National Bike Challenge

by Amanda Virbitsky of Bike Pittsburgh

Do you live in Allegheny County? Do you ride a bike (even just sometimes)? Great news -- the National Bike Challenge starts on May 1, and by joining at nationalbikechallenge.org, you can track your miles, earn free drinks at OTB Bicycle Cafe, and be entered to win prizes!

As someone with a bit of a competitive streak, I’ve found that the Bike Challenge is a fun way to push myself to ride more miles and see how far I can climb up the local and national leaderboards. If you have a short commute to work or school, don’t worry -- the competition points heavily favor daily riders by awarding 20 points per day of cycling (at least 1 mile), plus 1 point per mile logged. It’s a good incentive to get yourself out the door on two wheels as often as possible, even if the forecast calls for “liquid sunshine.” The National Bike Challenge starts on May 1 and runs through September 30, and riders can join in at any time during the competition. Encourage your friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues to join, and even form a team together -- the challenge becomes more fun with familiar names on the leaderboard! If you have a smartphone, you can even download a free app to automatically track and log the mileage of your rides on the go. Every ride counts, whether you are commuting to work, biking to the grocery store, taking a leisurely spin around our wonderful riverfront trails, or tearing up the mountain bike trails in Frick Park.

Need more motivation to join? This year, Pittsburgh is going head-to-head with Cleveland for Rust Belt cycling supremacy! By registering for the Bike Challenge with a Pittsburgh zip code, and logging your miles during the competition period, you’ll help the Pittsburgh region bring another trophy home to the city of champions!