2017 will be a very special year for Vélo Québec. Created on January 4, 1967 under the name of Fédération cyclotouriste provinciale, our organization is celebrating 50 years of action and intervention in favour of cycling. To mark the occasion, we're planning a number of new activities over the coming months, and will be adding a special flavour to our major events.
It starts in February when we organize the Montreal International Winter Bike Congress 2017, which aims to demystify and document the use of winter cycling, and make it a year-round option. The conference will be followed by Winter moon by bike, A crazy happening - a festive light parade on a full moon evening, organized to celebrate Montreal's 375th anniversary. Who would have thought, 50 years ago, that some bike lanes would be cleared in winter, and that we'd be holding a winter cycling convention!
Certainly, since 1967, surprises, amazement, successes and disappointments have punctuated the life of our organization. Our passion has kept us going when we've failed. But above all, it has enabled us to dream of the best possible environment for Quebecers to travel by bike, to relax or to excel, to discover lands both known and unknown.
If you're curious to learn more about the history of Vélo Québec and the place bicycles have played and continue to play in Quebec's history, I invite you to read the columns we'll be publishing in this newsletter throughout the year, in the hope of surprising you or making you smile by telling you about our journey. We'll also be publishing a special issue of Vélo Mag devoted entirely to the history of cycling in Quebec, on newsstands June 1.
We're using our 50th anniversary to look back, but more importantly, to look forward... because dreams are the foundation of our renewable energy!
On behalf of our entire team, I wish you a 2017 full of cycling discoveries.
Suzanne Lareau
President and General Manager
