ROAD CLOSURE NOTICE

Saturday October 5, 4:00 a.m. to October 6, 4:00 a.m.

Dear Neighbour of Fifty Road,

New Hope Community Bikes has obtained a permit from the City of Hamilton to close the section of Fifty Road from Highway 8 to Ridge Road on Saturday, October 5 from 4:00 a.m. to October 6 4:00 a.m. for a cycling fundraiser called Everesting. 

Approximately 75 cyclists will be riding laps of the escarpment road with the goal of climbing the height of a mountain, such as Everest, 8,848m. The majority of participants will be riding as a team and each completing 15-25 laps during this time. A small number will be attempting a solo ride by completing up to 80 laps of the hill - riding from 6:00 a.m. until they finish sometime in the early morning hours of October 6. 

Additionally, there will be a number of spectators including family (children) and friends present. This year cyclists and community members will be taking in the community festival atmosphere at the base of the hill – enjoying a bicycle rodeo for kids, rides for seniors on our assisted Trishaw, food vendors and more! Come with your families and enjoy this community fundraising event!

To continue our focus on safety, we will have volunteers based at each end of the road closures. These volunteers will inform cyclists when a car is approaching and will check in with motorists before they enter the closed road, to encourage them to be alert and careful as they climb or descend the hill. We will also post volunteers at points along the road, such as blind corners, to assist with supporting the safety of all road users.

During this event we ask that you drive with extreme caution when coming or going from your house as there will be many riders on the road, families with young children, and your neighbours. With this letter we have included 2 Yellow Passes that we ask you to place on your vehicle’s dashboard to help us identify who lives on the road and who is permitted to pass through. We ask that you stop at the road closure, roll down your window, and present the pass to the volunteers monitoring that area.  They will provide you with some additional information about where we are in the event.  

New Hope Community Bikes is a cycle education charity that provides safe cycling instruction to over 1200 children each year in Hamilton. Generally, our programming and resources are geared to vulnerable populations. In addition to teaching children how to ride a bike we teach bike repair classes to the general public, provide bicycle rides to isolated seniors, support the development of cycling among women, and help develop bike related programming across Ontario. 

We welcome any spectators who may want to cheer on riders to gather at the top of the hill. As always, we are grateful for your support of promoting safe cycling so that from children to seniors, everyone can receive the physical and mental health benefits that cycling provides!

For more information about the event or our organization please visit www.newhopecommunitybikes.com/everesting. If you have any questions about this road closure, please contact: 

Sincerely,

Tammy Heidbuurt

Executive Director, New Hope Community Bikes 

905-807-8666 

tammy.heidbuurt@newhopecommunitybikes.com