Bike To Shop Day Vancouver

Today is Vancouver's first Bike to Shop Day! Though I've been biking to shop since I started bike commuting almost twenty years ago, I still get a bit of a thrill when I bring a bunch of stuff home under my own power. (Here's an illustrated list of some of the more impressive things I've transported home by bike here if you're curious)

Spring 2015 a hashtag all about shopping by bike went viral. #Quaxing was all over Twitter & Instagram--do you remember? Here's my post on what it is & how to be awesome at it. Spoiler Alert: you don't need a ton of expensive gear to do it! 

Also last year, before Bike to Shop Day was really a thing in Vancouver, I wrote a list of six reasons why you should try biking to shop. Reasons to add to the list: win prizes! Get free snacks! Save money with discounts at participating businesses! Meet some new friends on the themed rides!

HUB has all kinds of fun planned today between 11am & 3pm, from Celebration Stations, like during Bike to Work Week, several themed rides with experienced bike to shoppers along the way to give you tips & tricks for things like transporting pets by bike, plus free bike repairs, snacks, & more at the stations. Find a map of the celebration stations & more information about the rides here. (PS: I'll be talking family biking at the Celebration Station in Victory Square downtown--come by & say hello!)

Register for Bike to Shop Day: it's free online & makes you eligible to win the grand prize: a trip for two to the Okanagan with Accent Inns and Pacific Coastal airlines! You'll also help HUB gain valuable data that they can share with local businesses & decision-makers. (*cough* Commercial Drive BIA *cough*). As long as you're biking to shop at some point, register by midnight & you'll be entered!

See you on the bike paths!

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6 Reasons You Should Participate in Bike to Shop Day

 Night #quaxing: ice cream run during #30DaysOfBiking

I'm sure you've heard of Bike to Work Week--we're celebrating it here in Vancouver May 25-29. It seems like there's a lot of emphasis on promoting commuting by bike to work, but this just doesn't work for a lot of people in the Metro Vancouver region, since they often work so far from where they live. My husband Oliver rides 15km to work each way, but this isn't necessarily something everyone wants to commit to.

This is where Bike to Shop Day comes in. Think about how many trips a week you take to run errands--dropping off library books, buying groceries, getting toilet paper, picking up a prescription, buying a birthday present. Quite likely more trips than to work. & probably closer to home than work is. Doable, right?

Bike to Shop Day was started just last year in Silicon Valley, by Janet Lafleur, the product marketing manager for a tech company. An everyday cyclist, Lafleur started the event in 2014 when she realized that many people still thought of shopping by bicycle as odd or even impossible. There's no reason Bike to Shop Day on May 23 has to stay in Silicon Valley--join me here in Vancouver & run an errand or two by bike yourself this Saturday.

Here are a few reasons why you should participate in Bike to Shop Day this year:

1. Biking is a great way to get some fresh air & experience your neighbourhood with your senses in a way that you just can't by bus or car.
2. There's no dress code for picking up groceries, comfy clothes you can ride in are perfect.
3. Though you might be very busy on a Saturday, you don't have to be at the store at a specific time.
4. It's generally much easier to find parking right by the door (often literally right next to it) when arriving by bicycle.
5. You can take the scenic route & get in a little extra exercise while biking to shop.
6. You don't need big cargo bike or even fancy bike bags to participate--you can use a backpack or a bag you can wear cross-body if you're picking up something small. 

Now that I've convinced you, where are you going to bike to shop this Saturday? Post pictures on social media & use the hashtag #quaxing (see my post on that earlier this week if you have no idea what it means) to share it with the world!

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Quaxing: What It Is & How To Be Awesome At It

A new term in the biking world popped up on my radar recently: quaxing. Have you heard of it too? It's become a social media phenomenon--just search for the hashtag #quaxing on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook.

In short, quaxing is just shopping by bike, walking or transit. The unusual term was coined after a New Zealand politician made a snide comment, assuming that shopping by bike is unlikely or impossible. For more details & photos, check out Hilary Angus' story on Momentum, How #quaxing Became a Rallying Call for Everyday Cyclists.

I love that shopping by bike has become a 'thing' & how has a name. It's something I've been doing for ages, more than a decade before I ever got a cargo bike & it's really not all that hard to do. So in case you're new at quaxing, I thought I'd share some tips with you that I've learned in my 15+ years of shopping by bike:

1. Rack it! You really don't need a whole lot of special gear to shop for a few things by bike. However, a rear rack is a good idea & not expensive. It'll increase your capacity by a lot.
2. Bungees for the win! Keep a bungee cord or two on your rear rack, that you can use to strap down large items like 15-roll toilet paper packages or bags of kitty litter.
3. Bags in back. It is possible to hang one or two shopping bags off your handlebars, but unless you're only going a couple blocks on a very quiet street, it'll really affect your steering, so I wouldn't advise it. Tying the bags to your rear rack is a more stable option.
4. N+1 bags. Always have an extra reusable shopping bag with you, ideally one that has handles long enough for you to slip on your shoulders like a backpack in a pinch. If you end up buying more than you intended to, you can still get your stuff home.
5. Grab a box. A bungee can also be used to secure a cardboard box to your rear rack if needed. The sturdy fruit boxes that have holes through them in several places are perfect for this & will hold bulky items like milk jugs or bags of potatoes. Most stores have extra boxes in a bin or will give them to you if asked.
6. Skip the bags. If you do have panniers or baskets, bring them into the store with you & pack your purchases directly into them at the till. Heavy items on the bottom, lighter on the top & take care to keep items with corners away from your fruit to avoid bruising.
7. Kid control. If you're shopping with young children in tow, plan how you'll keep them from running amok while you load up your bike. If you've got a cargo bike or a child trailer, you're golden! Just load them in first. It's still doable to shop with kids on a regular bike, however. At the grocery store, I always use a shopping cart, even if I only need one or two items, because I can keep the kids in there while I load up the bike so they don't run into the parking lot. Bringing a lightweight carrier can work in stores where you wouldn't have shopping carts, so you can keep a baby or toddler on you until you're ready to strap them into their seat. Sometimes I ask my four-year-old to help me load up or unlock the bike to keep him occupied or just get him to hold onto the bike frame.
8. Get the word out. Wear your helmet into the store or mention that you're shopping by bike. We need to make sure that business owners realize how many of their customers arrive by bicycle so they'll add racks when needed & support cycling infrastructure improvements around their stores.

Hope these tips are useful for you. Have you got any to add--write them in the comments below--I'd love to hear from you!

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