Bike To Work and School Day Off to a Great Start!

I've been all over town on my bike this morning, and I'm seeing bikes everywhere! I was one of many volunteers handing out Thank You packets from Intercity Transit to students arriving at local schools by bike. Then I rode around and checked out the Bike Stop hospitality stations being offered by the City Of Olympia- they were handing out bananas, bike maps, muffins, coupons to local bike shops, bike maps and reflective belts! Next it's off to the Interagency Bike Ride at 11:30 starting in the GA building parking lot. Yay for Bike To School and Work Day!

Bike to School and Work Day Tomorrow!

The weather is forecast to be great tomorrow- keep your fingers crossed, and if it rains, get out there and ride your bike anyway, whaddya say!

• Bicyclce CommuterContest participants enter the actual miles you ride on your log, and then DOUBLE them in the space provided!
• Be sure to stop at one of the Bike Stations around town, see the poster below for exact locations.
• *Kids! If your school is participating in Bike-to-School Day activities, there will be volunteers from Intercity Transit at your school in the morning, handing out goodies to arriving bike riders!

Ecology Team Bike-to-Work Convoy

The Washington State Department of Ecology is participating in the Bicycle Commuter Contest as the Clean Air Act team again this year, and they have 100 riders signed up! Their Team Captain Margaret Hill organized a "Bicycle Convoy" ride-to-work day on Wednesday, May 13, in which over 20 team members took part including Jay Manning, Ecology’s Director.

"Go, Clean Air Act!!"

*If your team is organizing a similar "get-out-the-bikes" event, send me the details and a photo, and I will post it on our blog!

Olympia Bike To Work Day Events

National Bike-To-Work Day Coming up this Friday!

Ride your bike to work, school or on errands on Friday and earn double miles in the Bicycle Commuter Contest!
The City of Olympia will be hosting three Bicyclist Hospitality Stations offering refreshments and goodies for bike commuters. They will be at Heritage Park downtown, Ralph's Thriftway on the Eastside, and the Woodland Trail trailhead at Eastside Street. For area Agency employees, there is the Interagency Bike Ride, starting at 11:30 in the parking lot behind the GA building.
We'll be posting more info later today and tomorrow about these local events, and you can learn more about National Bike-To-Work Day by visiting the League of American Bicyclists site as well. http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/bikemonth/

Remember to keep logging those miles, and keep riding, never mind a little rain! See you out there pedaling!

Bicycle Drawing Winners!!!

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 2009 Bicycle Commuter Contest Bike Drawing!! We performed a random electronic number selection drawing for the two bikes so generously donated by sponsors Jamis Bicycles (thanks to OlyBikes), and New Belgium Brewery.

• Eric Tonder of Olympia won the New Belgium Brewery bike. Eric is a contest veteran, having participated last year, and several past years as well. Eric does his 4-mile one-way commute by bike as often as possible, but also balances a busy schedule and sometimes takes the kids to school in the car. He plans to ride his new bike to work tomorrow, to show all his envious colleagues!
• The winner of the Jamis Comfort Bike is Meg Spidle, a young (4-year-old) but intrepid bicycle commuter! Meg rides her own bike to school, and on longer errands, rides along in a bike trailer. Four members of Meg's family are signed up for this years Contest, and all ride their bikes regularly. Meg's dad commutes year round, regardless of the weather. Though it will be a few years before Meg can ride the Jamis bike on her own, other members of the family will be putting it to good use it in the meantime, according to mom Holly Davies.
  Congratulations Meg and Eric- lucky winners of the BCC Bike Drawing for 2009!!
  Many thanks to Jamis, OlyBikes and New Belgium Brewery for providing the bikes!!

Last Year's Record Participation Surpassed!

Pioneer Elementery School has submitted their team roster with 118 riders, propelling our registrations beyond last year's record of 1488, to a new record of 1575 participants registered so far, with one day left to register. It's not too late to get in on the fun, and benefits to the health of your planet, your community and yourself- sign up today or tomorrow for the 2009 Bicycle Commuter Contest! Registration closes at 7pm Friday, May 8.

For those of you already signed up, remember to keep up with entering your miles on your mileage logs, and most important, keep riding and riding safely! Be brave about the weather, it's still early in the month, and it will improve. This might be just the time to head to your friendly local bike shop to see about fenders, rain gear and expertise on riding in the elements.

*In-Person Registration Deadline Extended*

• We had a successful weekend at two local events- the Lacey Alternative Energy Fair on Saturday, and the Outdoor Life Fair on Sunday- between the two events I signed up 57 more participants for the Bicycle Commuter Contest!
• We have extended the deadline to register: if you are willing to make it down to the Olympia Transit Center, and bring cash or check for $5.00, you can still register for the BCC, until 7pm Friday, May 8. Please do not mail your form in at this point.
• It is now too late to be entered for the drawing for the bicycles we are giving away. The drawing for the bikes will be held today or tomorrow, and results will be posted here, as soon as we are able to contact and notify the winners.
• Our awesome T-shirts are still available at the Transit Center, make sure to pick one up while you're there!

