←→invitation to participate←→
Bicycle Buddha Adventure 2014

Sunday May 11 to Sunday May 18, 2014
or smaller portions thereof…

A 3 to 5 to 8 day Community Bike Ride that combines:
• mindfulness practice,
• nature connection,
• easy-level bicycle touring,
• community practice, and
• fun!

 

Travel by bicycle in gorgeous unfolding spring.

Meet yourself on two wheels and ride free.  This 3 or 5 or 8 day ride welcomes peope who are new to bicycle touring with manageable distances and lots of snack and stretch breaks.  Regular city riders, as well as those with experience touring are all welcome.  Likely we’ll be a group of 8 to 12 riders, rolling as a group.

Immerse yourself in natural beauty as we ride the shores of the Salish Sea and Sooke.

Living outside is a treat, especially at this fresh new time of year.  We’ll practice meditation outside daily, deepening our nature connection.

Mindfully connect.  Authentically meet the world as it is, as YOU are.

Traveling by bicycle helps us connect directly with both the outside world, and the world within us.  We’ll practice riding in noble silence.  Connection and mindfulness can come easily, especially on Vancouver Islands’ famous Galloping Goose and Lochside rail-to-trail routes which are mostly car-free.

Embrace your journey and challenges within a supportive community. 

Our aim is that we wholeheartedly bring ourselves and offer our gifts, each contributing according to our abilities.  Together we roll in mutual support, sharing meals, skills, laughter, stories, mindfulness practice, and of course… fun!

-About the Organizers Roshin (aka Carmen Mills) and RedSara–

Contact us with questions and excitements!!!
Use this form or send an email to redsara -at- gmail.com
More details below.

Everything you wanted to know about the
Bicycle Buddha Adventure, May 2014

BICYCLE BUDDHA 2012
Building on the successful experience of the Bicycle Buddha Adventure of July 2012, where folks jumped in to participate fully in a 5-day bike trip, and it was so great that we kept touring together even after our planned portion was finished… we are THRILLED TO OFFER:
BICYCLE BUDDHA ADVENTURE 2014.

MAIN INTENTIONS:
• mindfulness practice,
• nature connection,
• easy-level bicycle touring,
• community practice, and
• fun!

OVERVIEW
We’ll be camping, and will have access to yummy local food along the way.  We’ll become a rolling community, feeding ourselves collectively and sharing roles amongst us, all contributing our strengths within a planned framework.  Guessing we’ll be 8 – 10 people total.  We will ride approx 250 to 300km over the 5 to 8 days (don’t be intimidated; with lots of stops to stretch and snack, it is not a gruelling schedule).  Some folks who are already committed to the tour are looking forward to riding mindfully in noble silence.

TIMING & LOCATION
Sunday May 11 to Thursday May 15: Vancouver to Sooke and return
Thursday,May 15 to Sunday May 18:  Salt Spring Island weekend
OR Sunday May 11 to Sunday May 18: Vancouver to Sooke plus Salt Spring Island.

WHERE WE’LL GO
Departing Vancouver early on the morning of Sunday, May 11, we’ll ride to Tsawwassen then hop the ferry to Vancouver Island.  We’ll ride as far as Sooke along the Lochside and Galloping Goose trails, which are fabulous rail-to-trail conversions so lots of the trip is completely car-free!  In Sooke we’ll be hosted at the Victoria Zen Centre by the inspiring Zen Abbot and Osho named Kosen Eshu Martin, and his family… and they literally live up a mountain at the edge of the Sooke Basin.  After a few days to relax, practice meditation or exploration, and enjoy the ocean we’ll roll out again towards Metchosin, and weather permitting we’ll do a full moon hike.  Next day we’ll turn North and bike together towards Salt Spring Island.

Depending on who we are, there is a possibility the ride will split into two sections.  This happened on our first trip, and was good.  One portion would ride directly to Salt Spring, retracing our tracks on the Lochside bike path.  The other portion would enjoy a new route to Salt Spring via Cowichan, a longer ride that would involve another night of camping on the road before arriving on Salt Spring Island.  This is just a guess, and what we do depends on who is present and what our wishes are at the time.

