May is National Bike Month: a time to celebrate the joy and freedom of riding your bike. May cycling weather may be the best. It's also a good time to start using your bike instead of your car for those local trips around town. An ice cream downtown tastes a lot better after you rode there on your bicycle.
May 17-21 is National Bike to Work Week and Friday, May 21 is National Bike to Work Day. Biking to work can be really fun once you work out the details such as the route, transporting your clothes and cleaning up when you get there. Taking a test ride on a weekend can help iron out the details. Cycling with a co-worker can increase the fun and camaraderie. Most people that commute to work say they're more alert and productive.
If you haven't ridden in a while, May is a good time to start training. Eventually, even in our hilly area, cycling becomes easier and more enjoyable the more we ride. If the hills are daunting, we're blessed with many miles of smooth rail trails that can get you ready for the transition to more challenging cycling.
So pump up your tires, check your brakes, lube your chain, put on your helmet grab a water bottle and get out and ride. If your bike needs more work, now's a good time to take it to your local bike shop for a spring tune-up.
Morgantown's Confident City Cycling program can get you and your bike ready for riding anywhere, anytime for any reason. You can take a full weekend course that includes such topics as selecting and fitting a bike; basic maintenance; shifting gears; basic handling skills; riding in traffic and avoiding crashes. Or, 6 pm every Monday evening, you can attend a 1-hour session on one of these topics and then join in a leisurely ride. See www.BikeMorgantown.com for topics and dates.
A WV Transportation Enhancement grant makes Morgantown's Confident City Cycling program possible. The Morgantown Municipal Bicycle Board adapted the program from the League of American Bicyclists' Smart Cycling program. The Bicycle Board advises the Morgantown Traffic Commission.
On Sunday May 2, the Country Roads Cyclists and the Monongalia Bicycle Club kick off National Bike Month with the 35th annual Appalachian Spring Spectacular bicycle ride that includes 20, 40 and 60 mile rolling scenic road rides with refreshment stops along the way and a pasta feast afterward. The ride starts at 9 am at the Wharf Street Parking garage. Registration opens at 8. The ride is $5 and the feast $7.
Saturday, May 1 is the Appalachian Spring Spectacular Bonus Ride. This one is a bit harder and longer: 85 miles and 7,000 feet of climbing. The Bonus Ride starts at the Monongalia County Courthouse at 9 am. There is no fee.
An edited version of this article was published in the Dominion Post on April 29, 2010 page 1-D as Start Pedaling for National Bike Month.
Frank Gmeindl is a League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructor and Chairman of the Morgantown Municipal Bicycle Board.
No comments:
Post a Comment