Registration Deadline Approahes!
Saturday May 2 is the official deadline to sign up for the 2009 Bicycle Commuter Contest. We'll be at the Lacey Alternative Energy Fair from 9am - 3pm with Registration Forms, T-shirts and free giveaways for those who sign up. If you can't make it to the fair, there is still time to get down to the Olympia Transit Center and register there. Sign up, ride safely, and ride often!

The 2009 Wrencher's Ball was a huge success! We signed up 85 participants for the Bicycle Commuter Contest and checked over and adjusted 85-90 bicycles for people who had signed up. We had an amazing team of volunteers including five mechanics from four local bike shops.

• Larry Leveen and Ken Sutto from OlyBikes
• Bill Stevenson from the Bike Stand
• Jason Wennstrom from Old Town Bikes
• Derik Archibald from Joy Ride Bicycles

Other excellent independent wrenchers came out to help as well:

• Matthew Mullinix, Dane Clay, Tom Skjervold and Lee Peterson all did heroic service on the wrenches.
• Kris Fransen, Kerry Tarullo, James Wancha, Linda Lawson and Mark Kallas helped with logistics and with keeping track of the bikes and signing people up for the BCC. This event could have never happened without this fantastic and dedicated team! Thanks everybody!

Also big Thank-Yous to those contributing with sustenance for our team:

• San Francisco St. Bakery provided pastries for the morning wrenchers
• Caffe Vita kept us fueled with coffee
• Old School Pizza provided three delicious pies for our lunch

The Wrencher's Ball is Just Around the Corner!

Volunteers from local bike shops will be on hand at the Olympia Transit Center, 222 State Ave in Downtown Olympia, Friday, April 24, from 7am until 4pm (pick your bike up before 5pm) to give your bike a checkover, if you sign up for the Bicycle Commuter Contest.

• Be prepared to leave your bike for a few hours.
• We will inspect your bike for safety issues, and make minor adjustments as needed.
• Typical check-up includes airing up the tires, lubing the chain and cables, minor brake and gear adjustments, making sure nuts and bolts are tight. If we have time we might straighten out a wheel, or adjust a bearing if needed.
• We won't reliably have spare parts on hand, so if your bike needs a replacement part, you'll have to go to a nearby bike shop (there are three within a few blocks) and buy the part.
• If your bike needs major repairs, we'll refer you to a local bike shop.
• PLEASE RETREIVE YOUR BIKE BEFORE 5pm - we'll be packing up to go home after that.

Come on down to the Wrencher's Ball, and get ready to ride!

2009 Earth Day Market Ride A Success!

Sponsored by Intercity Transit and Group Health Coop

Thanks to everyone who came out on Saturday for the Earth Day Market Ride! We had an estimated 75-85 riders from every corner of Olympia and beyond. The day was perfect, and a good time was had by all (well at least by me!). Once we got to the Farmer's Market, there was a rush of people signing up for the Bicycle Commuter Contest, and receiving their free goodies, including blinky lights from Planet Bike, leg bands from Jandd and water bottles from Group Health. There was a well attended, participatory Flat-Fix Demo by Lee Peterson, and many other volunteers helped out too. Stay tuned for news about our next event, the Wrenchers Ball, coming up this Friday!

Earth Day Neighborhood Rides- Routes and Details

This is a map of the rides that are organized so far- feel free to contact me for more info, and I will update the map on Friday to include any more routes that are added! See blog entry below for more details as well.


View 2009 Neighb­orhood Ride Map in a larger map

From our friends at the Southwest Olympia Neighborhood Assn

Earth Day Market/Neighborhood Ride Coming Up!

The Earth Day Market Ride, sponsored by Intercity Transit & Group Health is just around the corner, on Saturday, April 18.
This event is a great way to kick off the Spring cycling season and get in gear for the Bicycle Commuter Contest. You’ll meet cycling friends old and new, perhaps discover a new route, have some fun and count your miles toward your BCC total, in the special box on your mileage log!

Groups of cyclists will convene at designated spots in various neighborhoods around the Olympia area, depart between 10am and 10:15, and converge at the Heritage Park Fountain. We’ll have a few announcements, and then at around 11 am, proceed all together to the Farmers Market. We’ll have some tables set up at the Market, where you’ll be able to register for the BCC and receive a free water bottle from Group Health, plus a reflective leg band or flashing safety light when you sign up for the BCC(while supplies last)!

Note: The Earth Day Market and Neighborhood Rides are sponsored by Intercity Transit and Group Health Cooperative. For liability reasons, all riders will need to sign a release form, and wear a helmet for this event. Thanks in advance for your cooperation!

At noon, we’ll have some brief presentations:
A flat-repair demonstration
Safe Cycling techniques and Rules of the Road
Gearing up: what gear do you really need to commute successfully?

