're busy fundraisingto get a chapter going, and I
said, hey, if you have a specialsenior event we'll come out and
you know, help you out with it.
So I think what you'll find inthe other chapters around the
province, you know, if there wasa small community that wanted
to get going.
Whoever the closest chapter wasto them, would be more than
(29:31):
willing to come and help for aday or so, because we've all
been stuck with this feeling ofhow do we get started when we
don't have a bike?
You know, fundraising is thecart and horse is what it is.
The most common way that peoplestart a chapter for cycling
without age is through a carehome.
So they build a relationshipwith one care home, usually
(29:52):
because their parent is in thecare home and the care home goes
, hey, we'll store it, we'llinsure it and we'll, you know,
you ride it from here, which waslovely.
But when I was looking at it, Isaid, well, it and we'll, you
know you ride it from here,which was lovely.
But when I was looking at it, Isaid, well, that's really
limiting though, because thenthat Trishaw sits in the
basement for all the days thatnobody wants to ride it and the
rest of the community is notgetting a chance to to be a part
(30:14):
of that.
So when we sat down and talkedand said, okay, this is going to
be the hardest way to do this,but let's, let's establish
ourselves as a non-for-profitsociety with charitable status,
and that'll allow us to go wherewe want to go.
So that's when we decided thatwe were going to build
relationships with what we callpartners and we weren't
(30:36):
obligated to any one partner.
We could do what we needed todo to expand the operations.
So yeah, I think for us,because of the way that we've
done it, we have sort of a, wehave a way to keep those wheels
on the ground and rolling andthe bikes maintained and insured
(30:56):
and all those other things thatwe have to look after them.
We have hired an executivedirector for our program and
he's now looking after all thefundraising and other things for
us.
So that allows us that growththat would naturally happen.
Whereas if you're establishedwith one care home, it's a great
program don't get me wrong butit is limiting to do it that way
(31:17):
.
Having said that, the chaptersaround British Columbia, like in
Penticton it runs out of OneSky, which is a community center
.
Up there In Vernon it runs outof one of the care homes, but
they have partnership agreementswith other care homes.
In Fernie it runs independentlyand then they actually ride in
(31:39):
the snow.
They put studs on them and ridein the snow.
It's awesome.
So every chapter just kind offigures it out and does it
differently.
Peter Ladner (31:47):
Well, thinking about that nurse who's got a
future in gerontology.
Gerontology is coming on strongand there are many of, I must
say, us seniors and I wouldthink the demand for this is
pretty huge, like almostunlimited.
And you're just scratching thesurface.
Are there places like inDenmark, for example?
Jennifer Reid (32:13):
where there really is.
It's a big proliferation ofthese bikes and providing this
service.
I can't speak to Denmark, but Ithink the countries that are
run by the government areprobably the biggest.
Singapore is huge.
I don't know exactly how manybikes they have.
Scotland, I know, is huge.
I don't know exactly how manybikes they have.
Scotland, I know is hundreds.
And I only know this because Iwent to their head office, which
happened to be near the Kelpiesand near their Falkirk wheel,
if you know where that is inScotland and all of their
(32:35):
tri-shaws were stored on in a.
It was like an old greenhouseon a golf course.
No-transcript.
(33:07):
You're going to need it.
And that was my first questionto the gang in Scotland was I
said so what's your biggesthurdle to get over?
And they said, well, it bikemaintenance.
So when something breaks orlike literally breaks, not just
a flat tire, you know how do weget to them in a very remote
community to fix them.
So they've figured that out bybuilding up sort of a train, the
(33:31):
trainer bike mechanic program,and they go around the country
and they do all that.
So I would say there's to scaleit.
You know you need the supportof many businesses within the
cities.
The idea in Scotland, forexample, is that if a community
wants to have a tri-shop, thenthe government of Scotland will
(33:51):
say that's great, put in yourapplication, fundraise and get
some money towards it, put someskin in the game and when they
hit a certain level offundraising, then that bike goes
into that community and with itcomes a service agreement and
how it's going to be maintainedand what have you?
So branding and all those otherlovely things that go with it
(34:11):
as well.
And training and training thepeople to ride them, training
the community how to build therelationships, the care homes, I
mean.
Really that's not the hard part, they have the strong
relationships.
As it is, it's moreunderstanding the bike and the
bike's abilities, thetri-shock's abilities.
Peter Ladner (34:28):
This is a wonderful program, jen, and I'd
love to see it expanded more,and I can see a lot of people
wanting to do it.
Just on the sponsorship matter,are there typical businesses
that would step up, or are therecases where the bikes
themselves are branded, like ourshared bikes?
Are that would give value to asponsor, and are there sponsors
(34:51):
eager to step up?
Jennifer Reid (34:54):
Yeah, I mean we're looking for sponsorship
for our two newest bikes.
They're unnamed at this momentin time.
All of our tri-shows get namesunnamed.
At this moment in time All ofour trishaws get names.
So we're looking for that kindof fundraising opportunity for a
business who would like toalign their vision and mission
with our initiative and get alittle bit of exposure as we
(35:15):
ride around the city.
I would say the most peoplethat are working with us in
terms of helping us financiallyhave been family foundations, a
few individuals that donate verykindly.
There's lots of in-kind.
