OLDS — Mountain View Museum & Archives (MVMA) manager and programmer Chantal Marchildon believes a unique event they held recently has great potential to grow in the coming years.
It’s called Bike for History.
During the event, held in late August, Olds and area residents were encouraged to come down to the museum and ride their bikes through the area to track down historic buildings and businesses via cryptic clues about their history.
For example, one clue said, “this haberdashery has the best looking cash register in town. Its textiles have graced the aisles of many weddings and graduations.
“Started by Tom and Carrie, this is the place to go for a ‘necktie party.’”
Another said, “All people need a store, and in Olds, this is it. You can’t get a bale of hay or chicken feed here anymore, but it is a delight for ‘sew sew’ enthusiasts and those who, like a cat, love to play with a ball of yarn.”
A third clue said, “this new place is an old place that is named for an exotic animal. Where exotic dancers used to be, this is now an eatery. A really different atmosphere will great you in a place where it’s actually fun to be Blue.”
Rebecca Henderson and her children Oria, 6, and Webb, 7, were among those who participated.
Rebecca said they learned about the event on social media.
She said she saw it as “just a way to get the kids out on a Saturday” and learn about local history at the same time.
“We like to do this stuff in the Uptowne area,” she said. “These guys like exploring.”
Marchildon said when the MVMA came up with the Bike for History idea, local businesses were very enthusiastic.
She said she could envision a situation in the future in which some businesses might reward people in some way for participating.
