Maria Canton
Northern News Services

NNSL (May 28/99) - A sure sign of summer in Yellowknife is the RCMP bike patrol.

Once again this summer, RCMP have hired on two summer students for the bike beat.

Matthew Penkala and Lindsay Grundy will be seen throughout the city as they patrol school grounds and parks, deal with minor complaints encountered on their patrols and make regular stop-ins with seniors in the community.

"The program has been a tremendous success and it helps us on many different levels," said Sgt. Marlin Degrand of the Yellowknife RCMP.

A new aspect of the program this year, is the contact with seniors in the community.

Through the students, the RCMP will be able to keep in close contact with seniors, better ensuring their safety and well being.

"We're working in conjunction with the Seniors Centre and Social Services to have them (the bike patrollers) stop-in on seniors who live on their own, both in private residences and at the Baker Centre," Degrand said.

And on a different level, the bike patrol position provides the students with the opportunity to decide if the police force is a career they would like to pursue and the RCMP are able to evaluate what may be potential candidates.

"So far everything is going well," said Lindsay Grundy. "We've recovered a few bikes that have been reported stolen or missing and we've been visiting with the elders at the Baker Centre."

Both Penkala and Grundy were selected by a panel and are appointed under the RCMP act, a process similar to the appointment of auxiliary constables.

They can enforce the law, within limits, and are equipped with the knowledge and ability to extract themselves from confrontational situations.

If a situation occurs, however, they will radio regular RCMP members to deal with any potential problems.

"They aren't armed, but they do have radios," said Sgt. Degrand. "You need to have special training before you're allowed to carry batons or pepper spray, and that isn't really the nature of their position."

Over 200 bikes were recovered last year by the bike patrol.