We're trying to build strongerrelationships with Vancouver
Coastal Health and just beingable to build up those
(35:36):
partnerships as well, not from afinancial perspective, but more
from a location or apartnership perspective.
Peter Ladner (35:43):
Well, it sounds like you've got a lot of work,
but more from a location or apartnership perspective.
Well, it sounds like you've gota lot of work to do and a lot of
work has been done, but I wouldjust congratulate you on making
this possible for people anddemonstrating the potential to
other places in the provincethat are also doing this and
could expand.
(36:03):
And it sounds very wonderful andbrings out, I think, some of
the best in biking, where thepilot's getting some exercise,
the people are getting the freshair, the wind in their hair and
seeing out in nature.
I think we underestimate that,as you said at the beginning,
compared to being in a van andI've taken senior friends of
mine around driving and it'sbeen wonderful you open the door
(36:24):
at some place and let them justsoak it up but I could see how
this would be so much more funand I think the elements of fun,
joy and happiness are so much apart of it, and I love those
stories about the people withdementia kind of coming to life
in a way they don't typicallyjust because they're at the time
they're on the bikes Is thereanything else you'd like to add?
Jennifer Reid (36:52):
I think I just wanted to add that you know
there's lots of other ways tovolunteer with us, but the one
that is the most popular isriding the tri-shaws.
And when I ask the volunteersthat ride the tri-shaws because
we've had many that have beenwith us for four or five years
that just keep coming back theylove that it's seasonal, they
love that they're gettingexercise Albeit, you're not
getting a workout, but you'regetting some exercise.
You're, you're connecting to acommunity, you're giving of
yourself and your time, you'relearning something about these
(37:14):
amazing people and you'resharing.
You know you're sharingVancouver.
You feel a bit like anambassador of the city,
vancouver, you feel a bit likean ambassador of the city.
So it's as, as a few of our longterm volunteers have said you
know it's checks all my bucketlists of wanting to be involved
and I think, as seniors areretiring they're, they're very
(37:34):
active seniors.
They want to be doing somethingand volunteering is a great way
to give back.
So you know, we create a reallyeasy structure for them to step
into and be a part of.
We give them the.
So you know, we create a reallyeasy structure for them to step
into and be a part of.
We give them the training.
There was a lot of social timewhere we get a chance to go out
and do fun things together.
Yeah, so it's a win-win-win andI have yet to have a bad
(37:56):
experience.
Even when somebody's having abad day, they, you know,
inevitably they'll go.
Let's keep going because nowI'm feeling good.
So, yeah, it's.
It's puts a smile on our faceall the time.
Peter Ladner (38:10):
Fantastic.
Thank you so much, jen, andthank you for sharing this with
us, and we will put informationin the show notes for people who
want to help out, as being abike mechanic or sponsor or
start a program or expand it orfind out more from you.
So thanks so much for joiningus.
Jennifer Reid (38:27):
No, thank you for your time.
It's amazing.
Peter Ladner (38:34):
You've been listening to Bike Sense, an
original podcast from the BCCycling Coalition.
If you like the podcast, we'dbe grateful if you could leave
us a rating.
On whatever platform you use,you can also subscribe so you
don't miss future episodes.
If you have comments orsuggestions for future episodes,
(38:55):
email me at peterladner atbccyclingca.
You can help us amplify BCCycling Coalition's voice by
simply becoming a free member atbccyclingca.
(39:33):
Thank you.
Welcome to Bike Sense, the BC Cycling
Coalition's podcast, where wetalk about all things related to
active transportation advocacyin BC.
I'm your host, peter Ladner,chair of the Board of the BC
Cycling Coalition.
I hope you enjoy the show.
(00:40):
I first found out about CyclingWithout Age when my friend Stu
his wife was very ill and facingthe end of her days and he was
taking her out on bike rides ina tri-shaw.
She was unable to move on herown but she could sit in the
front of this tri-shaw and beout in the outdoors riding
around in Vancouver with thewind in her hair, and she and he
(01:01):
both loved doing this.
And then I found out there's awhole organization of people who
do this on a regular basis.
So I brought in today to talkto us about it, jennifer Reed,
who's the co-founder anddirector of the Vancouver
Cycling Without Age Society,which is one of 14 societies
like this around BC, and indeedthere are many in Canada and
(01:23):
countries around the world.
This around BC, and indeedthere are many in the world.
Jennifer, welcome to thepodcast.
Could you describe to me amoment that sticks in your mind
when everything was going rightwith one of your rides.
Jennifer Reid (01:42):
Well, we established vancouver cycling
without age society in 2018, soit would have been 2019, just
before the pandemic.
I was taking a gentleman andhis wife, Harold and Maureen,
for a trishaw ride and, um thecare home where harold lived, uh
called me and asked if we couldlift because he no longer
(02:05):
walked.
So we had to use a special lift.
That is a machine that helpspick them up, put them in the
tri-shaw.
Maureen sat beside him.
We went for a lovely ride alongthe seawall here in Falls Creek
and we got to where one of themarinas was and I pulled over
and sort of I don't know, theywere enjoying the scenery, they
were holding hands, it wasreally lovely, nice big blanket
(02:26):
and cozy.
And so I said, hey, how did youtwo meet anyway?
And Maureen sort of looked upat me, cause we sit behind them
on the bike, and she looked atme.
She kind of winked and said,hey, let's see if he says
anything.
