It’s been two months, 23 days and about four and a half hours since we started our RoadTrip tour across Ontario. What a journey it’s been! We’ve seen small towns, big cities, and even one or two people dressed up like Elvis. It’s hard to believe we’re approaching the final leg of our journey.

The first stop on our RethinkTires RoadTrip in Bowmanville seems like just yesterday. Since then, we’ve rolled our way across the province visiting ribfests, multicultural events, and even made our way to the nation’s capital to celebrate Canada Day. Along the way we’ve had the opportunity to chat with Ontarians about the OTS program and what it has accomplished for our province. Even with such a wide variety of events, spread throughout Ontario, one common theme has stood out – Ontarians are passionate about recycling tires.

Throughout our travels, we’ve had the opportunity to visit some of the most beautiful parts of the province, but the best part has been the amazing people we’ve met. Visitors at the local events we toured approached our booth to express their gratitude for OTS and its programs. When we told them OTS had recently surpassed a total of 90 million tires recycled, they left even more impressed.

Beyond the sheer volume of tires that have been recycled, people have also been intrigued by the recycled tire products displayed at the RoadTrip booth. Those familiar with OTS and those just discovering it, were amazed by the range of recycled tire products available for their home and garden projects. Countless times on the RoadTrip we had visitors stop in their tracks and say “rubber mulch?!” when seeing the product at our booth. They had to stop and feel it to believe it.

For me, the most rewarding part of the tour has been having the opportunity to share information about working towards a more sustainable future through recycling with a younger generation who share my passion. Everyone, despite their age, from adults to young children, were extremely interested in recycling and keen to learn what they could do to contribute.  We are fortunate to have programs like OTS in Ontario that are committed to making our future a little greener.

Even after being around recycled tire products throughout the tour, I still catch myself thinking, “Wow! They can make this out of recycled tires.”