May is National Bike Month
Marin County Bicycle Coalition is hosting a variety of activities.
See below to learn how you can participate in the fun!
Thursday, May 18 marks the San Francisco Bay Area’s 12th annual Bike to Work Day, a celebration that promotes bicycling as a healthy, fun, and viable form of transportation. The month of May is also National Bike Month.
Throughout the Bay Area, dozens of local events taking place during the month of May will get people excited about bicycling and the benefits it provides for public health, traffic reduction, and our environment. On the morning of Bike to Work Day, May 18, Energizer Stations will be located along local bike commute routes in all nine Bay Area counties to provide free beverages, snacks, giveaways and encouragement to bicyclists.
Twelve of these energizer stations will be set up in Marin to cheer the local participants. Stop by one as you commute in the morning. In the afternoon from 4 to 6 PM , celebrate the 50th birthday of National Bike Month with cake and coffee, and congratulate our Bike Commuter of the Year winner (a ceremonial plaque will be presented!) at Paradigm Cycles in San Anselmo.
New this year is the Team Bike Challenge to encourage existing cyclists to recruit friends, co-workers, “Big Wheel” figures, and novice riders to bicycle to work, school, errands, or play during the month of May. Teams track their trips for points and compete for a grand prize.
Get your bike checked out during the Safety Check special offer at local bike shops. From May 1-17, participating bike shops will be offering a $10, 10-minute Bicycle Safety Check to help cyclists prepare for Bike to Work Day. For $10, you get: tire inflation, chain lubrication, plus a bike safety assessment and recommendations.
On Saturday, May 20, MCBC will host a bike ride along the North-South Greenway. Cyclists should meet at Albert Park in San Rafael at Noon. The ride will proceed from San Rafael to Sausalito along the North-South Greenway, with special appearances by guest speakers along the way. The ride will end with a party at Wilderness Trail Bikes from 4 to 6 PM, 475 Miller Avenue in Mill Valley. Share food and music with us as we celebrate Bike Week!
According to Census data, approximately 36,000 Bay Area residents use a bicycle as their primary means of getting to work each day. On Bike to Work Day, organizers are expecting from 50,000 to 100,000 participants. Cole Portocarrero, the event coordinator for Bike to Work Day says, “Bicycling can be done by anyone, for many types of trips, and at any time. We hope that people will be inspired by Bike to Work Day to ride their bikes to work, to shop, to transit, for errands, or even just for fun. Bicycling is good for you, and for the environment.”
Cyclists who fill out an official Bike to Work Day 2006 registration form will be eligible to win the grand prize donated by event sponsors. Online registration is available at the www.511.org web site.
Consider biking to transit if you can’t bike all the way to work. Most Bay Area transit carriers have bike facilities such as lockers and bike racks.
The San Francisco Bay Area’s Bike to Work Day 2006 promotions are being organized by the Bay Area Bicycle Coalition, county congestion management agencies, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, and hundreds of local volunteers. For more information, visit 511.org or call 511 and say “bicycling”. The 511.org web site provides information about Energizer Stations, registration, prizes, the Team Bike Challenge, nominating a Bike Commuter of the Year, finding bike routes, taking bikes on transit, locating a bike buddy, Bike to Work Week and National Bike Month activities and Bike to Work Day “after parties.”
Get your bike tuned up now, and get ready to shift gears!
Click here for a list of Marin Energizer Stations.
Click here for information about the Team Bike Challenge.
Click here for details about the Bicycle Safety Check Special Offer.
Click here to learn more about the North-South Greenway Tour.
Click here to find your local bike shops.
Click here to view our 2005 Bike to Work Day photo gallery.
