Spin cyclists to ‘Spin Through the Seasons’ Saturday at Oshawa’s ACE Climatic Wind Tunnel
Published March 10, 2023 at 10:43 am
‘Extreme’ spin cyclists at Ontario Tech University will get a chance to Spin Through the Seasons Saturday when they cycle through an arctic snowstorm, a scorching Sahara sun, a breezy Caribbean coast and a humid tropical storm without ever leaving Oshawa.
The school will be staging the Ridgebacks Extreme Challenge event Saturday, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., where 65 riders will brave the elements served up by Ontario Tech’s five-storey ACE Climatic Wind Tunnel, a research, development and product-testing centre that is one of the most sophisticated of its kind in the world.
The ACE Climatic Wind Tunnel, popular among auto manufacturers like General Motors for testing vehicles in all weather conditions, offers users everything from searing desert heat with a solar array, to rain, freezing rain, light snow and blizzards – all with wind speeds capable of reaching 300 km/h and at temperatures ranging from -40˚C to +60˚C.
On Saturday ACE will be set up for the Ridgebacks Extreme Challenge, led by multi-sport Team Canada athlete and spin instructor, Kim Haagmans-Hawke, who will lead four separate one-hour spin classes, each featuring weather from one of the four seasons.
The four-hour ride is a fundraiser in support of the Adopt-a-Ridgeback Fund for Ontario Tech’s varsity sports programs.
This is the second-ever Ridgebacks Extreme Challenge after a successful initial run (pre-pandemic) in 2019. Highlights are available from the inaugural Spin Through the Seasons.
Videos
‘Spinning Through the Seasons’ – Summer