With smiles on their faces, the Destinations Unlimited team, wearing a mixture of raincoats and superhero costumes, cycled down Goderich Street in the pouring rain, waving to pedestrians and passing motorists.

Hub Staff

Despite cold temperatures and pouring rain on May 5, three brave Saugeen Shores teams gathered at the Giant Tiger Plaza in Port Elgin, donning their rain gear - and for some their superhero costumes - as they climbed aboard the 30 seat Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Big Bike to ride for a cause.

1.6 million Canadians live with heart disease and stroke with cardiovascular disease being a leading cause of death for Canadians. Every seven minutes someone in Canada dies from heart disease or stroke.

The Heart and Stroke's annual event raises over $8 million each year, from communities all across Canada, with more than 70,000 riders participating.

Heart and Stroke Grey Bruce Area Manager Carol Potter said May 10 that the combined total of online and other pledges from the three participating teams in Saugeen Shores was $8,770. “That's awesome,” she said. “Despite the rain and the cold weather it is up about 10 percent from last year.” Potter added that the Big Bike had now left the Grey Bruce area on its way to Orillia.

The three participating teams, Saugeen Shores Family Eye Care's Cardiac Cruisers, Destinations Unlimited Has Heart and Saugeen Shores Has Heart took turns pedalling their way approximately 2 kilometres north along Goderich Street to downtown Port Elgin and back, cheering and waving to passing motorists as they battled the elements.

Local resident, Saugeen Shores Has Heart Team Captain and Heart and Stroke volunteer, Mary Anne Walter, said that she decided to captain the community team this year to get the community involved and show that Saugeen Shores does have heart. “You never know who it's going to effect...we know it can hit old, young, male, female,” she said, adding that there were people riding the bike that were heart attack survivors.

Steph Carr, Team Captain of the Saugeen Shores Family Eye Care's Cardiac Cruisers said that their team rode in memory of a father of one of their staff members who passed away from heart disease two years ago.

The Destinations Unlimited team, who adopt a different theme each year, changed out of their Disney character outfits from their 2016 ride and donned this year’s superhero costumes. Team Captain Roberta Burton, a heart attack survivor herself, said she had been participating in the event for the past five years. “Everybody rides for someone here, a memory of someone,” she said.

Co-ordinator of the Big Bike program with Heart and Stroke Grey-Bruce, Lana Marie Clendenning thanked riders from and for her own heart. “I did have heart surgery three years ago, I was defibrillated seven years ago, so without your help I wouldn't be here today,” she said.

The Saugeen Shores Has Heart community team prepare to get ready for their Big Bike ride May 5 in support of Heart and Stroke.

The Cardiac Cruisers dressed for the elements for their Big Bike ride May 5.

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? The Destinations Unlimited team donned their favourite superhero costumes from Wonder Woman to Captain America.

The Saugeen Shores Has Heart team leaves the Giant Tiger Plaza in Port Elgin to start their ride, raising money for Heart and Stroke.

Still peddling hard, the rain sodden Cardiac Cruisers complete their Big Bike route.