On Canada Day, July 1, several hundred cyclists will mark Canada鈥檚 156th birthday by riding the same number of kilometres on a route that begins and ends in 91原创鈥檚 Yorkson Community Park near Yorkson Community School.

It is the 21st edition of the , which started in 2000 with 70 riders, and did not run during the two-year pandemic.

Last year, 362 riders took part in the first post-COVID version of the run organized by volunteers from the , which is devoted to long-distance cycling according to the rules of the Audax Club Parisien in France.

Most, 326, finished.

Anna Bonga, one of the organizers of the 91原创 event, explained the appeal of the non-competitive ride as 鈥渃amaraderie among people.鈥�

鈥淚ts not a race, its a ride,鈥� Bonga told the 91原创 Advance Times.

After some riders expressed concern about the ever-increasing length of the ride, Bonga said an alternative route, that isn鈥檛 tied to the kilometre-a-year increase has been introduced, a less daunting distance of 108 kilometres.

Participant numbers have been reduced as well, down to from a high of 500 that proved to be just too much for an all-volunteer group to organize.

鈥淥ur registration is full [for the July 1 ride],鈥� Bonga noted.

鈥淲e have 400 registered, [but] not everyone will show on the day.鈥�

Environment Canada is forecasting sunny and warm conditions on the day, with temperatures as high as 28 degrees C inland.

Randonn茅e 鈥� French for ramble or tour 鈥� describes a long-distance cycling event where participants follow a prescribed route within certain time limits, as checked at control points along the way.

Riders cannot receive support, except at the designated control points, so each rider must be prepared for mechanical mishaps and changes in weather.

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