THE RIDES: We’re still getting ride leaders lined up, but we already have confirmed rides from the following locations:
South Sound Center: Dane Clay dclay18@comcast.net will lead this ride from South Sound Center to Heritage Park, using the I-5 bike path, Eastside Street, and Legion Way. Ride departs South Sound Center at 10:15 am. Meet by the flags in the NE corner of parking lot, near Sleater-Kinney Rd. and the bike tunnel.
TESC and Northwest Olympia: Student Transportation Coordinator Travis Skinner stuctr@evergreen.edu will lead this ride from Evergreen to the Heritage Park Fountain. Ride departs at 10:00 am.
Southeast Olympia: Olympia’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Specialist Kerry Tarullo ktarullo@ci.olympia.wa.us and IT vanpool coordinator Lee Peterson LPeterson@intercitytransit.com depart Olympia High School Carlyon Ave parking lot at 10:15 am
Eastside Bike Trails Tour: Led by Jack Horton jack_horton@hotmail.com Start time - 9 AM, Sat Apr 18 San Fransisco St Bakery in NE Neighborhood Conditions: Mostly paved with some packed gravel Pace: Social, Purpose: Show best commute routes from NE Neighborhood using trails as much as possible. Will include some short interpretive stops.
Bigelow Highlands (NE Olympia): Leader, Chris Hawkins. Meet at Bigelow Park Shelter, depart at 10:30 am. Route: South on Puget, West on Thurston, South on Eastside Street to Legion Way, then West down Legion all the way to Water Street. North on Water St. to 5th, West on 5th to Fountain.

West Side Ride: Led by Robert Kam, This kid-friendly ride meets at Garfield School parking lot. Departs at 10:30. Route: Madison to Percival, Jackson to Sherman, Sherman to Harrison, sidewalks through the roundabouts and across bridge to the fountain.

Stay tuned here for further developments and feel free to call Duncan at 705-5874, or email dgreen@intercitytransit.com for more information, or for help setting up a ride of your own.

IT's OFFICIAL!!

Registration for the 2009 Bicycle Commuter Contest has begun!
Visit the Olympia Transit Center at State and Washington streets in downtown Olympia to register for the contest and buy your T-Shirt.
You can also register by mail- download a PDF version of our registration form at:
http://www.intercitytransit.com/files/13/onlineregistration.pdf
and mail it with your check for $5.00 to
Bicycle Commuter Contest
Intercity Transit
222 State Ave
Olympia, WA 98501
New for 2009: In an effort to make the process more efficient and reliable, and so that everyone can get a t-shirt in the size they desire, we have eliminated the pre-ordering option for t-shirts this year. T-shirts will be available for purchase while supplies last, at the Olympia Transit Center, and at select events, like the Wrencher's Ball, and the Lacey Alternative Eergy Fair. For best selection, go to the OTC soon to buy your t-shirt!
Stay tuned here, and visit our website
http://www.intercitytransit.com/page.cfm?ID=0350
for more information and breaking news about the 2009 Bicycle Commuter Contest!

New Belgium Commuter Special Edition Arrives!

This year we are going to give away two bicycles to two lucky BCC registrants!

(Thanks to New Belgium Brewing Co., Jamis Bicycles and OlyBikes!)

Just check the box on your registration form to indicate which bike you would like to be entered for, and turn in your registration form before the MAY 2 deadline to be entered to win either this New Belgium Brewing Co. 3-speed commuter bike, or the Jamis comfort bike shown below.

NBB Commuter bike spec's:

• Comfy saddle and handlebars
• 29" standover height, and long seat post- suitable for riders up to 6' tall
• Sturmey-Archer 3-speed internal gear hub, w/coaster brake
• alloy rims with 700x35c tires
• spring-loaded rear rack with reflector
  

Sign up soon and GoodLuck!

Jamis Explorer bike donated by Jamis, courtesy of OlyBikes

Win this Jamis Comfort Bike!

Register for the 2009 Bicycle Commuter Contest, and check the appropriate box on your Registration Form to be entered to win either this 15.5" frame Jamis Explorer Comfort Bike (for riders up to 5'4"), or an Adult-sized Cruiser bike from New Belgium Brewing. A drawing will be held on Monday May4, after the May 2 registration deadline, so all registered riders will have a chance to win!

EARTH DAY MARKET RIDE SCHEDULED Saturday April 18, Presented by Intercity Transit and Group Health Cooperative

The Earth Day Market Ride is a great way to show your support for alternative transportation, meet other cyclists, and register for the Bicycle Commuter Contest! Organize your own group to ride with, or ride with one of the many veteran cyclists leading neighborhood rides downtown from neighborhoods all over the Olympia metro area. Riders from the different neighborhoods will converge in downtown Olympia at 11am Saturday April 18 before continuing on together to the Farmers Market for live music, free giveaways when you sign up for the BCC (while supplies last) and other fun stuff!

Remember to obey all traffic laws as a group (see our link to Washington Bicycle Laws), and that every cyclist is an ambassador for all the cyclists on the road. Be confident and predictable, hold your own, and obey traffic laws, which are there for everyone’s safety.

Stay tuned for further developments and information, coming soon!