 

WEEKEND POSSIBILITY
What about joining us for the Salt Spring Island portion of the trip?  This could look like getting yourself and your bike to the Tsawwassen ferry, riding to Schwartz Bay and meeting up with the Tour at the Ferry Terminal.  Together we would travel by ferry over to Salt Spring Island.  The ride from the Ferry to Ruckle Park is only 9km, but it is a hilly 9km on roads that are quite narrow.  Car traffic is present on this section of the Tour.

 

PLANNING
The plans continue to unfold for the Salt Spring half of the trip… with enough interest we could find ourselves camping together and immersing in the natural world at Ruckle Park, and connecting with existing Sangha on the island, as well as with our own rolling sangha for the weekend.

 

YOU
The skills of participants, whoever you are, will shape what we do.  We each offer our gifts and skills to the group, and together we learn.

EVEN MORE DETAILS

• We’ll be tenting.
• Mostly we will ride in noble silence.
• Dharma/mindfulness discussions amongst peers (informal, but intentional).
• Daily morning stretching / outdoor sit in forest.
• Schedule that we develop and modify as needed, striving for a container for practice.
• Shared meals co-created on a rotating schedule.
• Riding 40 – 60km per day, this is an accessible distance if you ride fairly regularly in the city
• Meeting up with local dharma groups for a sit now and then, or they meet up with us where we are.
• Possibility of story-sharing in the evenings.
• Opportunity to be free from technological distraction for the trip duration.
• 2012 Bicycle Buddha was awesome, and happened in July.  May is earlier, fresher, maybe we’ll experience some rain?
• etc!

COSTS
$40 to $70 ferry costs, depending on route.
$90 (estimate) for 6 nights camping.
$80 for food for the trip.
optional dana (donation) for coordination, logistics, etc

YOU NEED
a bicycle in good working order, equipped for touring, including a minimum of 2 panniers
a tent (although there may be a possibility to share), plus other sleeping gear
stiff-soled shoes for riding
commitment to participating in our co-created community
We will be carrying all of our camping gear, no ‘sag wagon’ – so you should be of sound health and prepared to carry 20-30 lbs on your bike.

BICYCLE SUPPORT
Organizers have done lots of bike camping and can offer plenty of guidance and support for novice bike tourers, and this is designed to be an intro-level tour.  If you ride regularly this should be a manageable experience for you.

 

CONTACT
Please get in touch soon!
Sara (redsara @ gmail.com) is available to chat and discuss any details, questions, doubts, etc!  Roshin Carmen will also be available intermittently (carmen @ emeraldcity.bc.ca)

About the Organizers

RedSara is deeply into nature connection, bikes and meditation.  She is excited to share her fire for the natural world and our connection to it, and especially loves birds.  She brings her experience with collectives and collective living to help our community connect and thrive in the time we are together.  She is also an artist, educator and community organizer.

Roshin (aka Carmen) has recently returned from six months of residential practice and service at Upaya Zen Centre, where she was given her new name: Roshin, by Roshi Joan Halifax in a Jukai ceremony.  Carmen is a writer, buddhist practitioner, biker, designer, events producer, and instigator of amazing projects.  Read her latest on her blog http://bicyclebuddha.org

Together Roshin (aka Carmen) and RedSara have worked on various Bicycle Buddha related projects, including the original Bicycle Buddha Adventure in 2012.  They helped found ZenYU: Young Urban Zen which is a weekly meditation practice group for young-identified folks in the Vancouver area.

The organizers are committed to ensuring:
• a clear route,
• organized details such as ferry times and ride distances,
• camping locations and logistics,
• fresh water,
• food sourcing,
• connections with other mindfulness practice groups,
• support for a mindful practice container,
• meditation support,
• nature connection support,
• other logistics as needed.