The newsletter also includes information about how to volunteer with your friends and neighbours at this year’s street festivals. Sign up today!

There’s plenty more to read in the May newsletter – enjoy and get ready for all the fun we’re going to have in June!

Show us what Car Free Day in Vancouver means to you! Based on the success of LA’s CicLAvia Facebook cover series, we’re launching a contest to gather your images for our own get-the-word-out campaign.

Vancouver photographers, artists, kids, creative types: Send us your images (photos or drawings) and we’ll choose up to five for Facebook cover photos or social media profile pictures that Car Free Day supporters can use in the days leading up to June 16th, 2013.

Here are some great examples:

For any images we receive:

• The image needs to convey the spirit of Car Free Day (no cars, fun-for-free, D.I.Y.)
• You need to own the image or have rights to reproduce it
• You acknowledge that we may alter the image by including the Car Free Day logo, date and time, etc.
• You acknowledge that we will be releasing the image on social media for other supporters of Car Free Day to use.

Available prizes:

• Up to four wristbands to the Car Free Day after-party
• Moksha Yoga passes
• Car Free Day t-shirt

Contest deadline is Monday, June 3, 2013. Please email your submissions to info@carfreevancouver.org with “Facebook Contest” in the subject line or share them with us on our Facebook page.

Send us your image (photo or drawing) and we’ll choose up to five for Facebook cover photos or social media profile pictures that Car Free supporters can use in the days leading up to June 16th, 2013.

For any images we receive:

• The image needs to convey the spirit of Car Free Vancouver Day (no cars, fun-for-free, D.I.Y.)
• You need to own the image or have rights to reproduce it
• You acknowledge that we may alter the image by including the Car Free Day logo, date and time, etc.
• You acknowledge that we will be releasing the image on social media for other supporters of Car Free Vancouver Day to use.

Contest winners will receive two wristbands to the Car Free Vancouver Day organizers’ after-party!

Contest deadline is Monday, May 13, 2013. Please email your submissions to info@carfreevancouver.org with “Facebook Contest” in the subject line.

This month’s newsletter highlights include:

• How to submit a Car Free Vancouver Day participation form and get in touch with us to tell us about the creative and fun-for-free activities you would like to bring to one of our festival sites
• Information about core and day-of volunteers needed for the street festivals on Commercial Drive, Main Street and in the West End
• For Kitsilano residents, tips to help you host a block party with your neighbours on Saturday, June 15th or Sunday, June 16th
• The full details of our Facebook cover photo and profile picture contest
• Art made by Jim Dewar at the 2012 Car Free Vancouver Day festival on Main Street
• Information about the BC General Election and why you should consider riding your bicycle to vote

Last year, we were moved by artist Jim Dewar’s contributions to Car Free Vancouver Day on Main Street. Jim was a participant in Vancouver’s now-dormant Artists in the Streets program, and he spent his time at the Main Street festival drawing in the street and pleasing passersby with his art. He and photographer Adrienne MacAllum have kindly allowed us to share these photographs with you:

All of the above photos are courtesy of photographer Adrienne MacAllum and artist Jim Dewar.

Adrienne states: “We had a lot of fun at Car Free Day last year. The day was sunny and hot. While Jim sketched I walked up and down the street enjoying all the fun things that were happening. A lot of people stopped to watch Jim working on his street scenes and seemed to be fascinated watching him work. We stopped in two places along the way. At the last stop he did a great drawing of one of the heritage buildings across the street. I am not sure what we will be doing this year as far as events go but the experience we had at last year’s event was encouraging and gave us confidence to try more public events like this one in the future. Thanks to all for a wonderful day.”

We hope Jim has inspired you. What will you do for your community this year at Car Free Vancouver Day? Tell us about the creative activities you want to bring to car-free streets by submitting a participation form, or run your ideas by us at info@carfreevancouver.org. This is YOUR festival!

The Kitsilano team needs your help organizing this year’s block parties. The first organizational outreach meeting for Car Free Vancouver Kitsilano is scheduled for Sunday, April 7th, 2:00 p.m. at Juliet’s Cafe, 1905 Cornwall Avenue. Everyone is welcome and no experience is required. We encourage you to bring a neighbour or two to the meeting.

