By James Durand
Imagine working in a seasonal business.
You have six to eight months to make hay.
And it’s six to eight months of being overworked, stressed out, and generally run down.
If you work at something you love, like I do, then this is what you live for. It is exciting, high energy, and very rewarding.
Then September comes to an end and the level of relief is off the charts.
You made it. Another successful season in the books. Now, just normal hours, some time to ride, and no more laying awake thinking about work. Ahh, the off season …
Then you remember, at 2 a.m., that it’s time for Every Kid Deserves a Bike.
You now have six weeks to organize, collect, and tune 40 to 50 bikes for kids that are far less lucky than you.
For a split second you think about yourself and wish you had more time, but then you think about one kid’s smile when they found an unexpected bike under the Christmas Tree. Or one thanks from a grateful parent who sees the joy their little one gets from riding around their neighborhood.
We all do hard things everyday for almost no reward, but this project has such a huge payoff that in the end it seems easy, a no brainer.
As we deliver bikes every year we never feel relieved that it’s over, but feel grateful for being part of such a giving community.
Campbell River has donated close to 600 bikes since Swicked started this program in 2010.
We’re proud to have been part of it and look forward to continuing for years to come.
We are now accepting previously-loved bikes for the 10th annual campaign of Every Kid Deserves a Bike.
If you have a kid’s bike in usable condition, and can manage to give it up, please make the time to bring it down to Swicked Cycles. We‘ll tune it up, make it safe, and shine it up as best we can for some lucky kid this Christmas.
I couldn’t imagine growing up without a bike. And I don’t want any other kid to have to either.
I’m James Durand and I’m Goin’ Ridin’…