5/30 Event Alert: MEC Gear Swap, Clinics & Community Connect
Vancouver is home to MEC’s flagship store, a vast oasis of gear, adventure and new possibilities. Behind the scenes is an events team that supports the co-op and growing community of members looking to achieve outdoor pursuits. This team is led by Mallory Holmes a fearless leader whom has been tasked to put on 7 Race Series, 3 Festivals and 2 Century Rides in the 2015 calendar. Entering into the heart of the events season early mornings and late nights are a common occurrence. MEC Vancouver has built quite the reputation and is attracting attention in the community with past events such as its 2014 FilmFest, Race Series and the recently passed MEC Century Ride. “Our members are really appreciating the value in our events- they are affordable and promote active outdoor lifestyles”- Mallory states. Early in May, the events team hosted 500+ riders to Coquitlam for its Century Ride raising the bar for this particular event and showcasing the passion that lives here in British Columbia for cycling.
Building upon past success MEC Vancouver is hosting its annual Bikefest at its 130 W. Broadway location. The event is multi-facted in design hosting free clinics, tune-ups, its legendary gear swap and top brands. This event showcases great value with the presence of Salt Spring Coffee and free road bike demos on the store roof. Bikefest Coordinator and elite athlete for Brooks Running Nick Hastie has put together a great variety of exhibitors and clinics to meet the needs of Vancouvers member base. “We are focusing on performance road cycling and in doing so we are bringing in the top performance brands supporting the sport” Nick states. The event will feature sponsored group rides including an appearance from MEC Ambassador Allan Prazsky. Don’t forget we will be offering FREE bike tune-ups and clinics to support those hitting the roads this summer.
MEC Vancouver hopes to elevate its profile in the performance cycling community by bringing in Peak Centre for Human Performance and Tag Cycling to support training and development of road cyclists. Along with support from sponsors and a strong product assortment featuring Ridley, Ghost and MEC Branded bikes the possibilities for Bikefest are endless.
True to MEC roots, Bikefest is still a community event at heart. It features numerous non-profits such as CPAWS, BCCC, HUB and Velopalooza. MEC Vancouver continues to grow its non-profit presence at its festivals and is working hard to connect its members by creating quality conversations. “Bringing in non-profits allows us to connect our community with organizations providing awareness with the common goal of enable more people to ride bicycles” states Event lead Tom Finkle. The team as a whole believes that cycling leads to happier, healthier and more sustainable communities.
To learn more about Bikefest visit our MEC events page http://events.mec.ca/event/42871/mec-vancouver-bikefest-2015
BikeFest : Saturday May 30th, 2015
Location: 130 W. Broadway, Vancouver BC
Time: 10am-4pm
Events Photography: MEC Vancouver FLICKR
Features: Gear Swap, Free tune-ups, Free Clinics, Free Demos, group rides and more
