LAC LA BICHE - The recent bike rodeo hosted by officers by Lac La Biche County Enforcement Services and staff from Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) rolled awareness and safety lessons in with the fun.
The whole idea of the event was to have fun, says the County’s manager of Enforcement Services, but there was a lot of safety and awareness hidden in there too.
With schools breaking for summer holidays in the coming weeks, there’s going to be a lot of kids on local roads and sidewalks, says Chris Clark, and a lot of reason for caution and attention.
The importance of that message was clear at the rodeo event, as 350 community members were in front of the new Protective Services Building on Beaver Hill Road for the May 28 afternoon event. Clark said there was a lot of fun, including giveaways, a family barbecue and a bike washing station, but there were also important lessons to be learned from obstacle courses, to information on bike helmets, simple bicycle maintenance and traffic safety demonstrations. .
“These components were organized with the assistance of FCSS and our Community Street Ambassadors. The stations teach the importance of how to ensure a helmet is fitted correctly, how to maintain your bike, rules of the road and how to practice safe biking techniques like turning, stopping, avoiding obstacles and other hazards,” said Clark following the well-attended event.
Get fit; stay safe
By making the event a family-friendly one, Clark says organizers hope to highlight that biking is an activity for the whole family to enjoy.
“Youth use bikes as a great opportunity to socialize with friends and get around our community. The importance of adding families to this reminds everyone that biking can be a family activity,” said Clark. “This encourages families to get out and be active but also do fun activities together that can provide so many benefits.”
The big turnout was also attributed to the past two years of pandemic restrictions. The restrictions not only kept families from community events, but it also hampered local groups from hosting events.
“Now that we have the chance to once again do community education and organize events, this was a great opportunity to kick off summer and remind everyone about the importance of safety when riding a bike,” Clark said, stressing that education and awareness is not only intended for the bicycle-riders, but motorists as well.
Building connections
With the large attendance, municipal officials also used the rodeo to showcase the new Protective Services building and the open space landscaping that was perfect for a bike event like this one, Clark said.
“The feedback we received was great. The public was ecstatic that the new Protective Services Building was highlighted for the event and enjoyed utilizing the grounds for the event,” he said. “The public was also very happy with the education that was provided and all the activities that the event had to offer.”
On June 14, the new building — which was the former Ford dealership in the community before being purchased and retrofitted by the municipality for approximately $6.5 million, will be open to the public for the sites grand opening. The event will run from 3p.m. to 6 p.m.
Clark said there will be more opportunities for the community to get to know local peace officers and protective services staff over the summer months.
“This summer we are planning on hosting some smaller impromptu events like ‘Sprinkler Days’ when the weather is warm to give the public the opportunity to meet with our Peace Officers and Fire Services staff, stay cool and enjoy some treats,” he said.
