TRURO, N.S. — TRURO, N.S. – For Stephen Stewart, biking means being part of a family.
It was his love of family that drew him to the Blessing of the Bikes ceremony in Victoria Park Saturday, where motorcycle enthusiasts caught up with old friends and bowed their heads in prayer for a safe summer of riding.
“It’s a way of life,” said Stewart, from New Glasgow. “It doesn’t matter where you go, the biker community looks after each other. You won’t see a biker leaving someone stranded on the side of the road. As I say, it’s one great big brotherhood.”
It was a brotherhood Stewart first joined when he was only 12 years old, starting off on small dirt bikes and finally graduating to his current Yamaha Midnight Venture.
However, while Stewart enjoyed a day with his extended biker family, his motorcycle was not with him as it is currently undergoing repairs.
In a typical season, Stewart and his wife travel up to 26,000 km, using their bike to haul a camper trailer on weekends away, or attending motorcycle events across the Atlantic provinces and as far away as Ontario.
Unlike many other bikers in Truro on May 4, Stewart is not affiliated with any club.
However, one club who was present at the Blessing of the Bikes was Bikers Against Child Abuse. They support children by attending court cases and providing security, but they do not advocate any revenge against abusers themselves.
One new member was ‘Toes’, who went only by his road name in keeping with BACA’s rules, but was passionate about helping abused children heal.
“It’s just the look…the smile on their face – that’s all you need,” said Toes. “It’s a bunch of brotherhoods. We stick together, so it just makes me feel good. It’s a good cause.”
Event organizer David DeWolfe said just over 200 motorcyclists came to this year’s Blessing of the Bikes. Poor weather likely deterred some guests, but previous years have seen nearly 3,000 attend the ceremony in Victoria Park.
Prayers for a safe and fun riding season were read out by representatives of both the Baha’i and Christian faiths. Truro Mayor Bill Mills and local MLA Lenore Zann also spoke at the event.
