by Clare Shrybman for TRNTO

The staff at Toronto local, Mariposa Bicycles, have been constructing hand-built bicycles since 1969.  The company, applying an artisanal process to bicycle construction, crafts each custom steel cycle to the individual rider’s needs. The company’s website says their bikes are built by cyclists for cyclists.

Dede Barry runs the company with her husband Michael Barry Jr., both are former professional cyclists. Dede rode with the U.S. Olympic team in Athens, Greece in 2004 garnering a silver medal, and both Dede and Michael raced professionally in Europe for many years before moving to Toronto.

A true family business, the company was originally founded by the late Mike Barry Sr., who ran the company until he retired in 2007. Barry Sr. maintained the location as a storage facility for his bicycles, and Dede and Michael Jr. restarted the business in 2014 when they returned from Europe.

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Dede Barry

Dede Barry is a Silver medallist from the 2004 Athens Olympics and multiple medallist of World, National and Pan-American Championships. She is now an owner of Mariposa Bicycles and continues to ride her bike daily in and around Toronto and guides cycling tours internationally.