Harold suffered dementia and wedidn't know if he was going to
communicate or not.
And he slapped his leg and said, yeah, that's a great story.
(02:47):
And off he went to talk abouttheir first date, which
precipitated a conversationabout White Rock and parking
tickets and pubs and reallygreat.
And I turned and looked atMaureen and she had tears
running down her face and shewas obviously very, very happy.
And he, from that point on hejust kept talking.
And so I learned that he was avery famous hairdresser in
(03:08):
Karesdale.
He did all the hair for all themovie stars that came to town
that were on movie sets way backwhen.
And yeah, he was just a lovelyguy.
I think what really impacted mewhen I took them back to the
care home was the care homestaff said what did you do to
this guy?
And I said what do you mean?
And they said he came in, hewas hungry, he hadn't eaten in
(03:30):
days and he slept well thatnight.
His wife was super happy and Isaid I think it was just the
fresh air and feeling theconnection to community and and
being feeling alive and uh, andit just brought great joy to all
of us and so that's the mostmemorable one.
We get a lot of couples thatlive in care homes together and
(03:52):
they love to sit together andhold hands and cozy up with a
blanket and talk about stories.
So many many stories to tellyou, peter.
Peter Ladner (04:02):
So what is a tri-shaw and how does it work
when you're in it?
Jennifer Reid (04:06):
So a tri-shaw is a three-wheel bike.
Two passengers sit in the frontand the person riding the bike,
which we call a pilot, isbehind and they get pushed
around.
So it's a bit different than arickshaw, which would have the
person pedaling in front ratherthan behind, and so that way the
people in the front get all ofthe scenery.
They see everything in front ofthem.
(04:27):
It's purposely designed Trishaw.
They come from Copenhagen sothey're imported.
I think the people in Denmarkknow how to make bikes and
they've got these blankets.
They have little hoods, they'revery safe and very comfortable.
They're also electric assist,so as we're pedaling around, we
(04:48):
do get a little bit of powerassist when we're on a hill
climb and yeah, so they're agreat bike.
So how the care homes gotinvolved I guess I'm going to
take you right back to thebeginning is my mom was in
long-term care and at the time Iwould go and drive to the care
home and take her for a drive inthe car, and that then
(05:12):
precipitated a whole bunch ofother seniors standing at the
window gazing out longingly,saying take me with you.
So I got a van and I startedtaking people for rides and I
just realized that being insidea machine or inside a vehicle
wasn't the same experience asbeing outside, and it was during
that time.
(05:32):
A friend of mine said hey, jen,have you heard about cycling
without age?
And I said no, I hadn't.
So did the research, signed upto be one of the chapters here
in British Columbia and gotapproval to do that, and then we
started fundraising for ourfirst bike.
During that time of fundraisingfor the first bike, I thought I
better go talk to some carehomes and see what they think of
(05:54):
this idea about us riding upand taking people outside for a
bike ride.
And every care home that Ichatted with was on board with
the idea.
What they really liked aboutthe idea was the conversation
that happens with people sittingside by side, and also the
fresh air, and also the idea ofa bit of respite for the
(06:14):
caregivers, the families, andthe families sometimes come with
us and it allows them thefamilies, not to have to focus
on, you know, feeding ortoileting or any of those other
things.
They just get to sit and enjoythe experience with their loved
ones.
So between the research that Idid early on with the care homes
, active adult daycare centers,I also spent some time with the
(06:37):
city of Vancouver asking aboutthe bike lanes and how they
would feel about our tri-shaws,because they're quite wide.
Peter Ladner (06:43):
When you say they're quite wide, are they
wider than a cargo bike?
Jennifer Reid (06:48):
Yes, because two people are sitting side by side
with them.
So envision the bike lanes herearound Falls Creek or around
Stanley Park.
Well, first of all, we don't goaround the Stanley Park seawall
.
Peter Ladner (06:59):
Because of those barriers.
Jennifer Reid (07:00):
The barriers correct.
Where we actually spend ourtime in Stanley Park is inside
the park around the lake.
They love the nature and theoutdoors.
So Beaver Lake.
Having said that, the City ofVancouver and the Park Board at
the time, back in 2018, kind ofwent what was coming into play
(07:28):
with bikes and scooters andother things.
Once they understood that ourbikes are electric assist and
not a sort of throttle drive,then we wanted to go eight to 10
kilometers.
So we do not want to go fast,we want to go slow.
And then they understood ourcargo, which are seniors and the
ability to get seniors out andenjoying fresh air and back in
community.
They were very supportive andto the point where they actually
(07:49):
helped us financially with oneof the first bikes that we got.
Peter Ladner (07:55):
Have you heard from other chapters in BC how
they're managing these issueswhen they don't have protected
bike lanes?
Jennifer Reid (08:05):
Vancouver is probably in my experience of
talking with the other chaptersaround British Columbia which,
by the way, they're in somepretty amazing places like
Fernie and Rosland and Trail andPenticton I'm pointing out the
ones that are quite hilly butalso in Kamloops and Vernon and
other places so those areasaren't as well structured with
(08:26):
bike lanes yet I would sayVancouver is.
So I think our tri-shaws helpcreate that conversation in
their communities, which I thinkis a really lovely combination
of recreational senior activityand cycling.
I think almost every seniorthat we've taken has ridden a
bike at some point in their lifeand so they understand that
(08:49):
feeling and that freedom thatyou get when you're on a bike.
