Cyclists training for 2nd annual 270 km Ride to Turn the Tide September 5th to 7th

Ride supports Stephen Lewis Foundation’s
Grandmother to grandmother campaign

By Louise Rachlis


At last year’s inaugural Ride to Turn the Tide event, Sue Cousineau, the first Chair of the Grassroot Grannies in Kanata, was the driver of the Granny Mobile.

“My role was to prep the groups who were providing support for us along the route,” she says. “They billeted us or gave us lunch, all along the route. Once our rides went through, I stayed back and talked to the group and showed slide shows and videos of the Stephen Lewis Foundation work in Africa.” Sue went to Africa in 2008 herself and her visuals came from her own trip.

This year’s she’ll be cycling the route which covers 270 kilometres over three days.
The Ride to Turn the Tide cycle trip supports the grandmother to grandmother campaign of the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

Last year’s goal for the 19 cyclists of Ride to Turn the Tide was $10,000.

“We asked our cyclists to raise $500 each, and most support people chose to as well,” says Ride organizer Nancy Hough, “but 23 people raised just under $30,000, exceeding all expectations.”

This year, the goal for the event has been set at $30,000.

Two vehicles provide support to the cyclists along the route, liaise with the granny and church groups in towns along the way and carry bags.
Cyclists come from Grassroot Grannies, and two bike clubs: the Kanata Nepean Bicycle Club and the Cross Canada Cycling Tours Society, a non-profit group centred in Vancouver with affiliates across Canada.

Women on Wheels, a 30-year-old group, formed the core of the Grassroot Grannies when the group began, and so cycling was a natural fit when they started Ride to Turn the Tide.


“Our group is made up of 20 women, most, but not all, from Kanata, and more than just the WOW women now,” says Nancy. “Most of the women share a passion for gardening, hence the first and annual fundraiser, held on Mother's Day weekend, is a plant sale which usually raises about $8,000. The BBB ‘breakfast, books, bijoux,’ is held early in October and has been going for two years.”

Nancy was an original member of the Grassroot Grannies. In November 2007 she and her husband were cycling with a group in Cuba. They met two women from Victoria who were members of the Victoria Grandmothers for Africa and they had just finished their first three-day bike tour. “By the end of the trip we were friends and I had pummelled them with questions about their ride.”

The following spring Nancy did some research by contacting granny groups in the area with the idea of doing a similar ride here. In September of 2009 she made a proposal to the Grassroot Grannies which was accepted. Their first Ride to Turn the Tide took place last September.

This year's Ride to Turn the Tide will run September 7th, 8th, and 9th. “We will start and end at the new Bushtukah store in Kanata, a very exciting development.”

Their hosts along the way are the same as last year except for their first evening in Perth.

“In 2010, on the first night we stayed in the Perth Plaza Motel and we found this a bonding experience for our cyclists who had an impromptu 'tailgate' party in the parking lot and got to know each other better before we headed off to the Presbyterian Church. The second night, the billeting in Metcalfe by Grannies All About Kids was wonderful.”

They have enough cyclists already for this year, but welcome donations. Donors can give cash along the route, or donate electronically to sponsor a particular rider or the team overall. Their event page is on www.grassrootgrannies.com.