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© OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA “GRUELLING BIKE RACE WAS RAIN-SOAKED AND DIABOLICAL = WORDS OF i ENCOURAGEMENT 2W ; £ COMMONPLACE, THE 3 REALIZATION THAT = WE WERE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER AND, SOMEHOW, BETTER FOR IT, WRITES DREW EDWARDS There comes a point in every Paris to Ancaster race Y hen regret sets in. can arrive while ing to control your bike down the Powerline mud- slide or during the Martin Road climb, the leg-snap- ping hill that comes at the very end of the day, your soul and body already crushed. Fit or fat, rain or DREW EDWARDS Column shine, ready or not, at some point you'll regret paying good money to ride your ike in an event seemingly deenea to break your will. Rarely, however, does that moment of reckoning come at the sta: This year, “- stood with my bikein the ‘pre-race pad- dock surrounded by friends and the like-minded, trying to summon the usual giddy enthusiasm I feel before ev- ery mass start athletic event. Instead, all I felt was dread. And rain. So much rain. It had been pouring for what felt like days, hard and i enough could see dragging their that even we agnostics were collecting wood and coun- caster is, e best of conditions, a wattle against the gradual liquidi- ty that is Canadian spring, a course designed to make the most of the general hav- oc borne of ecological re- birth. This, though, was next-level. It rained non-stop, the whole time. The sections that are normally rideable but tough were diabolical. The normally ceteris sections were virtu: passable. Sloppy ene lurked around every cor- ner, every , every muddy farmer's field. Comparing sporting events to war is an insult to those who truly sacrificed but one particular section saw riders as far as the eye of deep, sticky mud. The whole scene had a decided- ly First World War vibe, al- beit without the mustard gas or the imminent fear of death. If the humans suffered, so did the pikes. Braking mally mo- ments of intentional me- ness. .e most important roadside tool wasn't a spare tube or frame pump but a cellphone and loved one willing to come to the res- cur “And yet there was plenty of good spirits any and the bs of human nai play. Words ana Teoourape ment were commonplace, the realization that we were all in this together and, somehow, better for it.I deft arepair tool in the hands someone I'd never met and returned home to find they'd Googled me and sent an email in hopes of return- ing it. Bike people are my people. I rode with friends tar- geting not a spectacular time but a collective finish and we stayed together, crossing the line thorough- ly soaked and impossibly dirty but with bigger smiles than usual. P2A is always a test but never more so than this, a terrible race by na- ture made infinitely more insufferable by a Mother Nature fully and complete- ly out of Her goddamn min There i is always a mess- around element to this race and this year, we found out. See you next year. Drew Edwards of Guelph can be reached, particularly if returning bike parts, at drew@dre- wedwards.ca HOW MEANINGFUL, EMPATHETIC THE HOUSING AND ENVIRONMENTAL CRISES EXIST, BUT WE SHOULDN'T BE PARALYZED IN RESPONDING T0 THEM, WRITES ZOE MILLER ‘Go 0 set a job." This com- mo! lessage directed at people ¢ experiencing home- lessness ‘minimizes thetrue caus ZOE MILLER Column to us to expand on the ser- vices they offer to those overcoming homelessness. mn more about that pivotal moment riage ses 01 Conbrtdee Shelter — al. so knownas The Bridges — takes a solutions-based ap- a piece of the puzzle, but without wellness support 8a stable employment, FA verte -housed individuals 6 are at risk of re-entering § the shelter system. ut a year ago, Ci = 3 bridge Shelter reached ‘out the shelter system and move into housing. When we interviewed shelter clients, we learned that the stigma and nega- tive perceptions around homelessness impacted their ability to reintegrate into the community. so learned that people ay. ing the shelter want mean- employment, pat me experience system EMPLOYMENT CAN ALLEVIATE HOMELESSNESS barriers to keeping a job, such as transportation and difficult employers. fer about a year's worth of research, we con- cluded that professional gardening and yard se! es are an effective low- ‘bar. ity that can b mplo; shelter graduates and | help us positively change the narrative. Cambridge Shel- ter's newest project is called In Our Backyard, and we officially launched on May 1, 2023. We are Landscape oneao. cert: fied and we're led by a sea- soned professional. “with 20+ years of experience. We've learned from the success of the Parkdale Greenthumbs — a social enterprise which has oper- ated a similar model in To- ronto for over 25 years — ie most important piece of a gardening-fo- cused social enterprise i isto to prioritize people and o ecosystems. I'm a gardener and Per maculturist and I'm sionate about the positive effects that connection with ecosystems can have on healing. Scientifically, we know that the microbes in soil heal us just by hav- ing soil meet our skin. Per- sonally, gardening has healed me ond has taught me to observe and recon- nect with our ecosystem. Our garden and services centres ecology, battery-operated equipment and lawn alter- natives with a no-till, or- ganic approach. By priori- tizing the health of urban ecosystems, we're support- ing the health and happi- ness of the In Our Backyard crew. With In Our Backyard, we have an ppportunity to create a culture of dignity, empathy and prion that aims to meet people where they're at, with the guiding ethos of “there i isal- ways a place for you." recognize that folks overcoming homelessness are at risk of personal cri- ses. We will not exclude or remove people from In Our Backyard's team because they are navigating person- al issues. We hope that through connection with their fellow crew member: and supervisors, they feel seen and supported and are set up for success. We believe in solutions. The housing and environ- mental crises exist, but that does not mean we should b paralyzed in a responding to them. In Our .ckyard aims to take action to chal- lenge the perception of homelessness, support folks in their pathways to self-actualizatic prove our urban ecosys- tems — one garden at a time. Zoe Miller is the com- munity development lead at The Community Compa- ny. 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