Peter Ladner (08:53):
I love the fact that this runs counter to the
narrative that you've got to besome sort of sort of very fit
young man to be a cyclist.
This is showing how cycling canserve people of all ages and
all abilities and alldisabilities.
So talk about the finances, Jen.
You mentioned that the cityhelped you out with purchasing
(09:14):
your first bike.
These bikes you mentioned aremade in Denmark.
How much do they cost?
Jennifer Reid (09:19):
They're about 25 grand to purchase it, to get it
here and also to insure it andstore it.
So we also add a little bit ofannual bike maintenance that we
need.
On the trishaws.
You can well imagine that wehave a lot of flat tires, and
brake pads are a big deal whenyou're carrying up to 500 pounds
of weight, um.
(09:40):
So that's that's the hardcorecost for us is 25 grand, um.
The other high cost for us, uh,between the bike, the insurance,
the operations, there isstorage because they are so
large.
We're very, very grateful thatwe have a partner here in
Vancouver right now that, uh, wepay rent to store our bikes,
but we are looking for otherstorage areas around the city,
(10:03):
primarily in for other storageareas around the city, primarily
in the west side or the westend and also the east side.
It would just make it a lotquicker and a lot easier for us
to go from a hub somewherewithin a community out to where
those senior care homes andparks and recreation areas are.
So, yeah, that's going to meanthat it's a lease or some rent
(10:27):
or a really great partner thatwants to get behind the
initiative that we got going on.
Peter Ladner (10:32):
Do the people who take these rides pay anything?
Jennifer Reid (10:38):
So we have service agreements with the care
homes and the adult daycarecenters, just as the families
would pay for their loved one togo on a bus ride around Stanley
Park.
It's very nominal what they pay, but the agreement is there as
a contribution to ourorganization to keep our bikes
on the road through things likeinsurance and maintenance and
(10:58):
those types of things.
So there's two major programs.
One is our partner programwhich includes those care homes,
community centers, neighborhoodhouses, adult daycare centers,
wherever you're going to findseniors hanging out.
That's where we kind of hangout into running this program.
(11:25):
I was getting phone calls fromfamily members who were looking
after their loved ones at home,not in a long-term care home,
and they said, hey, how do webring our loved one to you to
take them for a ride?
Like we can put them in a carand bring them to Jericho Beach,
for example, could you takethem for a ride?
And we said absolutely so.
We built out a communityprogram which just allows us to
have a scheduled location,pickup point and time so people
(11:48):
can join us, and that's bydonation.
So most of the folks justfigure out what a nominal fee is
.
That helps us with ouroperations.
Peter Ladner (11:58):
To give us some idea of the scale of this, could
you tell me how many bikes youhave and how many bikes they
have in, I don't know, fernie orKamloops or somewhere?
By comparison, how big is thisoperation?
Jennifer Reid (12:11):
Well, worldwide, I can tell you that it's in 41
countries around the world in3,500 chapters.
So a chapter is like us.
We're the Vancouver chapter,no-transcript the scotland
(12:52):
chapter, who organized thatrelationship with the government
to understand how they do it.
And here in british columbia weare talking with our own
government to see what thatmight look like so we can expand
our operations as well.
But, but to answer yourquestion, in 2018, we started
with one tri-shaw.
It's named after my mom, sinceshe died, so it's called the
Jill.
(13:14):
And then we are now at sixtri-shaws and we have 12
partners that we schedule on aweekly basis and community ride
program.
We haven't set it up yet for2025, but usually it's a weekly.
We pop up somewhere usually theWest end or the West side or
trout Lake or somewhere in thosedifferent areas to uh.
(13:37):
We usually connect ourself to asenior community activity going
on so we can be there tosupport, to support the seniors
that just can't walk anymore.
Sometimes it's fun just to showup at the farmer's markets and
spend some time, you know,hanging out there as well, so
there's always a conversationhappening.
(13:57):
It takes us a lot longer thanthe average person to get
through a farmer's market.
Peter Ladner (14:01):
So you bring your, your riders to the pilots,
bring the riders to the farmer'smarket and then just chat with
people, or you just bring theempty tri-shaw to show them how
it works.
Jennifer Reid (14:12):
Yeah, so, um, during the pandemic it was, it
was more people showing up there.
I mean, once we were clear toride again in 2021, um, we,
riley park was the main leadwhere we would go and people
would meet us there.
They were already going to goto the farmer's market anyway
and I just said, well, hey,bring your senior loved one,
(14:32):
parent, grandparent, whatever,and we'll just go slow, you know
, through the booths and chatwith people, and it just made a
nice conversation and a feelingof connection to the community
that they're in conversation anda feeling of connection to the
community that they're in.
Peter Ladner (14:50):
So these are clearly different than the rides
that most of us do every dayfor recreation or commuting or
whatever.
Could you describe some of thefeatures of these rides?
How are they different?
Jennifer Reid (14:57):
we go slow.
I would say that's the biggestpiece when we're training people
.
Right now, we're in the middleof training 30 new pilots for
the 2025 season and the biggestaha, I think, of everybody is
first of all, you're on threewheels, so they're tippy right.
You have to go slow because youcan't take a corner like you
would on a two wheel bike, um,but I would say that, uh, the
(15:20):
weight and it's the, it's theability to um, command the
tri-shaw in a way where you'reusing the power application to
your advantage and not thinking,oh well, I'll just stand up and
, you know, use my body power tomake it work.
