Westlake Bay Village Observer: Bay Bike to School Challenge is on a roll, aim for '1000 Bikes in Bay' on May 21

From the May 18, 2010 edition of the Westlake Bay Village Observer:

by Tracey Bradnan

Despite several cold and rainy days, the third annual Bay Bike to School Challenge sponsored by Century Cycles and Chipotle shows no signs of slowing down.

The award-winning program kicked off on May 3 when a whopping 842 students from both Bay Middle School and Bay High School biked to school - the equivalent of one entire school forgoing motorized transportation altogether.

Since then, the Bay Middle School bike count hit 600 bicyclists on May 5, their top cycling day, and has averaged well over 50% of the school on even the most challenging weather days. The top day at BHS was 281 bikers (34% of the school).

With the conclusion of the program approaching on Friday, May 21, organizers are striving to end by making a bigger impact than ever. They are asking every Bay Village school entity - from the 4th graders at Westerly Elementary to the school board's office on Dover Center Road to the parents in the PTAs - to leave their cars at home and bicycle for the day. They've dubbed it "1000 Bikes in Bay" and will include every school building's bike count in the tally - as well is in the calculation of how much carbon emissions are saved in the city.

To fuel the effort, the administration at Bay High School will be serving breakfast for bikers, preparing pancakes, sausage and juice to the BHS students to bike to school that morning. Other incentives are planned at the other schools.Bay Bike To School Challenge, which was awarded "Project of the Year" in Bay Village, encourages students to ride their bicycles to school to help the environment, improve their health, develop lifelong fitness habits and have fun. For more information about Bay Bike To School Challenge, visit www.centurycycles.com/to/bts or the event's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BayBikeToSchoolChallenge.

Tracey Bradnan lives in Bay Village.