- Start Biking More: It’s All About the Love for the Bike – The votes came in across social media and Massachusetts 5th grader Caleb Piehl was crowned the winner of Saris Cycling Group’s 5th annual fifth grade poster contest with his representation of what elementary school students love about cycling. Caleb will be flown to D.C. for the 2016 National Bike Summit to be recognized for his #LongForTheRide inspired artwork, and to join other attendees in celebrating biking. In addition Saris will provide 20 more bike parking space for Caleb’s school in Somerville, MA. To learn more and get your kid’s school in on the contest next year, go to: SarisPosterContest.com
Advocacy
- Wake Tech adds cycling Fit Desks to keep students awake studying for finals – Anyone who made it out of college knows that studying for finals can suck the life out of you. So inspired by a magazine article about Clemson, community college Wake Tech in Raleigh, NC has done the same thing, putting Fit Desks in the library so students can stay active while studying. Maybe this will be a new trend to get college students through the year without gaining the freshman fifteen? Read more over at the MiamiHeral.com.
- More Bike friendly Businesses named by the Bike League – It seems like every other week we are hearing about new certified communities, universities, and whatnot from the League of American Bicyclists, which is certainly always nice. This time they’ve added 43 new Bicycle Friendly Businesses (BFBs) to the Bicycle Friendly America program. That now adds up to 1090 BFBs in 49 states and the District. Come on Hawaii, get on the ball; we know it is nice to ride there. Check out the full list at: BikeLeague.org.
- US Congress Passes FAST Act, setting aside $4 billion for bicycle and pedestrian projects – Yes, Congress passes stuff. The FAST ACT, Fixing America’s Surface Transportation, dedicates $835 million annually for the first two years and $850 million annually for the last three years for bicycle and pedestrian projects. PeopleForBikes wants to thank the bike industry and Congress for working together to get this passed. More info on the bill at: PeopleForBikes.org
- A Big Thanks to Trips for Kids founder Marilyn Price on her Retirement – Founder and executive director of Trips for Kids for the last 27 years, Price announced that she would retire at the end of the year. In that time she grew the organization to to 75 chapters and got countless kids out on bikes having fun and building a healthy lifelong passion. She may already be in the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame, but we just though she deserved to have one more thank you from us. That is all. TripsForKids.org
Contests
- Fund Trails for 5 Bucks a Foot, and be entered to win a Santa Cruz – OK, so this is really Advocacy, but you get to win too. Santa Cruz bikes loves Downieville, so they have partnered up with the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship to help fund new trail projects there and are giving away a bike. For every foot of trail you fund ($5), you get one entry in the lottery for a pimped Santa Cruz of your choice (up to $10,000 value.). You also get a certificate of donation, a perfect stocking stuffer for the trail-lover in your life. (You decide how you share the bike when you win.) Hit up the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship before Jan 6 to give the gift of singletrack: SierraTrails.org
- Win 10 days biking in Chile with a partner from Trek Travel – Trek and LAN Airlines are awarding one Grand Prize winner and a their travel partner the adventure of a lifetime, including roundtrip flights, a pair of Trek 520s, and all the gear you’ll need to tour historic Santiago, explore the Atacama Desert, take in the beauty of the high peaks of Patagonia, and sip wine at vineyards along the way. It’s only open to residents of the lower 48, so you won’t be going up against me, so enter at LAN’s website before December 18 to be eligible for the draw: LAN.com
- Get a little Advent Calendar Surprise from Rapha’s Alpe d’Quiz – Celebrating 21 days of Christmas with 21 hairpins of Alpe d’Huez, Rapha has a daily quiz for the next couple of weeks where you can enter some trivia about their products and shops to enter to win a new prize each day. pages.Rapha.cc/Alpe-dQuiz-2015
Sponsorship
- Saris, CycleOps, and PowerTap are looking for brand Ambassadors – All falling under the same Saris Group parent company, each brand is looking to grow their Grassroots Athlete Sponsorship programs for 2016. Each brand is looking for something different: everyday explorers for Saris to inspire people to explore the world around them by bike; outgoing riders for CycleOps that will help riders of all levels learn how to train for a set goal; and cyclists and triathletes for PowerTap who can inspire others to train harder, better, and more effectively. Applications are being accepted through Jan 1, and details are available for each brand at: Saris.com, CycleOps.com, and PowerTap.com.
Events
- NYC’s first Fat Bike race Fat and Frozen coming to Queens – January 23 in Cunningham Park 718 Cyclery will host the city’s first fat bike race. The event aims to raise awareness for the off-road oppressed large tire crowd and to showcase fat riding in the city, as well as to showcase the work of Concerned Long Island Mountain Bikers (CLIMB). Advance registration is required, but every skill level is welcome. They expect a big turnout, so register soon. There will also be a fleet of demo fat bikes for test rides and racing. More info at: 718c.com
- Next year’s Tour of Utah route announced, and Mavic is going to paint it Yellow – The 2016 edition of the race will start in the beautiful desert south of the state, hitting Zion and Escalante before heading north to its finish in Park City. But the tech news of the race is a multi-year partnership with Mavic, whose US HQ is located in Ogden, UT. The Mavic deal will bring sponsorship and neutral support to both men and women in what is called America’s Toughest Stage Race. TourofUtah.com
- Sea Otter will see US stop of the 2016 Brompton World Championship series – Brompton has announced that 7th BWC series will join the Sea Otter Classic bike festival on April 15 at Laguna Seca. One of the oddest bike races out there, racers run to unfold their bikes before hitting the race course, all the while dressed for work. The fastest man and woman will win a trip to London for the world champs final later in the year. Registration is open now, so head over to: Brompton.com