Almost everybody realizes prettyquickly you can't stand up and
ride on these things.
You have to sit, and it'sreally about you getting the
(15:45):
understanding of the mechanicsin a way that that the bike is
working with you because it'sall when you put, you know, a
few hundred pounds of weight init, it's, it's an experience,
right.
So we learned that it takes along time.
You know our training programeach new pilot gets, you know,
15 hours of training time tolearn how to ride these things,
(16:07):
and that's not even with theseniors.
You know, that's justunderstanding the bikes, and
then on top of that, we alsohelp train them on working with
seniors and what it's like towork with people with dementia
and what the conversation may ormay not sound like working with
somebody with dementia.
So we're grateful that our carehome partners actually partner
with our training program tohelp us with that.
Peter Ladner (16:29):
It reminds me of.
One of my relatives gotinvolved with something where
you're comforting people intimes of trouble and going for
walks with them, she said wasvery good because you didn't
have to talk all the time, and Iwould expect to be the same
with this.
You can just ride and not worryabout engaging in conversation,
(16:49):
and as you might if you werejust having a coffee with
somebody.
Jennifer Reid (16:54):
Yeah, it reminds me of Joseph and Margaret.
That's one of the couples thatgoes for a ride with us almost
weekly during the summertime andJoseph isn't on verbal anymore
and dementia, but he sees thebike because it's red and so
there's something about thecolor of red that he lights up,
he gets a smile on his face andwe know he's happy.
And then when his wife snugglesin next to him and he looks at
(17:18):
her and like I get to go withthe ride, so he, he just loves
it.
She talks the whole time.
Um, funny story about her isfirst time I took her for a ride
, she brought a pair of littlescissors with her and I was like
why is she bringing scissorswith her?
And she kept saying her Englishwas broken, so she's a English,
cantonese, and so I said,margaret, why do you have
(17:40):
scissors?
And she kept pointing at theflowers in the gardens and she
wanted to cut them and I said wecan't do that, these are public
parks.
So she said shh, just do itanyway.
And I said no, no, no, we can'tdo that.
I felt bad.
And so the next time I went tothe care home I took her some
flowers that I had purchased.
And it was funny because thecare home staff said Jen, come
look at this, and I walk in andthe whole kitchen area and the
(18:03):
whole dining room were justcovered in flowers.
It turns out Margaret was a veryfamous florist and she just
wanted to just keep makingflower arrangements.
And so when you take her for aride and she saw the tulips or
whatever was out in bloom at thetime, she just felt compelled
to have to cut them down.
So in the very long end of thatstory is that there's a few
(18:24):
floral shops that when they'reready to throw out flowers or
sort of end of life, they justkind of ship them over to that
care home and she just makesthese amazing flower
arrangements and shares themwith everybody in the care home.
But so I had to sort of tellour staff hey, if Margaret ever
comes with a pair of scissors,please don't let her cut the
flowers.
That's not what they're therefor, but anyway.
(18:45):
So once I diverted herattention away from that cause,
she too had dementia and got herthinking about her husband and
and what was going on.
And she's very, very chatty,waves at everybody like the
queen and um, but her husbandwas just happy to sit, you know,
and uh, and you knew he washappy, you know, just being with
her.
So he recognized her and so heloves to go out.
Peter Ladner (19:11):
Jen, one of the things that strikes me as you're
talking is this notion of thejoy and happiness that comes
from cycling, which those of uswho cycle understand intuitively
.
But when you're trying to sellthis to, let's say, a government
that wants you, think you wantto get to support you, they like
data, like can you prove to methat people are happy?
(19:34):
Can you show me data on joy, orwhat is your measurable that
you can use to get support forthis?
Jennifer Reid (19:46):
You know, statistically, fortunately, we
have a new person in the seniorsinitiative at the city of
Vancouver who's doing some greatwork on behalf of seniors in
the province.
In the province of BritishColumbia alone there's over a
million seniors and it's justgoing to grow with the baby
boomers getting older, so weknow there's going to be more
and more demand.
(20:07):
Having spoken to the ministryand which ministry is this?
It's the seniors group.
I'm sorry, I don't rememberexactly what.
Peter Ladner (20:17):
It's the seniors ministry, but not the
transportation ministry.
Jennifer Reid (20:20):
I don't remember exactly what the seniors
ministry but not thetransportation ministry, no, no,
we tend to.
That's kind of an interestingconversation, peter, because
years ago we got very alignedwith the transportation side of
cycling and that helped when wewere advocate for better bike
(20:43):
lanes, better access to, youknow, disabilities, to people
that are blind, to autism, toall these other things, and I
thought, well, I thought, wow,yeah, we could go anywhere
anytime.
But I said I wanted to staystrong with why we started the
program in the first place, andCycling Without Age has always
been about the seniors and thosewith disabilities as well.
(21:05):
I think the pandemic did it.
I think when all those seniorswere passing away in long-term
care, we started really payingattention to how we house our
seniors in care homes and whatlife is going to look like for
them as they age.
