The Origin of The Police Pedal Cycle Gymkhana [courtesy of an interview with Mr. Raymond Sousa]. Special thanks to Mr. Roger Sherratt for conducting the interview and writing the article.

During this year’s Police Week activities, the Bermuda Police Service is reviving the annual Police Pedal Cycle Gymkhana, one of the most popular community events ever organized by the Police, much to the delight of the person who originally conceived the idea way back in the 1960’s, former police constable Ray Sousa.

Ray Sousa is now a Community Services Coordinator, in Western Australia. In 1966 he joined the Bermuda Police Force as a young constable of Portuguese background. Ray was born and raised in the area of Glebe Road, St. Monica’s Mission (now commonly referred to as “42nd Street”). Ray had been an active Scout Leader before joining the Police Force so he was used to interacting with children and youths. As a young P.C. he recalls spending a lot of time visiting Spanish Point where he became a Parish Constable, and he was struck by how many kids were very talented at riding their pedal cycles, doing “wheelies”, balancing on stationery bikes, and riding fast. 

While attending a Gabriel Richards Leadership Course he met Mr. Everett Nance who had been brought to Bermuda to set up a YMCA in Hamilton. Mr. Nance was a former basketball player and an excellent youth leader, and Ray bounced around with Mr. Nance the idea of organizing a children’s/youth pedal cycle competition run by the Police. At that time there was a great deal of hostility towards the Police, and the two decided that the best way of succeeding was to have a joint venture between the Police and the YMCA.

Ray’s next move was to obtain permission from the Police to move forward with his plans and put together a team to organize the event. At about that time he was also running a scout camp and one day the camp was visited by the then Minister for Youth and Sport, the Hon. Lenny Swan and Bermuda’s Youth Coordinator, Mr. Reggie Ming. Never one to shy away from sharing his ideas, Ray explained his plans to them and both expressed their full support.

Once the Police gave official approval, Ray got together with two other young constables, Gary Perinchief and Roger Sherratt. As Ray explains, “At that time one of the most popular TV shows was ‘Mod Squad’ about cool black and white detectives. I saw the value of a mixed race Police committee. Gary Perinchief was keen, and so was Roger Sherratt who came up with the name ‘Pedal Cycle Gymkhana’.”

Ray had a clear vision of children competing for gold, silver and bronze medals, and everyone taking home something to show they had competed in the first ever Pedal Cycle Gymkhana – a Certificate of Participation. However it was necessary to approach local businesses to seek sponsorship for trophies and prizes. Ray also insisted that the three approach the Bermuda Industrial Union because he knew it was essential to get the support of the black community. The three young officers were well received by BIU President Ottiwell Simmons and his Committee, and the BIU kindly donated a trophy made by one of their members.

The three officers personally visited most schools on the Island during morning assemblies to explain the gymkhana to young children and students. They received permission to hold the Gymkhana over 2 days at Bernard Park, and in order to attract as many spectators as possible they also organized a series of extra events.

The new Police caravan was set up in Bernard Park, and as a result of rumours about sabotaging the caravan and the event, Ray, Roger and Gary spent all night guarding the Park and their equipment. Ray recalls  having a group of youths on motor cycles arriving very late a night in a threatening manner, and the officers scared them away with spotlights and by firing a starting pistol into their loud speaker system!

On that first morning over 500 children arrived in Bernard Park with their pedal cycles, all of which were examined by Police mechanics to make sure their brakes were properly adjusted. Spectators were said to number in the thousands, and Ray was finally able to relax as he saw his dream unfolding. 

Ray says, “Roger’s organizing ability kicked in as he coordinated the races and extra events. We had a variety of bike races for boys and for girls, ranging from short sprints and lap races, around the Park, slalom races between Police traffic cones, slow races where the winner was the last one to finish – without falling off their cycle, and obstacle races where the kids had to dip their heads into a bucket of water to take out an apple, then crawl under a net (without their bikes), jump through a hoola hoop, and finally they had to jump into a sack and push their bikes across the finish line while still in the sack and with an apple in their mouths. Extra events included a karate display, a display by our very popular Police Motor Cycle Display Team, and for the finale we had the Gombeys performing in front of a huge audience. It was heart-warming to see the number of Police volunteers, Bermudians, West Indian, Irish, Scottish and English who came to help. There was also a large crowd of spectators, some say well over 5000. There were even reports of businesses closing to witness the event. It was a great success”.

“Due to the help we received from all the volunteer police officers I was able to spend time witnessing events and talking to competitors and spectators. I saw a lot of good sportsmanship, with the kids shaking hands after races.  I saw kids from both white and black families talking to each other. I saw kids checking out each other’s bikes, giving minor first aid to those who got injured. I have no doubt that friendships were formed from that event, and at least for two days in Bermuda’s history the Police were heroes in the eyes of the youth on the Island.

“After that I saw things a lot differently. We had started with a very simple idea that led to people showing respect for each other. The event succeeded because of excellent cooperation between the Police and the YMCA, the support of the Minister for Sport and Youth, and our sponsors, including the BIU. But most importantly Bermudians from all walks of life, despite any prejudice they might have had, were willing to ‘Give Peace a Chance’.”

The Police Pedal Cycle Gymkhana became a popular annual event and was held for many years on the Police Sports Field at Prospect. It has been re-introduced for the first time in 18 years and when asked for his reaction Ray Sousa said, “I am very proud to hear that the Police Service is reviving the Cycle Gymkhana. It’s a simple formula, having volunteer police officers interacting with children of all ages. I wish them every success next Saturday.”