May is National Bike Month. Local bicycle events are planned all month long, including an executive commuter challenge, bike breakfasts, a bike art gallery, and many more. See rideshare.org for details. Beyone the month of special activities, the San Luis Obispo County Bicycle Coalition regularly offers free bicycle confidence workshops, now has a Bike Kitchen where they can help clients tune-up their favorite two-wheelers, and volunteers from Bike Valet will even watch bikes for shoppers at the weekly Farmers Market. To learn more about those services, see slobikelane.org
Consider these facts: One quarter of the students enrolled in San Luis Obispo County public schools are overweight; the United States has five percent of the world’s population but consumes 25 percent of the world’s oil; and the average American spends $8,400 to own and maintain one car (including insurance, gasoline, parking and repairs). Instead of sitting behind the steering wheel, everyone should take the bus, carpool, walk, or ride a bike: It’s healthy for the pocket book, the planet, and best of all, for personal well-being. We should all give life in the bike lane a spin.
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This article appears in May 6-13, 2010.
