With a little imagination, hard work, and a lot of community support, Peterborough locals Hillary Flood and Pete Rellinger have launched PedalBoro, their 15-passenger party bike business.
PedalBoro held its official unveiling Tuesday (July 16) with a pedal-powered tour unlike any other for local media and community partners.
The PedalBoro group cycle experience takes passengers on a heart-pumping, gastronomic adventure tour of downtown Peterborough’s vibrant food and beverage scene. This new group pedaling concept creates an eco-friendly transportation alternative for exploring Peterborough’s historic downtown.
PedalBoro is hosting Pub Crawls in the downtown core Thursday through Sunday, showcasing local, regional and Ontario craft beers by visiting three local pubs on its pedaling tour. Brew stops include Publican House, The Olde Stone, Next Door and The Twisted Wheel. The tour will feature Publican House and Olde Stone locally made craft ales as well as regional tastings featuring Bobcaygeon’s Old Dog Brewing and Ontario craft organic beer from Cameron’s Brewery.
“We plan to expand later on in the summer with a food tour experience we’re calling Dish Crawls where folks will be able to experience a progressive meal on the city’s most unique bike,” says Pete.
“These guided food tours will pedal to four restaurants in one night. Restaurant-hosted Dish Crawls will be more of a special event hosted monthly by the PedalBoro team with local chefs and owners inviting you to try the best dishes at their restaurants.”
The group pedaling concept at the heart of PedalBoro is part of a growing cycle tourism phenomenon that’s been sweeping the nation. Peterborough is now the fifth Canadian city to host this new form of cycle tourism in Canada.
“We are extremely excited for the launch of PedalBoro,” says Terry Guiel, executive director of the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA).
“This is exactly the kind of fun, whimsical and interactive activity we all look for when we go to other cities on vacation, and now we have it in our downtown. We absolutely love PedalBoro and how well it resonates with our already strong bike friendly community”.
“Today’s savvy travellers are craving experiences that are immersive and PedalBoro not only showcases Peterborough’s vibrant downtown area and local businesses but is also a new way for locals and visitors alike to experience our community,” says Kelly Jessup, corporate marketing officer for Peterborough & the Kawarthas Economic Development, adding “The continual development of new and innovative experiences adds value to the quality of life for residents, and also has the added benefit of making the downtown more attractive to visitors.”
“It has been a really wild ride transforming our little bike dream into a fully realized business and we couldn’t have done it without the amazing support of our Peterborough community,” says Hillary.
“Over the past year and a half we have been fully immersed in Peterborough’s local entrepreneurial ecosystem.”
PedalBoro received ongoing mentorship and guidance through Peterborough and the Kawarthas Economic Development’s Business Advisory Centre, and much-needed grant funding through the Starter Company program and the Bear’s Lair Entrepreneurial Competition.
“These programs have been an absolute game changer for us”, says Pete.
Kelly concurs, noting PedalBoro is a great example of the way start-ups can benefit from the collaborative business ecosystem in Peterborough & the Kawarthas.
For more information on PedalBoro, visit www.pedalboro.com and follow PedalBoro on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @PedalBoro.
