National Bike Challenge off to a Good Start

Thanks to Scott Chilberg for assisting with this post.

May – Bike Month -- kicked off the 2012 Get Up and Ride National Bike Challenge, a free nationwide competition that encourages biking as a primary form of transportation and recreation. The Challenge, which runs through August, gives individuals and teams the opportunity to log their miles and compete for prizes. This is the Challenge’s debut year and the Bicycle Alliance, always seeking ways to grow bike ridership, was excited to step up as state representative.

“Not all of our communities hold Bike to Work events,” stated Bicycle Alliance ED Barbara Culp.  “This is an opportunity for all Washington bike riders to get involved with an organized event that tracks their miles and qualifies them for prizes. For bicyclists who are signed up for local Bike to Work events, this is an incentive to keep their bike momentum going throughout the summer.”

We had 480 Washington bicyclists registered for the first month of the Challenge. Bike riders from Port Angeles to Clarkston are biking to work, to the store and for fun.  Nationally, nearly 26,000 riders were signed up for the Challenge in May. 

Each month, riders’ miles will qualify them for prize drawings both nationally and locally.  Alchemy Goods of Seattle has generously donated some of their products as prizes.  Congratulations to Glen Buhlmann and Dave Braun.  They were the winners of our local prize drawing for May.

The Challenge runs through the end of August so it’s not too late to sign up.  Go to nationalbikechallenge.org to register.