With snowbanks clogging up the city’s bike lanes and roads becoming icier by the day, Toronto’s cyclists could use an excuse for a party. And as parties go, the one that follows the 2008 City of Toronto Bicycle Friendly Businesses Awards on Tuesday night is not at all the sober affair you might expect. The Gladstone Ballroom is packed and buzzing well before the ceremony begins, this year taking place as part of the Toronto Bike Awards, co-presented by the Toronto Cyclists Union. Representatives from the city are out in force, with awards presented by City Councillor and TTC Chair Adam Giambrone, Councillor Gord Perks and City Councillor and Cycling Committee Chair Adrian Heaps. The awards, Perks reminds us, also bear the signature of Mayor David Miller, whose name elicits a few derisory noises from the crowd. Later though, Heaps reminds us that without the Mayor’s $70 million investment in cycling, “the Bike Plan would not exist,” keeping with the positive tone of the evening.In between awards, we are treated to a musical number by Clay and Paper Theatre (“Two Wheels Are Better than Four”), followed by a delightfully silly, and surprisingly provocative, “Winter Layering Reverse Strip Tease” (who knew it was possible to look alluring zipping up a dayglo orange jacket?).The evening takes a more serious turn when Toronto Cyclist Union founder Dave “Mez” Meslin (pictured) takes the stage to receive his award for Leadership in Cycling. He talks about his activist burnout and subsequent nervous breakdown last spring, and of the importance of breaking the silence around mental illness, before returning to cycling-related business. “We’re flat!” he says of Toronto’s great suitability for cyclists. We’re also frequently -10C, prone to blizzards, and our roads are streaked with streetcar furrows just wide enough to lodge your wheels in. So it’s testament to how much success cycling advocacy groups have had in Toronto, and what a committed bunch cyclists are, that almost everyone in attendance on this January night carries a bike helmet or bears the tellingly-rolled-up right pant leg. The evening offers a glimpse at the cycling utopia Toronto could become. Businesses singled out for awards have implemented a level of bicycle-friendliness that is undreamed of at most workplaces. Ryerson University, awarded Best Large Business and Best Bike Parking, are recognized for providing shower facilities, secure indoor bike parking and free bicycle repair equipment. It is also an indication of just how many people are not only cycling, but working to make cycling what Heaps calls “a viable means of transport.” Five members of Bike Pirates, a volunteer-run organization that provides space and parts for people to fix up their bikes, crowd onstage to receive their award, but Bike Pirates volunteer Kathleen reminded EYE WEEKLY afterwards that there were five more Pirates members in the audience and even more who give their time to the project. Because everybody has their own full-time jobs, she says, projects like this one require large numbers of volunteers to generate enough man-hours to make it work. Such statements hint at much more going on behind the scenes in cycling advocacy than even these awards reveal. The ceremony closes with comments from Spacing magazine publisher and creative director Matthew Blackett. “No one says you can’t drink and ride!” he cries, perhaps irresponsibly, and everyone gathers to help themselves to cake.The entertainment continues onstage with Goldsprints stationary bike races, and music from DJs Dorian and Dorian, which gets the party that has already started at the side of the room going in earnest, until finally the announcement is made that the valet bike parking, provided free to all attendees, is about to close. TORONTO BICYCLE FRIENDLY BUSINESS AWARDSBest Bike Parking: Ryerson UniversityBicycle Commute Award: Quadrangle ArchitectsBest Skills Development: Bike PiratesBest Small Business: CerveloBest Large Business: Ryerson UniversityBicycle Friendliest Suburban Business: ZM Cycle and FitnessBest Overall Business: Bike ChainTORONTO CYCLISTS UNION GOLDEN SPOKES AWARDSMost Cycling Friendly Councillor: Adrian HeapsVolunteer of the Year: Alison PalmerLeadership in Cycling: Dave "Mez" MeslinTORONTO COALITION FOR ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION AWARDActive Transportation Champion: Jane’s WalkIBIKETO AWARDSCycling Advocacy Group of the Year: Coalition for Active TransportationCycling Advocate of the Year: (Ecojustice lawyer) Albert Koehl of EcoJustice
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