Matt Devine wants to ride his bicycle ... all across Canada.
The 56-year-old from Edmonton is riding from Halifax to Victoria, then north to the Yukon and Northwest Territories, and eventually back to Edmonton.
Devine kicked things off on May 20, and the roughly 13,000 km journey will have a stop in Barrie on Sunday.
The Ride for Change initiative is meant to "inspire people to move and find purpose to enrich their lives and give back to their communities," stated on the website, with Devine telling Barrie 360 that he found his true path through this.
"I was the CEO of a company and I said, 'I'm done, I don't want to work in an environment anymore that isn't filling my soul, isn't my purpose,'" Devine said. "So I said, 'I want to do something bigger and better.'"
Funds raised through this endeavour will go towards You Can Ride 2, an Alberta-based charity that offers children with disabilities the opportunity to ride a bike.
Though, because there is no chapter of the charity in the area, funds raised during this portion of the journey will go to Barrie's Children's Treatment Network.
Devine will be rolling into their Inclusive Equipment Fair event on Sunday - as a special guest - taking place at the Barrie Common Roof, 165 Ferris Lane, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Activities include outdoor games, inclusive equipment vendors, and a ride-through bike wash station. Participants must be accompanied by a parent or guardian and wear a helmet when biking.
To register for the free event, click here.
For Devine, this isn't his first long-distance adventure, as he once weighed 300 lbs and dealt with addiction and mental health struggles before changing his lifestyle en route to a 300 km run through the Canadian Rockies - raising $60,000 for a children’s charity.
"I want to try to help motivate people and inspire people to change their lives," Devine said.
You can follow Devine's adventure through his Instagram page.
Banner image via Matt Devine (Ride for Change website).
