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How cyclists should take advantage of the summer solstice

Cycling all day is only one of five ways you could take advantage of the summer solstice on your bike

Cyclist riding a bike on the road in nature

Cyclist riding a bike on the road in nature

The longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere is coming on Thursday, June 21 meaning now is the time as a Canadian cyclist to enjoy the increased hours of daylight while you can. The sun is around for longer so it’s a good idea to try and take advantage of it. If you are struggling for ways to spend the longest days of the year here are some ideas:

1) Invite your friends for a 100 km before-work ride at the crack of dawn

At certain times of the year, the sun only comes up as you walk into the office. During the summer solstice, it rises hours earlier giving you precious extra hours of daylight to ride in before everyone else is up. Motorists don’t change their habits with more daylight and you’ll discover the sun rises really, really early. Call up some friends, commit to a meetup spot, map out a 100-km loop and crush some super satisfying mid-week kilometres. We’d suggest starting the ride before the sun even rises so you are out on some of your favourite roads as it does come up. You’ll notice the roads are really quiet at 5 am.

2) Ride all day

Don’t have the day off work? Call in sick or use a lieu day to get out of your commitments at the office. Now ride your bike all day. If this doesn’t work, have no fear, you can also just plan to ride your bike on weekend. You’ll still find you have many extra hours of daylight to take advantage of. This is the time of year to tackle those epic routes where you’ll appreciate having plenty of sunshine for.

3) Post-ride social get-togethers

After your mid-week ride, instead of going straight home invite everyone over for a BBQ or head to your favourite patio for a brew and a bite to eat. You don’t have to ride your bike longer to take advantage of more hours of daylight. Convincing your friends to sit out while it’s still light is much easier than doing it as the sunsets after your post-work ride.

4) Do a bike packing adventure

A little bike trip might be just what you need to take advantage of the long days. This time of year is great because there’s increased daylight and the weather is warm. On a bike packing trip, you’ll enjoy the long hours of daylight because it’ll allow you to pedal a little further and once you get there you’ll have time to set up camp and do some exploring. If hotels or Airbnbs are more your style, do some research because there will be lots of daylight for other activities when you aren’t cycling.

5) Do an organized solstice ride

With so much daylight, there are some informal rides that take place that allow pariticpants to take full advantage of the absolute most daylight to complete the distances. The Hairshirt does a huge loop of the Niagra Peninsula departing from Missisuaga, Ont. while the 200 on 100 in Vermont starts at the North Troy border station on the Canadian border and follows Route 100 to the Massachusetts border. At Albion Hills Conservation Area there is the 24 Hours of Summer Solstice mountain bike ride. The time around the summer solstice is perfect for choosing one of these big rides and going of and spending the day pedalling with friends and fellow cyclists.

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