Derek Neary
Northern News Services

NNSL (May 27/98) - Wendy Burrill and Matthew Penkala are going to do a lot of pedalling this summer.

Together, they form the RCMP summer bike-patrol team. The duo have been outfitted with uniforms, given new running shoes and, most importantly, provided with Barrego GT 24-speed mountain bikes.

"They're very nice," Penkala, 18, said of the bicycles, on which he and Burrill can be found for up to six hours each day, five days per week for a total of 17 weeks.

"You just have to be in shape. It's not easy," said Penkala, alluding to the winds and bumpy roads.

Fittingly, their primary duties revolve around bicycles. They remind other cyclists to abide by the rules of the road, make reports of lost bikes and store found ones.

They are also periodically asked by parents to speak to their children who steal bicycles.

Three times a week they make stops at the schools and search through the racks for bicycles that have been reported stolen.

On Sunday, a brand new green 18-speed was turned in to the police. Burrill, 21, said it's extremely important for cyclists to copy down the serial numbers from their bike frames.

"That can be the difference between getting it back and not getting it back," she said, adding that the bikes are on display for public viewing each Wednesday and Friday at noon at the Gerry Murphy Arena.

Burrill, who has completed her third year of cellular biology at the University of Calgary, is in her second summer on the job. Penkala just completed his freshman year at the University of Lethbridge, where he is studying computer science and criminology, He is a rookie on the patrol.

Both hope to someday enter careers with the RCMP.

There was a third patrol position but the candidate didn't follow through and then it was too late to fill it, according to RCMP Community Policing Sgt. Tom Steggles.

Last summer Yellowknife had four bike-patrol students. This year, federal funding limited the total number of positions in the North and they have to be distributed as evenly as possible, Steggles said.