I ride my bike a lot.
If it’s a work day, I’ll definitely be riding my bike because that’s how I commute.
If I have errands to run or a trip planned to the grocery store, I’ll be riding my bike.
If the sun is shining and I have free time on the weekend, there’s a good chance I’ll be riding my bike.
But there are plenty of days I don’t ride, and this is one reasons I’ve signed up for 30 Days of Biking and taken a pledge to ride my bike every day this month.
A new cycling challenge means learning a new skill, riding further than ever before, or riding for longer. But this is a different kind of challenge, one that provides time to reflect on why we cycle and helps us think about how we integrate our bikes in our day-to-day lives.
The requirements are simple: ride your bike every day in April.
There’s no minimum distance or required time. Your daily ride might be anything from a long afternoon cruise to a quick spin around the block or an out-and-back to the corner store. If you choose, you can share your rides via social media using the hashtag #30daysofbiking. The project, which launched in 2010, aims to create “a community of joyful cyclists,” united by a love of riding.
The organizers write on their website: “We’re all passionate about the bicycle and we know the bicycle can make us better people, build stronger communities and help a global environment.”
The benefits go beyond your personal health and fitness. For every 30 people who sign up, the organizers behind 30 Days of Biking, a group of artists from Minneapolis, promises to donate one bike to a kid in need via the Minnesota program, Free Bikes for Kidz. Since its inception five years ago, this program says it has donated more than 20,000 bikes to children whose families otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford them. The more cyclists who take the 30-day pledge, the more kids will get the fun, freedom and adventure that comes with having a bike of their own.
As of April 1, more than 6,300 cyclists from all around the world had signed up to take the pledge. When cyclists sign on, they give their reason for participating.
Reading these is like reading a love song to cycling:
- To keep my heart beating another 30 days.
- Exploration... adventure... ultimate coolness... eternal youth
- I feel truly connected to the earth when I’m riding.
- Riding a bike is another day in paradise.
- Steel frame, no brakes. Can’t stop, don’t want to.
- Because cycling means everything. It means freedom.
- Because those uppity unicyclists ain’t got enough wheels.
- To be awesome.
- Because... bicycles!
And really, although it’s great to have the opportunity to sign up for a specific challenge and help provide bikes for kids who might not otherwise get the opportunity to learn to ride, there’s no day that’s a bad day to get out there and spend time on your bike in whatever way makes you happy
Kay Cahill is a cyclist and librarian who believes bikes are for life, not just for commuting. Read more at sidecut.ca, or send a comment to [email protected].
