Sunnyside bikes get a tune-up from ‘Adopte un Vélo’
Sunnyside Elementary School (SES) in Stanstead is ready to roll thanks to a bike repair clinic provided by the La Ruche ‘Adopte un Vélo’ program. SES has around 40 bicycles in a variety of sizes, donated to the school by the Free Wheeling program, based in Cowansville.
A similar program, ‘Adopte un Vélo’, started up by Jacques Bureau, a teacher from Magog’s La Ruche High School, offered the SES students some tips to keep their bikes rolling at peak performance.
On Wednesday, Bureau brought seven of his La Ruche students to work on the SES bikes and offer short clinics, teaching the elementary students a few
key things to keep in mind regarding bike maintenance.
Adopte un Vélo started in 2015. According to Bureau, The goal is to offer a technical program for students whose strengths lie outside the traditional academic stream.
After learning the ins and outs of bike maintenance, the bikes worked on in the program end up donated to the community. So far, over 120 bicycles, tweaked and tuned by Adopte un Vélo, have been donated to local families in need.
In addition to helping the La Ruche students learn about bike repair, Adopte un Vélo does outreach, visiting local schools to share the skills they have learned.
They also teach the kids how to ride with skills workshops, setting up jumps and obstacle courses.
SES teacher Chantal Menard said the timing was perfect for SES bike tune-ups. The students, in groups of five, got the chance on Wednesday to learn the basics of bike maintenance.
According to Menard, Adopte un Vélo will visit the school again on May 30 to help the students work on their bike riding abilities and learn the rules of the road. Later that week, the older students will strap on their helmets, hop on their bikes and take “the big ride to Wood’s”, an end-of-year tradition for the school.