Senior women's cycling group keeps growing
Northeast WinnipegSoutheast Winnipeg
West WinnipegSouth Winnipeg
When Sarah Gravelle-MacKenzie started a cycling group for senior women, she knew she was addressing the needs of an under-represented demographic. What she didn't expect was how much demand there really was.
'It's become this mini-movement of senior women on bikes,' Gravelle-MacKenzie said. 'I think what's happening is people see us out there and people go, 'Yes, I can be more active as a senior woman.' It's like, if they can do it, I can do it.'
When Gravelle-MacKenzie launched the first Cycling with Sarah group, with co-founder Rose McDonald, out of Bikes & Beyond (227 Henderson Hwy.) in the spring of 2023, the group had the backing of Liv Cycling Canada, a Canadian women-focused bike company, as well as the Manitoba Cycling Association. Even then, they didn't know how much demand there would be. But the group, which does regular group rides from May through September, quickly filled up.
Supplied photo
Cycling with Sarah, a cycling group for women age 55-plus, is gearing up for its third season, with groups riding in northeast, southeast, and west Winnipeg. Despite running six rides a week, there is a still a large waiting list for a spot.
In 2024, a south Winnipeg group started out of Woodcock Cycle Works (433 St. Mary's Rd.). This year, along with the northeast Winnipeg groups, there will be two groups riding out of Woodcock Cycle Works in the south end of the city, and a new group riding in west Winnipeg out of Olympia Cycle & Ski (1813 Portage Ave.). Still, Gravelle-MacKenzie said there are 50 women on the waiting list to join the rides.
'We're riding six groups every week, which is a lot,' she said. But there's still 50 people between all three chapters on wait lists. We can only grow safely with people able to lead these rides. So we're doing ongoing training, we rely on volunteers within our group.'
The group is now the second largest cycling club in Manitoba, according to the Manitoba Cycling Association. And while getting women over the age of 55 out and active is important, Gravelle-MacKenzie said it goes beyond just being active.
'Yes, it's important to be physically active as seniors,' she said. 'But cycling has become a vehicle to promote the physical, social, and mental well-being. This is a relaxed environment, it's not competitive. At this time in our lives there's no room for that. We just want to support and encourage each other where we're at. To get out and be active with other women.'
The community aspect of Cycling with Sarah includes four charitable campaigns that the group is involved with each year, including contributions to Socktober, the Manitoba Shoebox Project, Wrap for a Cure, and support for Willow Place.
'It's grown to become a community within the larger community,' she said. 'We know we're making a difference at the grassroots.'
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Supporting the community has led organically to a number of partnerships with local businesses, beyond even the bike shops that support the groups. Both Gravelle-MacKenzie and McDonald are Liv Ambassadors, and the national bike company recently named Cycling with Sarah as one of three community partners nationwide, in the community builder category. A new partnership has also emerged with Chosen Physiotherapy Winnipeg.
Supplied photo
Cycling with Sarah, a cycling group for women age 55-plus, is gearing up for its third season, with groups riding in northeast, southeast, and west Winnipeg. Despite running six rides a week, there is a still a large waiting list for a spot.
'They'll be offering two classes, eight-week sessions, taking us through strength training, how it's important to us in our age, but also how it translates to our lives in general,' Gravelle-MacKenzie said.
With Cycling with Sarah's group rides about to start again in May, Gravelle-MacKenzie hopes the group can continue to grow and be a positive place for senior women to come together and enjoy the outdoors.
'We want to do some extra rides, like sunrise rides, or ice cream and tutu rides,' she said. 'We want to ramp up safety, so we'll do a lot more training. Group riding is a whole other thing. As we grow, we're learning.'
Visit @cyclingwithsarah on Instagram, or email cyclingwithsarah@gmail.com for more information.
Sheldon BirnieCommunity Journalist
Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time.
Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca
Call him at 204-697-7112
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Article content Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a 40-year-old British man, sat in Seat 11A in the first economy-class row behind business class, a window seat allowing a terrifying view as the plane he was on sank from the sky shortly after takeoff, crashing into a building and bursting into flames. Article content The crash apparently killed everyone else on board. Article content Ramesh was returning to London from Ahmedabad in western India, Thursday, when the Air India Boeing 787-8 commercial passenger jet crashed. Authorities have recovered 265 bodies with more expected to be found. Article content Article content At first, officials declared there were no survivors, but local video showed an agitated man in a stained white T-shirt walking away from the crash with a slight limp, heading towards an ambulance while smoke billowed overhead. Article content Article content He was later identified as Ramesh, and a photograph of him in a hospital bed later in the day shows injuries and blood on the left side of his face — the side that faced the window. Article content Authorities confirmed Ramesh was one of the passengers aboard Air India Flight 171. He showed local media his folded boarding pass which matched the passenger's name, flight, and seat assignment in the plane's manifest. Article content 'Thirty seconds after take-off, there was a loud noise and then the plane crashed. It all happened so quickly,' Ramesh told the Hindustan Times from a hospital bed. Article content 'When I got up, there were bodies all around me. I was scared. I stood up and ran. There were pieces of the plane all around me. Someone grabbed hold of me and put me in an ambulance and brought me to the hospital,' he said. Article content Article content Officials said he suffered 'impact injuries' to his chest, face and feet. He was in a general ward bed rather than a specialized trauma unit, suggesting his injuries were relatively minor. Article content Article content While the seemingly miraculous survival is a wonder, as well as one glimmer of good news amid an enormous tragedy, for Ramesh it remained a day of loss and pain. He had been returning to Britain from visiting family with his older brother, Ajay Kumar Ramesh. Article content His brother was sitting in a different row from him. Article content Ajay Valgi, Ramesh's cousin in England, told the BBC that Ramesh phoned his family and told them he was 'fine' but that he didn't know where his brother was. Article content Another brother, Nayan Kumar Ramesh, relayed a brief phone call with Ramesh: 'He said, 'I have no idea how I exited the plane.'' Article content There were 169 Indian citizens, 53 British citizens, seven Portuguese and one Canadian as passengers on the flight destined for London's Gatwick airport, Air India said. Eleven children were on board. The Canadian has been identified as Nirali Sureshkumar Patel, a dentist from Mississauga, Ont.
