Black History Month Cyclist Spotlight – Roland Fletcher

Roland Fletcher

How long have you been cycling?

I first started cycling as a kid in the early ’90s, around six or seven years old. I grew up in Malvern on the east side of Scarborough. On weekends, my dad would take me to a school nearby when the parking lot and school grounds were empty and teach me how to ride my bike. Each week we’d inch the training wheels up a little more until I didn’t need them anymore. After elementary school I didn’t touch a bike again until I moved downtown Toronto in 2010. As an adult, cycling was almost entirely utilitarian for me until about 2017.

How did you get into cycling?

When I moved to downtown Toronto in 2010, my girlfriend, now my wife, was already living downtown and suggested I get a bike to move around the city more efficiently. We’d do occasional leisure rides on weekends along the lakeshore, heading as far west from Toronto as we comfortably could. Toronto to Port Credit became our benchmark ride.

What cycling club or team do you ride with?

I ride with two clubs in the GTA. Morning Glory Cycling Club – High Park is where I do most of my group riding. It was the first club I joined, and I learned a tremendous amount from its expansive network of riders.

I also ride and race with Midweek Cycling Club, where I currently sit on the board of directors. I grew up playing competitive sports, so I naturally gravitated toward the racing side of cycling. midweek hosts a weekly criterium series in the summer and cyclocross in the fall, along with a strong learn-to-race program where riders can safely develop their skills on a closed course. The cycling community has supported my wife and I in many ways, so I try to give back where I can.

Where is your favorite place to ride your bike?

My favorite place to ride changes every year as I discover new routes and destinations. I prefer rides that start from my front door in Toronto and head north or west as I’d rather not have to drive to begin a ride.

A few standouts:

• High Park – Ellis Park loop (It includes a short and punchy switchback)
• Schomberg, with a stop at Grackle Coffee
• Bikepacking the Log Driver’s Waltz route through the Ottawa Valley and Quebec

How has community played a role in your experience as a cyclist?

Without the right community around me, I may not have continued cycling. On one of my  first group rides, someone behind me said, “Who’s the Black guy?” It immediately made me feel like I wasn’t in a safe space and that I was an outsider who stood out for being different. Thankfully, just minutes later, another rider was incredibly welcoming and helped me feel comfortable within the group. That moment mattered.

Since then, I’ve found real community in the sport. Sometimes that meant building it myself and inviting people to ride with me. Other times the community reached out and invited me in. It’s a two way street where you get out what you put in. Over the last few years, I’ve seen different cycling communities overlap and connect in really beautiful, organic ways. 

What does Black History Month mean to you personally?

Black History Month is deeply personal for me. It’s the month my mother was born and the month my father’s homeland Grenada gained independence. It carries pride and history in my own family story.

More broadly, I see it as an opportunity for people to be inspired by the positive impact Black people have made in the world. So often we hear about an invention or achievement by a Black person followed by, “I didn’t know a Black person created that.” I hope we move toward a future where those contributions are recognized as an expected and integral part of our shared history and not a surprise. 

What changes would you like to see in cycling to make it more inclusive and accessible?

For me, simply seeing other Black cyclists in the sport sparked enough curiosity and confidence to step out my front door in Lycra for the first time. After those early rides, I didn’t need that push anymore and I began pulling others along with me. 

I’d like to see cycling continue to embrace and reflect its diversity. Seeing the enormous crowds at the UCI World Championships in Rwanda was inspiring, and I know those images have ignited passion in future cycling champions around the world. 

I’d love to see more images and stories of people from diverse backgrounds enjoying cycling in diverse ways because representation helps people see what’s possible for themselves.