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On Sunday October 19th we held our 1st “official” Tour de Mississauga Cycling Event. It turned out to be a perfect fall day for the ride – sunny and cool in the morning, warming up nicely by noon. The turnout was strong with 20-30 riders present. Thanks to Derek from Gears Cycling all bikes were checked, tires inflated and seats adjusted for this 45km epic road and trail ride. We decided to reverse the ride so that we did the on-road portion early in the morning (less traffic) and ended with the glorious section on Culham Trail along the Credit River.
Our group started the ride heading east through Port Credit and the recently completed Stavebank Park. Slowing down to catch a glimpse of a breathtaking sunrise along the lake, we watched the canoeists practising their techniques on the mouth of the Credit River. We then headed north along Stavebank through the autumn beauty of the estate homes lining the river. Passing through the tunnel under the QEW (most riders did not know of its existence!) we headed north on Camilla Road toward the Cooksville Creek Trail.
The ride wound through Cooksville Creek’s trails blanketed by golden autumn leaves which led up to Iceland and Hershey Centre. From here we travelled westward on road to the Culham Trail which winds its way back down to the Credit River. A jog off the trail and we wound up in Mayor McCallion’s home town of Streetsville where we stopped for some hot chocolate and lattes courtesy of the local Starbucks.
We’re not still in Mississauga, are we?
After encountering a string of tranquil autumn scenes, including an early morning white-tailed deer off Mississauga Road, one cyclist was caught asking, “we’re not still in Mississauga, are we?”. All the pictures we could gather really couldn’t do the event justice. You really had to be there to experience it for yourself.
Three hours into the ride and three quarters through, we gingerly headed back down to the Credit and watched the salmon fighting the headwaters upstream. The river was a classic fall scene with anglers out fishing, and hikers on the trail. We then headed out through Erindale Park to the Mississauga Road South bike lane. This led us back to Saddington Park.
Safely back, we all headed off to the Clarkson Pump (our sponsor) for some well deserved veggies, wings and liquid refreshments. The smaller group of cyclists who were featured in the Missisauga News took the shorter Tour which headed west up the Culham Trail to Streetsville. They loved it so much that they are anticipating giving the full length tour a try next year.
Our total distance travelled was 47km and the ride time with stops was about five hours. The Mississauga Cycling Advisory Committee is set to plan another grand cycling tour of Mississauga in 2009. We are expecting an even bigger group and look forward to seeing you there.
Follow the following links if you would like to follow the same enjoyable route on your own. We would love to hear your comments on the route:
Map of the 2008 Tour
Written Directions for the 2008 Tour
Mississauga bike maps
What a fun event that was. Looking forward to the 2nd annual Tour!
Im an avid cyclist now to Mississauga. If somone has a map of this tour it would be appreciated!! Happy riding!
Hi John,
We welcome you and your bike to beautiful Mississauga! If you go to our Mississauga Bike Maps page, you will find not only a link to the Tour’s map, but also a link for its written directions. Enjoy and feel free to share your cycling experiences with us.
http://www.mississaugacycling.ca/bike-maps
I have now added the direct links to the article.
The map is fantastic. It’s well organized and the directions will be no problem to follow. I’m really looking forward to doing this tour. Being new to Mississauga this is just what I need. Thanks so much. Happy riding everyone. John
After doing the Tour de Greenbelt last year, I’m incredibly interested in doing the Tour de Mississauga in 2009. Looking forward to hearing about the plans soon!
It sounds like you’re creating problems yourself by trying to solve this issue instead of looking at why their is a problem in the first place
Hi Bev,
Could you elaborate on what the “issue” and “problem” is?
[...] details and this year’s route are being finalized. Meanwhile, check out last year’s (1st Official) Tour on the MCAC website to read about the experience and view last year’s route map and Tour [...]
Hi everyone,
I am really excited about this upcoming ride. I am wondering though:
1) can I bring my road bike with 700X25C tires or do I need a mountain bike for the ride?
2) what is the expected pace in terms of km/h for the 20 km and the 50 km ride?
Thanks
Hello Amy,
We are also really excited about the upcoming 2nd annual Tour de Mississauga on Sun, Sept 20, 2009. Check out our new FAQ page for the Tour at http://www.mississaugacycling.ca/tour/faq
Question #5 gives pace information and Question #8 kind of answers your question on tire size. I was going to take my bike with 700x23C tires (a bit more narrow than yours) on the Tour, but am only reverting to my mountain bike because a spoke broke on my rear wheel that I haven’t had time to fix. We have also included a couple good “bypass” routes for cyclists who may not feel steady on the unpaved trails with their gear. So with the options to choose from you should do fine with your tires.
Do you accept guest blogposts? I just like the way how you wrote 1st Official Cycling Tour de Mississauga Mississauga Cycling, I’m in this topic for ages and I would adore to write couple blog posts right here when you agree.