For more information about Kitsilano block parties, please visit the Car Free Vancouver Kitsilano web page. If you have any questions, you can get in touch with the Kitsilano crew at kitsilano@carfreevancouver.org.

West End: Sunday, Feb. 24 @ 1:30pm: http://www.carfreevancouver.org/locations/west-end/

Main Street: Sunday, Mar. 3 @ 3:00pm: http://www.carfreevancouver.org/locations/main-street/

Commercial Drive: Tuesday, Mar. 5 @ 7:00pm: http://www.carfreevancouver.org/locations/commercial-drive/

Photo credit: monnibo (Flickr)

You don’t need any experience to participate as a festival organizer. We encourage you to bring your friends to the planning meetings — the more the merrier! We can’t wait to meet you and to hear your wonderful ideas for making this year’s festivals amazing.

CBC Early Edition | High Velocity: Love on Two Wheels

There are also some lovely photos that accompany the show.

Please leave a comment if you have a story you would like to share about love on two wheels.

Below are the responses we received. We now need you and your friends to make some of these ideas happen at this year’s Car Free Vancouver Day festivals on Commercial Drive and Main Street and in the West End and Kitsilano on Sunday, June 16th (Father’s Day). If you can or want to bring some of these ideas to life, please get involved in this year’s festivals! No experience is necessary. Contact us if you need more information or guidance. Other ideas are also more than welcome. Be creative and wonderful!

• Please Fireworks and lots of foam
• U2 charity concert like Bono usually does
• Wheelchair basketball
• Primal Scream
• Ponies!
• Spring Bike Rides
• Paper Mural: anyone can add to it, $2 to paint
• All kinds of popcorn
• Painted board of hipsters where people can poke their heads through and take pictures of themselves
• How about Car Free Kerrisdale?
• Local Farmers x 3
• Reggaelution
• Roller Disco
• Laughing Day contests
• Picnic Blankets to sit on and watch the world go by
• Lemonade stands: basil, pink grapefruit, mint
• Photo tents, dress up and props
• Random Group Games, rope in strangers and make them play
• Spontaneous flash mobs
• Dance off with prizes
• Booth with pictures from previous car free days
• Walk-through sculptures
• Wish trees
• Box: Leave a Message, Take a Message
• My band Vertigo
• Maddy dancing Zumba
• Bouncy castle for kids (er…adults too)
• Bikes
• More Sundays
• Food Vendor Trucks
• Bears on bicycles
• Dancing on the street
• Horseback riding down the street
• Alternative Economics Presentation booth
• Roving theatrics (stilts, jugglers)
• An example of a complete street
• Architect design contest for park lets?
• Clowns and Mimes x 4
• Street hockey with intermittent yelling of “No Car”
• Sidewalk patios for food and drink
• Lemonade: cherry flavoured
• Zoltar
• Juggling
• Music
• Bubbles!
• Laughing therapy session
• Baking workshop
• Face painting
• Need medical scientist for our science project: joyscience@yahoo.com
• Healthy food
• Opportunities for social enterprises
• Patch of green grass heaven on the street
• I’d like to see permanent car free areas in central arts of Vancouver
• Balloons
• Pogo sticks
• Closed W. Broadway in Kits for music, food, health and environment
• Street music
• Hula Hoops
• Unicorns
• Dancing in the street
• Street painting
• They took our job
• Live music
• Mini doughnuts
• Karaoke
• Photo booth
• Playground
• Beaumont Studio Stage
• Slip and Slide
• Drum circle
• All Commercial Drive from North Grandview to Venables
• Walkers, bikers, jugglers
• Commuter route the old railway line from Marpole to Downtown
• Put one of these request boards at every festival
• Bike Mall: every type of 2-3 wheeled contraption out there and find out where you can be set up with no-carbon travel
• Unicycles
• No cars
• More than one Sunday
• Drop the car key, pick up my bike
• Roller hockey
• Ritual sacrificing of car
• Love
• Happy family, health, less pollution