On Saturday July 8, 2023 the annual Barriere Bike Rodeo made its return. This event was proudly sponsored by Interior Savings and staff, the District of Barriere and staff, Canadian Tire Kamloops, Kamloops Brain Injury Association, Barriere Chamber of Commerce, the Underhill family, the Feller family and Serge Jovanovic. A big thanks to all of those in the community that donated to the bottle drive and the Bottle Depot for all their help over two days of sorting fun! The community support is always so amazing to see and a privilege to be a part of.
It was a beautiful Saturday morning with the event starting up at 10:30am with over 20 youth waiting to get started on the course during the final preparation. It was great to see all the youth with their family and friends biking around, excited to try out their skills.
The riders were greeted at the registration table with their water bottle and cinch bag before moving on to the helmet fit test with the members of the Kamloops Brain Injury Association. The youth got to learn about the brain and try a game to win a prize. Then it was on to the Interior Savings tent to see all of the fantastic prizes available through the generosity of the sponsors and supporters in our communities. Once the riders eyed up their favorite prize they went out and waited their turn for the test course.
The test stations were run by members of the District of Barriere Recreation Committee and two local RCMP officers. The riders had to successfully complete each of four stations; the Balance Test, Single Obstacle Test, Change in Balance Test and finished with the ever so important Intersection Test. These test stations provided the riders with exposure and training in important riding skills and rules of the road to keep them safer on the roadway. This was also a chance for the rider’s family and supporters to learn as well.
The 40 riders that came out had a great time with many of them going a second or third time. At 12:30 the event concluded with Cpl. Camalush and the ladies from Interior Savings drawing tickets and handing out the prizes, which included 7 new bikes. The team looks forward to hosting another event next spring and hope to see many more riders out for some safety training and a great time!
