Bike to Work Day this year is on Friday, May 15th, and we’re celebrating from 8:00am to 9:00am at the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market. There will be food and tea from Zingerman’s Deli, coffee from Mighty Good Coffee, serenading from the Ann Arbor Bike Choir, and fun prizes for you to win! The Mayor of Ann Arbor will also be there.  What’s not to love?

Meet up with Others and Ride Downtown
If you’re interested in riding in to the Farmer’s Market with other people, here are some options:

Great Lakes Meet-Up: Meet at Great Lakes Cycling & Fitness (on Stadium in Ann Arbor).  Ride departs at 7:30am
Wheels in Motion Meet-Up: Meet at Wheels in Motion (on Washtenaw).  Ride Departs at 7:30am
Eli Cooper Gallup Park Meet Up: Meet at the Gallup Park Entrance with Eli Cooper, the City of Ann Arbor’s Transportation Manager.  Ride Departs at 7:25am.
Bike Ypsi Meet-Up: Meet at Bombadill’s Cafe in Ypsilanti.  Ride Departs at 7:30am
Shari Gordon, Ann Arbor-Saline Rd Meet-Up: Meet at Meijer on Ann Arbor-Saline Road.  http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/mi/ann-arbor/289124222815954407.  Ride Departs at 7:30am.

Want to lead a ride?  Email info@getdowntown.org to let us know.

Special Prizes and Awards
This year getDowntown will be giving out bike-themed prizes (such as panniers, bike locks, gift certificates and more) and awards (signed by the Mayor of Ann Arbor) for the Sweetest Bike, Oldest Bike, Most-Loved Bike, Most Basic Bike, Longest Commute, and more!  The winners of these prizes/awards will be determined by those in attendance!

This Commuter Challenge Success Story comes from Aimee over at the UM Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Sciences (AOSS).  During the 2008 Challenge, Aimee went from never using the bus/walking to doing so 3 times per week.

So did she keep it up after the Challenge?  Here’s what Aimee has to say:

During this past winter I didn’t continue the warm-weather routine I described, but I still commute by bus regularly, and my husband bikes to work several times a week.

Participating in the Challenge last year made us realize we could probably do just fine with one car instead of two. We tried it for a month or so, did just fine, and happily sold our 16-year old second car in October.

We got some cash for the car, and are saving on insurance, registration, and repairs. I’ve used Zipcar once since then, which was almost free due to the UM sign-up rebate.

I do plan to return in May to my spring & summer bus/walking commute.

Want to save money?  Get some exercise?  Have fun?  Participate in the Commuter Challenge!

This Commuter Challenge Ambassador Blog Post comes from Riin over at the UM:

I admit it.  I’m a bit of a zealot.  I haven’t driven a car since 2002, so the Commuter Challenge isn’t really a challenge for me.  Instead it’s a chance for me to keep on doing what I normally do, and get points for it, and to tell people why they should be doing this great thing!

I love my commute!  How many people can say that?  I have a two part commute.  First I take the bus downtown, about a 25 minute ride, and then I walk the rest of the way, about a 15 minute walk.  I could take the bus all the way to work, but I like walking.  In the evening I just walk downtown and catch the bus home.

It’s perfect.  The walk gives me time to clear my head and get some exercise, and see things up close.  I can look at gardens and watch animals and look at all the great public art around town.  (One day I’ll take photos of all my favorite Ann Arbor public art to put on my blog, but so far I’ve been procrastinating…)

I love the bus for a lot of reasons, but the best thing about it for me is that it gives me time to knit.  There’s never enough time to do everything I want.  (I really could use a 48 hour day!)  I wish I had a lot more time to knit.  But twice a day AATA is kind enough to give me 25 minutes to knit.  The gift of time!  It is sweet!  And I relish it!

Ok, not everyone’s a knitter.  But a lot of people read on the bus, or study or do other things.  The point is, it’s free time! When you’re driving a car, all you can do is drive.  That’s all you should be doing anyway.  Yes, we’ve all seen people talking on the phone/eating/putting on mascara while driving, but that’s not safe.  Driving is not free time, and drivers who treat it as such are more likely to crash into something.

