I sit atop a local bike trail overlooking the spectacular valley vista. The air is crisp, the soil is tacky and the sun is out in full force. The only thing on my mind is what lies ahead. I push away from the trailhead, anticipating my navigating down the steep, rocky and rooty trail. The natural adrenaline rush I get from charging down through the forest never gets old, as there is always something new to experience.

Riding my mountain bike is a passion. It has provided a platform for me to explore amazing geographic regions in BC as well as down the coast into the USA. My bike also recently provided me the opportunity to travel to Iceland to see and experience a fascinating culture and landscape.

I look with extreme jealousy at the professionally sponsored riders and racers who travel the world. They get to live in a world of adventure, one that they created from a young age. I want to help create the same thing for other kids.

It starts with getting your very first bike.

I have had many bikes over the past 40 years. They have ranged from second- or third-hand bikes costing just a few bucks right through to brand-new bikes worth thousands of dollars. The price doesn’t matter. Getting a new bike, regardless of my age—or the bike’s—has always put a smile on my face. But the thing I crave more is planning where that bike will take me on my next adventure and imagining the stories and memories it will create.

Bikes For Kids gives underprivileged kids that same feeling of owning their first bike. Every kid remembers that first bike, and the adventures that came with it!

The initiative was created by the Dominion Lending Centres head office and since 2014, we have donated 2,500+ bikes to needy kids across Canada. At our recent Dominion Lending Centres University I was asked, “What’s your number?” My reply was five. This means I plan to donate five bikes at this year’s Bikes For Kids.

I would love to give other kids the same opportunity to experience what I experience when I’m riding my bike in the forest or anywhere else it might take me. If you would like to DLC donate more than just my five bikes please visit www.BikesForKids.com before November 14th. It will put a smile on your face for donating, and even a bigger smile on the recipient’s face when they receive it.

Courtesy of Michael Hallett, AMP – DLC Producers West FInancial