September Bike Commute Challenge: Free coffee, bike parade, prizes, and more!

Dear faculty and staff—

It’s time again for the Bike Commute Challenge, a city-wide competition that pits local businesses against one another to see who can bike to work the most in the month of September. For the last two years, we have also included students in our challenge. Last year’s team logged over 15,000 miles! We want to do better this year, and challenge our main competitor, Reed College.

If you ride to campus any day in September, we urge you to log your miles and participate in the Challenge. To do so, sign up at bikecommutechallenge.com. You don’t have to bike every day – or even all of your commute. Just log the miles you do bike, and help us to a win.

We also hope to encourage new riders to join in the fun this year. We will be giving away random prizes to team participants. And we have scheduled the following events to show the campus community how do-able, and fun, biking to campus is:

Challenge Kick-Off—Bike to (Free) Breakfast!
Tuesday, Sept. 4, 7-10am, Entrance to Gate 2 on Palatine Hill Road
Bike riders are invited to stop by and pick up a complimentary cup of coffee and breakfast snacks (donated by the Bon!) for the kick-off of the Challenge. Treats will be passed out right by campus gate 2, at the intersection of Palatine Hill Road and Palater, near the traffic circle. Come by on your bike or with your helmet.

Commuter Workshop
Tuesday, Sept. 11, noon -1, The Glade
Come learn everything you need to know about biking in Portland: bike laws, dressing for the rain, safe routes to campus, and more! We’ll pass out bike maps, share stories about biking at LC, and meet others interested in biking.

Bike Parade!
Tuesday, Sept. 18, noon-1, Meet at the Glade
Show off your bikey self! Join us at noon on The Glade for a quick bike-decorating session, then embark on a slow ride around campus to make some noise and show off your style.

Lunchtime Ride to Hillsdale
Tuesday, Sept. 25, noon-1, Meet at the Campus Safety kiosk
The nearby neighborhood of Hillsdale has shops and grocery stores, and is a main transit thoroughfare connecting SW to downtown and other parts of Portland. And it’s incredibly easy to get to by bike! Join this relaxed-paced group ride from campus to Hillsdale for a picnic lunch and back. All skill levels welcome.

End-of-Challenge Bike to Breakfast
Thursday, Sept. 27, 7-10am, Entrance to Gate 2 on Palatine Hill Road
We’ll appreciate bike riders one more time in September with another bike to breakfast at campus gate 2. Riders are invited to stop by and pick up a complimentary cup of coffee and breakfast snacks (donated by the Bon) for one of the final days of the Challenge.

Group Ride to BCC Party
Time and date TBD, Meet at Campus Safety kiosk
Every year, Portland’s Bicycle Transportation Alliance throws a party to celebrate the end of the Bike Commute Challenge. And every year, a group rides from campus to the party together. Join us for a relaxed-pace group ride to the party (free food and beer for those over 21). Come by on your bike or with your helmet.

If you have any questions about the Challenge, contact team captain Hanna Neuschwander at hanna@lclark.edu or x6054. If you’d like a copy of the Bike Commute Challenge poster for your office, drop Hanna a line and she’ll send one over in inter-office mail.

–
Hanna Neuschwander
Director of Communications
503-768-6054