How BC Hughes Helps Power the Ride the Highlands Experience
For over 20 years, the team at BC Hughes has been helping destinations across Canada think differently about tourism and realize their full potential through innovative experience development. This means rolling up their sleeves and working with regional tourism organizations (such as OHTO), communities, counties, provinces and business operators to help craft new and refined visitor experiences.
Chris, Bev and Kristin provide expert guidance in experiential design through strategic planning, facilitated workshops, and personalized coaching, helping organizations craft distinctive experiences that resonate with visitors.
Developing touring routes, especially for motorcycles, is one of BC Hughes’ specialities. Their work with Ontario’s Highlands Tourism Organization (OHTO) began over 13 years ago, with the seed of an idea to leverage the region’s diverse scenery, twisty roads and incredible hospitality to develop a new tourism experience. That idea became Ride the Highlands.
Since the beginning, Ride the Highlands has grown to become one of the most iconic motorcycle destinations in Canada, resulting in thousands of kilometres of routes, hundreds of motorcycle-friendly businesses and riders arriving from across Ontario, Quebec, the United States and sometimes even further.
The entire team at BC Hughes is incredibly proud of Ride the Highlands and are honoured to work with the amazing operators and destination marketing organizations that make it a resounding success.
BC Hughes’ work with Ride the Highlands is powered by a team that blends strategic insight with creative, hands on execution. Each member contributes in a unique way. Here’s a chance to meet the people behind the Ride the Highlands emails, maps, social posts, media visits, route development, strategic thinking, and maybe learn a few things you didn’t know about the crew.
Chris Hughes – Twisty Route Developer, Test Rider, Media Guide & Cinnamon Bun Seeker
Chris has always been driven to create memorable visitor experiences. A decade in municipal destination management taught him that tourism thrives on constant innovation, reinvestment, and a deep understanding of what guests truly value.
Since joining BC Hughes in 2010, he has been instrumental in developing new tourism experiences across the country. With motorsports as a lifelong passion, Chris has worked closely with partners to harness the riding community and turn it into a major tourism driver.
Chris’s role with OHTO and Ride the Highlands is to ensure the rider experience is world class. If there’s a new road to be explored, Chris is probably already wondering what it looks like on a motorcycle. He works with Kristin to refine existing routes, develop new routes, and helps tell the story by guiding media on fam tours and shoots. His white KTM 990 Adventure motorcycle has become somewhat of a legend over the years.
Chris says that what makes Ride the Highlands so special is the people. “You can find great roads almost everywhere, but what keeps people coming back year after year is the warm hospitality that happens when the bike is parked.”
Kristin Schaab – Chief Storyteller, Marketing & Media Guru, Expert Route Developer, Rider Support & Operator Cheerleader
Kristin has been a core part of the BC Hughes team for more than 14 years, bringing her communications and marketing degree, and her deep love of tourism, to every project. She is the driving force behind how BC Hughes shapes and shares the stories of the experiences it creates.
As a key member of the Ride the Highlands team, Kristin manages the program’s marketing and ensures its story is told consistently and compellingly across all platforms. She knows every operator by name and works closely with them to maintain the program’s signature motorcycle‑friendly culture.
Kristin provides support to riders, develops new routes, plans media visits, and keeps the Ride the Highlands brand fresh, engaging, and aligned with what riders’ value most. She’s incredibly proud that Ride the Highlands attracts riders from across Ontario, Quebec, and the United States; inviting them to experience a place she considers truly special.
Bev Hughes – Strategic Planner, Budget Caretaker, Copy Editor & Keeper of the Big Picture
Bev founded BC Hughes in 2006 after her work with Intrawest’s destination development team sparked a passion for helping destinations innovate and grow. With a finance and business background, Bev blends analytical precision with operational thinking; a combination that has shaped BC Hughes’ reputation for research based strategy, trend aligned planning, and grounded, defensible decision making.
While Chris is looking for the next great twisty road and Kristin is thinking about how to tell the story, Bev is often the one making sure the plan, budget and big picture don't get lost somewhere along the way. Bev’s role with Ride the Highlands is to keep the program strategically aligned, on budget, and moving according to plan.
She ensures every initiative fits the broader vision, every dollar is maximized, and every decision supports the program’s long term goals. Bev is deeply motivated by the economic impact motorcycle touring has on Ontario’s Highlands, supporting the area’s operators, strengthening communities and bringing new energy to the region.
More Than Roads
Ride the Highlands may be built around some of the best motorcycle roads in Ontario, but the BC Hughes team knows that the experience is about much more than the pavement. It’s about the people riders meet along the way. The communities they discover. The operators who wave from the door, pour the coffee, serve the pizza, share the local story and make riders feel welcome.
For Chris, Kristin and Bev, that’s what makes the work so rewarding. They get to explore. They get to create. They get to work with incredible tourism operators. They get to find new roads and new stories, and then share this region with riders and invite them to come experience it for themselves.
And yes, there may occasionally be a cinnamon bun involved.
After more than 13 years, the team at BC Hughes is still looking around Ontario’s Highlands and asking the same question:
Where should we ride next?