But you know what?  If you’re in another car and some idiot driver crashes into you, you’re likely to be hurt.  If you’re in a bus and an idiot driver crashes into the bus?  Ha.  Idiot driver’s going to get hurt, but you’re not.  So safety is another advantage of the bus.

And frankly I just didn’t enjoy driving.  I found it to be very stressful, always having to deal with other drivers cutting me off, not letting me merge, tailgating, and of course dealing with bad weather, poor visibility, bad road conditions, having to take time to put gas in the car and get oil changes, and the expense of the gas and the maintenance and the insurance and the registration and the constant repairs, always at least $300 (sure, the car was paid for, but I was still spending how much?).  It is so much easier (and cheaper!) to just take the bus.  Now I just leave the driving to the professionals and I have no stress.  If there’s a mechanical problem, another bus comes and we just get on that one.  Someone else takes care of all of the details, all of the problems.  Because really, all I want out of my transportation is something to get me from Point A to Point B.  I don’t want to deal with all of the stuff required to make it happen.

What first motivated me to stop driving years ago was when one day it just occurred to me while I was driving that I was contributing to air pollution.  It wasn’t just a vague, nebulous “cars” that were causing air pollution.  If I was driving a car, I was polluting.  Me.  Personally.  I was contributing to rising asthma and cancer rates.  Once I realized that, I just couldn’t keep driving.  The cognitive dissonance was getting too loud.  So I stopped driving.

I really enjoy life so much more without the car though.  I didn’t “give up” my car.  I found a better way to live.

Another great Commuter Challenge Ambassador Blog Post from Sarah over at the UM Dermatology Administration.

In a strange way, I thought being a Commuter Ambassador would give me power. I’d get a flashy badge, bragging rights, some vague form of authority. I would get to drill the troops, give pep talks and rallying speeches, eventually have my likeness bronzed and placed at the top of a public building’s steps. And of course, I would have what any cubicle-dwelling daydreamer wants: I would have street cred.

Sadly, our ‘troops’ aren’t even enough to warrant a group. Actually, we’re more of an ‘us.’ The number of participants is down mainly due to extenuating circumstances—two walkers have sought greener pastures outside the department, and our star biker is out this year due to an otherwise wonderful and happy pregnancy. I’ve discovered it’s hard to wield authority over one person without feeling like a babysitter, and the fact that that person is your superior is just plain awkward. I was about to hang up my hat (no, I didn’t make a hat. Well, I don’t wear it) when I got the news that I would be in charge of handing out prizes.

I thought, “hey, some stickers, a button, no big whoop”–and then I opened the envelope and let out a very big whoop indeed. Not only buttons, but a flashing LED tag for biking, a UM keychain and a mini-flashlight. These weren’t just promotional products. This was SWAG. I felt like I did the very first year I was allowed to hand out Halloween candy. Sometimes there are half-hours between kids, and nobody’s watching…

Thankfully, the little note attached to the prizes kept me straight: “Please do not keep these.” Well, sure; easy for you to say. But the second I give away this keychain flashlight I’m going to drop my keys behind the couch. Then where will I be?

I decided I couldn’t be trusted with such treasures. The temptation was too great. If I had been Frodo, the Shire would be burned and we would all have been enslaved by orcs.

The note went on to say that prizes could be given to any person using ‘green’ transport, which increased the number of victims to take this precious loot off my hands. The keychain went to my fellow teammate; that was easy. The buttons and stickers, I reasoned, could get the word out, and I used them to expound on the challenge at length to carbon-impaired coworkers. One of them begged for a button, citing her use of the campus shuttle. I wasn’t the only one seeing these things as candy. (It helps that the little bird buttons are cute.)

Almost rid of my booty, I reminded our pouting biker that her busing from the parking lot counts. If you see her walking her dog with a flashing LED on its leash, tell her she’s already setting a great example.

And now, empty-handed, I suppose I do have a little power after all.