Ride for Heart

The Ride for Heart is a series of charity bicycle tours organized by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and sponsored by Becel brand margerine.

The Ride initially started with what is currently its flagship ride, on Toronto's Don Valley Parkway (DVP) and Gardiner Expressway, major 6-lane highways leading into the downtown core on the eastern and southern side of the city. On the first Sunday of every June, the DVP and Gardiner are closed and turned over to the Ride in the morning. Three routes are planned out, at 25, 50 and 75 km, and shorter rollerblading events have been added as well.

The first Ride took place on this route in 1987, and has grown immensely since then. The latest Ride, on June 4th 2006, attracted over 15,000 riders and raised over $2 million in funds. While both roads are infamous for traffic jams during normal rush hour, the mass of riders creates problems of a far larger scale, and has led to staged starts and other efforts to improve traffic flow. Generally, those riders wishing to complete the 75 km course or are parts of a corporate team are started as early as 6:45 AM, with other riders following over the next two hours.

The Ride has since expanded to Edmonton and Calgary as well, the Edmonton routes are 15 and 30 km long, while the Calgary routes are 20 and 40 km.

External links

* [http://www.rideforheart.ca/ Ride for Heart Official website]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bDBuGl9_4g Ride for Heart 2007 Toronto Video] - Courtesy of YouTube
* [http://www.heartandstroke.ca/ Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada Official website]