Bike Riders Get a Pedal Up on the Workday: Cyclists Get Behind the Wheels As Part of Bike to Work Day.

By Guy Keeler, The Fresno Bee, Calif.

May 20–Veteran cyclists with sleek road bikes and racing silks rubbed wheels with young riders in T-shirts and shorts as nearly 50 bicycle enthusiasts gathered at Manchester Center early Friday for a group ride down Blackstone Avenue.

With police escorts — on bicycles, of course — the group formed an impressive sight as it headed downtown to the Kern Street Coffee Company in support of National Bike Month and Bike to Work Day. The ride concluded a week of activities that included bicycle safety checks, ride-to-school days and proclamation ceremonies calling attention to the benefits of cycling.

“This is a good way to cap off Bike to Work week,” says Nick Paladino of Fresno, who has ridden in every Fresno Bike to Work group ride since the event was started five years ago. “Fresno is ideally suited for cycling. It’s flat, and the weather is good most of the time.”

National Bike Month and Bike to Work Day were started 50 years ago by the League of American Bicyclists. According to a 2002 U.S. Department of Transportation survey, about 57 million Americans ride bicycles at least once a year. But the number who commute to work by bicycle is much smaller. U.S. Census figures show 488,497 people rode bikes to work in 2000, up from 466,856 in 1990.

“We hope Bike to Work Day will build public awareness of cycling as an option,” says Mark Stout, chairman of the Fresno County Bicycle Coalition. “With our air quality problems [in the central San Joaquin Valley], people are looking for things they can do to help. If folks would ride bicycles to work just once a week, on a casual Friday for instance, there would be that much less automobile emissions.”

In addition to the group riders, more than 200 cyclists representing 15 employers rode from home to work as part of the coalition’s inaugural corporate challenge, organized by Lori Cherry and Anthony Molina. And nearly 40 Edison High School students participated in a bike-to-school ride.

Constance Boyd, who teaches physics and biotechnology at the Center for Advanced Research and Technology in Clovis, was one of 20 teachers and numerous students at her school who signed up for the corporate challenge.

“Leading by example is the best way to get kids involved,” she says. “A lot of students today are not very fit or health-conscious. But I’ve found I feel better and my day starts off a lot nicer when I bike to work.”

Dedicated bicycle commuters such as Leslie Hiatt of Fresno, Steve Grusis of Madera Ranchos and Ed Smith of Clovis say the benefits of cycling to work outweigh the extra effort it takes to store a bike at work and get cleaned up after a long ride in hot weather.

Grusis commutes 25 miles one-way to his job at the State Center Community College District office near Fresno City College. He makes the trip by bicycle up to three days a week during spring, summer and fall and as often as four times a week in winter. “I own a Honda Civic, and it costs me $4.50 in gas each day to get to work by car,” he says.

Although it takes 90 minutes to complete each leg of his commute, Grusis uses the twin 25-mile rides as training for his bicycle-racing hobby. Riding to work on back roads, where traffic is light, provides time to focus on the day’s schedule, he says, while the exercise helps relieve stress.

Grusis is allowed to use the shower facilities in the men’s gym at City College, and he stores his bike in his office. It’s different for Smith and Hiatt.

Smith, a programmer/ analyst for the Fresno City Planning and Development Department, has no access to a shower at his work site, nor is there a secure bicycle parking area. “I’ve discovered I can work around these issues,” Smith says. “I bring a change of clothes to work and stash my bike in the office.”

Smith commutes 10 miles one-way every day, rain or shine. Using a bicycle has enabled him and his wife to save a lot of money on automobile insurance, gas and maintenance by owning just one car.

“I have a three-pronged motivation for commuting to work on a bicycle,” he says. “I do it for my own health, it’s a great solution for traffic congestion, and it’s had a huge impact on my budget.”

Hiatt rides nine miles from his home in the Tower District to his job at the Woodward Park Regional Library.

“I find I have a lot more energy,” he says, talking about the benefits of biking to work. “It helps me be active in a lot of things, from surfing to hiking. Plus, I have a lot more spending money. I save enough money on gas to buy a new bike every summer.”

The reporter can be reached at gkeeler@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6383.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Fresno Bee, Calif.

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