Let’s Bike to Work!

Who’s Green? is always an advocate of enjoying the outdoors. As part of an environmentally friendly lifestyle, we like to show you ways in which you can try something new, and make a difference to the environment.

Have you thought about biking to work? Even if you only cycle once a week — on Casual Fridays, perhaps — you’ll be reducing your weekly commute’s environmental impact by 20 percent. That’s about the same as trading your current vehicle for a hybrid, and a lot cheaper.

Bicycling pays off too: you save gas money, avoid traffic, get exercise, help curb global warming pollution and often save time. Bicycles can reduce traffic congestion and noise. You can park a dozen bikes in the space of a single automobile, and the idea of a morning commute free of fossil fuels seems particularly attractive in the face of rising fuel costs.

In Tucson, Arizona Spoke6 and There and Back Bikes are giving people an incentive to bike to work in the month of January.  Together, they are sponsoring a bike-to-work challenge.

Employees at participating organizations can enter a drawing for prizes for each day that they ride their bicycle to work during the month of January. What could be better? Ride your bike to work and win prizes!

Here are some details of what Spoke 6 is doing to encourage Tucsonans to bike to work in January. Maybe try it in your town too!

• Every Wednesday in January, 9am-5pm: Free day at Spoke6 if you ride your bike to Spoke6 (includes indoor bike parking, showers, and lockers)
• Wed. Jan. 12th, 7am-9am: Bike-to-work pancake breakfast at There & Back Bicycles with drawing for $25 gift certificate to There & Back (must be present to enter)
• Wed. Feb. 9th, 7am-9am: Bike-to-work breakfast at There & Back Bikes with drawing for final prizes, including bonus prizes for those present

Prizes include a $25 gift certificate to There & Back Bicycles, doubled to $50 if the winner is present at the drawing, and a free month ($150 value) of co-working at Spoke6.

Creative Slice built a web-based commute logging form (http://spoke6.com/biketowork/) to keep track of entries. Please contact Spoke6 if your organization wants to join the bike-to-work challenge or donate prizes.

So give it a try. Yes, you can really do this. You’ll be healthier and a little richer for the experience.