So we're looking at aging inplace, we're looking at ways to
(21:26):
keep seniors connected to thecommunities that they have lived
and worked in, we're looking atways to keep seniors living at
home longer before they have tomove their transition to
somewhere else, and so theconversations are getting deeper
, which I'm appreciative of, sothat we can figure out together,
you know, how our program, as arecreation program can support
some of the desires of carehomes and their recreational
needs, and we just need morebikes and more spaces to be able
(21:47):
to do that.
Peter Ladner (21:49):
What are the barriers to scaling it?
Finances, I'm sure is a big one, and how are you dealing with
that?
Jennifer Reid (21:57):
We have fantastic fundraising initiatives that go
on.
I think the awareness isgetting better over time.
We've been actively operatingfor over five years, I think,
being a part of something that'sa global initiative.
All of us can relate.
We all have a senior in ourlife at some point in time that
is aging or passing away.
So when people hear about us,they you know we always get the
(22:22):
thumbs up, we always get thewave, we always.
But you can see the wheelsturning like, oh, that's really
cool.
And then you know behind thatcomes our story, behind that
comes a great be a part, help usfigure out how this works.
So our biggest barrier right nowis looking at locations that we
can expand to in thecommunities where we ride.
(22:44):
So, again, thinking of the WestSide or the West End in
particular, we work with theSouth Vancouver Seniors Network,
which is fantastic, and theyare a huge, strong group of
people that are advocating forseniors and seniors needs
especially the low incomeseniors and housing and things
like that.
So we get into thoseconversations with them all and
(23:05):
what we're looking for is likehey, do you have a warehouse?
Hey, you know, do you have astorage space in a recreation
center in a community center.
I mean, wouldn't it be great ifwe could connect all the
community centers aroundVancouver and build a program
with them?
I think that would be becausethe seniors are already coming
to those locations.
So all those conversations arehappening, but it takes time.
Peter Ladner (23:26):
We're focusing on the riders, but tell me
something about the pilotsbecause, going back to my friend
Stu, he's in his 80s, he hasdifficulty walking but he can
ride that bike still and Igather you told me you know him
and he's still taking people forrides.
Are the pilots also benefitingfrom this?
(23:47):
Are they two typically seniorsor who pilots Family members?
Jennifer Reid (23:51):
Yes, stu's actually an interesting story.
So, stu and his wife, theyended up with one of the
tri-shaws that we were going topurchase and it was at the time
where his wife was no longermobile and and he really wanted
to take her out and and get thefresh air and the enjoyment and
he would ride all the way tosteves and for fish and chips.
You know, I'm nothing, he's afondo rider.
(24:12):
So, just so you know, he justhad a double knee replacement.
So he's ready to roll, he'sready to go.
He still rides with us.
Go, he still rides with us.
He still owns his own tri-shaw.
He comes with us, he helps usout whenever we need, so he
gives us the seventh bike thathelps us.
Be lovely if we had some publicthat wanted to buy a tri-shaw
for their own and then theywanted to be involved in our
(24:33):
program.
I think that would be great.
Like you say, he's a veryactive man.
He's probably our oldest pilotand our youngest pilot.
Weirdly and excitingly at thesame time, she is a nurse that
is graduating university rightnow.
She came out with her grandmaon Grandma's Day, so we had a
(24:54):
three-generation ride withMadeline and she's, I would
guess, in her late 20s, early30s.
And when I asked her why?
Why do you want it?
You're a busy young woman,you're finishing your nursing.
I'm sure you would like to doway more fun things with your
own generation, and she said no,this is incredibly important.
She goes.
I only have a limited amount oftime with my own grandma.
(25:17):
I can imagine that most peopleonly have a limited amount of
time she goes.
I want to be a part of this.
Even if I can only ride once aweek, which is what we request
of our pilots.
I want to be a part of it.
It really helps me and she'sthinking about gerontology as
her nursing degree because ofher grandma.
And so one ride that we didlast September on Grandparents
(25:40):
Day got her hooked, and she oneride that we did last September
on grand grandparents day gother hooked, and she's in our
training program right now.
Peter Ladner (25:45):
So if I wanted to be a pilot, I would have to go
through a training program, andthen how long is the typical
ride like from the beginning toend of the pilot's time?
Jennifer Reid (25:59):
Yeah, so it's a three hour volunteer time slot
once a week.
That's what we request Most ofthe pilots.
So we started with myself andanother co founder and we built
it up to 22 pilots.
Last year with four trishaws,we now have six trishaws.
We're going to need probablyabout 40 different volunteers so
(26:22):
that we can go out to thedifferent areas.
Most of the time we're sendingtwo or three trishaws together
at a time because the socialaspect of riding together is
also fun, because we'll pull upto the Maritime Museum out in
Kitsilano and look out at theocean and start a conversation,
and so it's a safety thing forus us, but it's also a social
(26:42):
part of riding together.
So, point being, we're going tohave different pilots if we've
got all six bikes going um onseven days a week.
We need a lot of people.
You come to the warehouse andprepare a bike to go out and
then we get to a long-term carehome.
Most of the time what we'redoing is we arrive care home.
(27:04):
Most of the time what we'redoing is we arrive and we have
one hour slots and we do two ofthem back to back.
So we'll have a group of fouror six seniors come out.
We'll go for a one hour ride,come back, drop them off, take
another group, do another ride,drop them off, then the pilots
go back to the warehouse.
So it's about three hours eachshift.
Peter Ladner (27:20):
Is it weather dependent?
