Arlington’s Phoenix Bikes eliminates the cost barrier to cycling with an earn-a-bike program, where kids can earn bikes by working through a checklist of bike repair skills, safety skills, and a shop project. Earn-a-bike programs are a staple of bike co-ops, but those mostly involve college students and young adults. Phoenix Bikes is unique in targeting middle school and high school students, getting them into cycling, but also teaching valuable leadership and business skills, as well as riding, safety, and repair skills. Phoenix Bikes is also unique in being funded largely through bike sales and repair services. The Sun Gazette has a great article about Phoenix Bikes, full article text as follows: [continue reading…]

WHEREAS, for more than a century, the bicycle has been an important part of the lives of many Americans, and today residents of all ages throughout our great Commonwealth engage in bicycling for transportation, recreation, fitness, and fun; and

WHEREAS, bicycling is the most efficient form of transportation and offers independent mobility for many Virginians traveling between work, school, and home, and the use of bicycles for transportation benefits all residents of Virginia by easing traffic congestion, reducing air pollution, and saving highway construction dollars; and

WHEREAS, bicycling is recognized as an activity that can reduce the onset of chronic disease and reduce childhood obesity, and consideration of bicycling in transportation and land use planning, and in programs such as Safe Routes to School will help create healthier and more active communities in Virginia; and

WHEREAS, bicycling offers a unique perspective from which residents and visitors may discover Virginia’s natural beauty, history, and culture, and a vast network of scenic rural roads and pleasant weather conditions make the Old Dominion a favorite destination for bicycling enthusiasts; and

WHEREAS, the Commonwealth contains more miles of the U.S. Numbered Bicycle Route System than any other state, and is the only place where two routes intersect, and Virginia is fortunate to play host to many organized recreational, charitable, and competitive bicycling events, each of which contributes much to Virginia’s economy; and

WHEREAS, Bike Month provides an opportunity to increase public awareness of the many benefits of bicycling, to promote bicycle safety, and to encourage bike riding through organized activities such as Bike-to-Work events, club rides, family rides, and bike rodeos for children;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Timothy M. Kaine, do hereby recognize May 2008 as BIKE MONTH in the COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.

Download a copy of the Bike Month Proclamation in PDF form, courtesy of BikeWalk Virginia.

May 1 is barely a week away. What is your bike club, organization, company, or local government doing for Bike Month? How about Bike To Work Day on May 16?

VBF celebrates Bike Month with our annual Cross-State Ride. (Join us!) Our sister organization BikeWalk Virginia also has festivities planned.

Announce your event and share your ideas in the comments section.

Join IMBA, the Virginia Mountain Bike Association, and Virginia mountain bike clubs for a weekend of rides and fun at Stokesville Campground near Harrisonburg. The Virginia IMBA Mountain Bike Festival features rides in roadless areas of the George Washington National Forest, and demo bikes from Trek/Fisher/Lemond. For those not into mountain biking there’s road biking in the Shenandoah Valley, as well as hiking on area trails. The event is a fundraiser for mountain bike advocacy in the mid-Atlantic states.