Jennifer Reid (27:22):
Yeah, yeah, that's funny.
We were just this weekend.
You saw the weather.
On Saturday I had to cancel thetraining because it was just so
wet and miserable.
We have gotten caught in therain with.
We've had seniors, but the thehoods that go over their head
don't cover the entire body andthe blanket doesn't either, and
most seniors, their metabolismand everything keeps them a
(27:44):
little cooler than the rest ofus.
So we're constantly trying tokeep them warm so we don't ride
in heavy, heavy rain.
I mean, if it's light rain andthe sun's going to come out,
we'll go, because they kind oflike it, they think it's a
little bit of fun, right?
Peter Ladner (27:58):
What about winter?
Jennifer Reid (28:00):
No, we only ride from May to October.
Right now we're in trainingfrom February to April and then
we get rolling full-time May toOctober.
Peter Ladner (28:10):
If I were in a smaller community in BC that
does not have one of thesechapters and I wanted to start
one up, what would I do?
Jennifer Reid (28:18):
Well, that's interesting because when we
didn't have a tri-shaw, I phonedCarson at the time in Victoria,
who had a tri-shaw, and I said,hey, carson.
Peter Ladner (28:26):
Who's Carson?
Jennifer Reid (28:27):
Oh, carson.
He was one of the founders ofthe Victoria chapter.
There's also a Sydney, britishColumbia.
There's a whole list ofchapters that you can find on
the website and also on theCanada website.
Well, it was hard to talk abouta bike when you didn't have one.
So I was going around to carehomes doing presentations saying
, hey, look, this would bewonderful.
And they're there.
They just couldn't sort of geta sense of it.
(28:49):
And so I realized very quicklyI needed a bike, I needed a
trishaw, and so I phoned Carson.
I said, hey, wheel that thingon a ferry and I'll come pick
you up with a moto van and um,and then I could then roll it
around the city and do demorides and it really, really
helps.
So all of us who run chaptershave that very that pay it
(29:09):
forward sense.
So, as a matter of fact, mapleRidge came and did a ride with
us and they're busy fundraisingto get a chapter going, and I
said, hey, if you have a specialsenior event we'll come out and
you know, help you out with it.
So I think what you'll find inthe other chapters around the
province, you know, if there wasa small community that wanted
to get going.
Whoever the closest chapter wasto them, would be more than
(29:31):
willing to come and help for aday or so, because we've all
been stuck with this feeling ofhow do we get started when we
don't have a bike?
You know, fundraising is thecart and horse is what it is.
The most common way that peoplestart a chapter for cycling
without age is through a carehome.
So they build a relationshipwith one care home, usually
(29:52):
because their parent is in thecare home and the care home goes
, hey, we'll store it, we'llinsure it and we'll, you know,
you ride it from here, which waslovely.
But when I was looking at it, Isaid, well, it and we'll, you
know you ride it from here,which was lovely.
But when I was looking at it, Isaid, well, that's really
limiting though, because thenthat Trishaw sits in the
basement for all the days thatnobody wants to ride it and the
rest of the community is notgetting a chance to to be a part
(30:14):
of that.
So when we sat down and talkedand said, okay, this is going to
be the hardest way to do this,but let's, let's establish
ourselves as a non-for-profitsociety with charitable status,
and that'll allow us to go wherewe want to go.
So that's when we decided thatwe were going to build
relationships with what we callpartners and we weren't
(30:36):
obligated to any one partner.
We could do what we needed todo to expand the operations.
So yeah, I think for us,because of the way that we've
done it, we have sort of a, wehave a way to keep those wheels
on the ground and rolling andthe bikes maintained and insured
(30:56):
and all those other things thatwe have to look after them.
We have hired an executivedirector for our program and
he's now looking after all thefundraising and other things for
us.
So that allows us that growththat would naturally happen.
Whereas if you're establishedwith one care home, it's a great
program don't get me wrong butit is limiting to do it that way
(31:17):
.
Having said that, the chaptersaround British Columbia, like in
Penticton it runs out of OneSky, which is a community center
.
Up there In Vernon it runs outof one of the care homes, but
they have partnership agreementswith other care homes.
In Fernie it runs independentlyand then they actually ride in
(31:39):
the snow.
They put studs on them and ridein the snow.
It's awesome.
So every chapter just kind offigures it out and does it
differently.
Peter Ladner (31:47):
Well, thinking about that nurse who's got a
future in gerontology.
Gerontology is coming on strongand there are many of, I must
say, us seniors and I wouldthink the demand for this is
pretty huge, like almostunlimited.
And you're just scratching thesurface.
Are there places like inDenmark, for example?
Jennifer Reid (32:13):
where there really is.
It's a big proliferation ofthese bikes and providing this
service.
I can't speak to Denmark, but Ithink the countries that are
run by the government areprobably the biggest.
Singapore is huge.
I don't know exactly how manybikes they have.
Scotland, I know, is huge.
I don't know exactly how manybikes they have.
Scotland, I know is hundreds.
And I only know this because Iwent to their head office, which
happened to be near the Kelpiesand near their Falkirk wheel,
if you know where that is inScotland and all of their
(32:35):
tri-shaws were stored on in a.
It was like an old greenhouseon a golf course.
No-transcript.
(33:07):
You're going to need it.
And that was my first questionto the gang in Scotland was I
said so what's your biggesthurdle to get over?
And they said, well, it bikemaintenance.
So when something breaks orlike literally breaks, not just
a flat tire, you know how do weget to them in a very remote
community to fix them.
So they've figured that out bybuilding up sort of a train, the
(33:31):
trainer bike mechanic program,and they go around the country
and they do all that.
So I would say there's to scaleit.
You know you need the supportof many businesses within the
cities.
The idea in Scotland, forexample, is that if a community
wants to have a tri-shop, thenthe government of Scotland will
(33:51):
say that's great, put in yourapplication, fundraise and get
some money towards it, put someskin in the game and when they
hit a certain level offundraising, then that bike goes
into that community and with itcomes a service agreement and
how it's going to be maintainedand what have you?
So branding and all those otherlovely things that go with it
(34:11):
as well.
And training and training thepeople to ride them, training
the community how to build therelationships, the care homes, I
mean.
Really that's not the hard part, they have the strong
relationships.
As it is, it's moreunderstanding the bike and the
bike's abilities, thetri-shock's abilities.
Peter Ladner (34:28):
This is a wonderful program, jen, and I'd
love to see it expanded more,and I can see a lot of people
wanting to do it.
Just on the sponsorship matter,are there typical businesses
that would step up, or are therecases where the bikes
themselves are branded, like ourshared bikes?
Are that would give value to asponsor, and are there sponsors
(34:51):
eager to step up?
Jennifer Reid (34:54):
Yeah, I mean we're looking for sponsorship
for our two newest bikes.
They're unnamed at this momentin time.
All of our tri-shows get namesunnamed.
At this moment in time All ofour trishaws get names.
So we're looking for that kindof fundraising opportunity for a
business who would like toalign their vision and mission
with our initiative and get alittle bit of exposure as we
(35:15):
ride around the city.
I would say the most peoplethat are working with us in
terms of helping us financiallyhave been family foundations, a
few individuals that donate verykindly.
There's lots of in-kind.
We're trying to build strongerrelationships with Vancouver
Coastal Health and just beingable to build up those
(35:36):
partnerships as well, not from afinancial perspective, but more
from a location or apartnership perspective.
Peter Ladner (35:43):
Well, it sounds like you've got a lot of work,
but more from a location or apartnership perspective.
Well, it sounds like you've gota lot of work to do and a lot of
work has been done, but I wouldjust congratulate you on making
this possible for people anddemonstrating the potential to
other places in the provincethat are also doing this and
could expand.
(36:03):
And it sounds very wonderful andbrings out, I think, some of
the best in biking, where thepilot's getting some exercise,
the people are getting the freshair, the wind in their hair and
seeing out in nature.
I think we underestimate that,as you said at the beginning,
compared to being in a van andI've taken senior friends of
mine around driving and it'sbeen wonderful you open the door
(36:24):
at some place and let them justsoak it up but I could see how
this would be so much more funand I think the elements of fun,
joy and happiness are so much apart of it, and I love those
stories about the people withdementia kind of coming to life
in a way they don't typicallyjust because they're at the time
they're on the bikes Is thereanything else you'd like to add?
Jennifer Reid (36:52):
I think I just wanted to add that you know
there's lots of other ways tovolunteer with us, but the one
that is the most popular isriding the tri-shaws.
And when I ask the volunteersthat ride the tri-shaws because
we've had many that have beenwith us for four or five years
that just keep coming back theylove that it's seasonal, they
love that they're gettingexercise Albeit, you're not
getting a workout, but you'regetting some exercise.
You're, you're connecting to acommunity, you're giving of
yourself and your time, you'relearning something about these
(37:14):
amazing people and you'resharing.
You know you're sharingVancouver.
You feel a bit like anambassador of the city,
vancouver, you feel a bit likean ambassador of the city.
So it's as, as a few of our longterm volunteers have said you
know it's checks all my bucketlists of wanting to be involved
and I think, as seniors areretiring they're, they're very
(37:34):
active seniors.
They want to be doing somethingand volunteering is a great way
to give back.
So you know, we create a reallyeasy structure for them to step
into and be a part of.
We give them the.
So you know, we create a reallyeasy structure for them to step
into and be a part of.
We give them the training.
There was a lot of social timewhere we get a chance to go out
and do fun things together.
Yeah, so it's a win-win-win andI have yet to have a bad
(37:56):
experience.
Even when somebody's having abad day, they, you know,
inevitably they'll go.
Let's keep going because nowI'm feeling good.
So, yeah, it's.
It's puts a smile on our faceall the time.
Peter Ladner (38:10):
Fantastic.
Thank you so much, jen, andthank you for sharing this with
us, and we will put informationin the show notes for people who
want to help out, as being abike mechanic or sponsor or
start a program or expand it orfind out more from you.
So thanks so much for joiningus.
Jennifer Reid (38:27):
No, thank you for your time.
It's amazing.
Peter Ladner (38:34):
You've been listening to Bike Sense, an
original podcast from the BCCycling Coalition.
If you like the podcast, we'dbe grateful if you could leave
us a rating.
On whatever platform you use,you can also subscribe so you
don't miss future episodes.
If you have comments orsuggestions for future episodes,
(38:55):
email me at peterladner atbccyclingca.
You can help us amplify BCCycling Coalition's voice by
simply becoming a free member atbccyclingca.
(39:33):
Thank you.
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