30 Days of Biking Washington

What did your father or mother, aunt or uncle, grandma or grandpa tell you when you first learned to ride a bike and fell down? Probably something like this:

“You can do it! Get right back on the bike.”

In other words, the key to riding a bike was to stick to it.

In a way that’s the premise of 30 Days of Biking, along with the science that tells us that if you commit to something in writing you’re more likely to complete it.

In its fourth year, 30 Days of Biking asks just one thing: Pledge to ride your bike every single day for 30 days. Whether you take your bike out of the garage and wheel it around the block for a breath of fresh air before bedtime or take off on a 100km randonneuring expedition, ride every day.

We know Washington is the #1 Bike-Friendly State in the nation (5 years running!). Can we be the #1 state for participants in 30 Days of Biking?

If we want that title, though, we need to rally a lot of people to sign up. Minnesota is kicking our 30-days saddle, with over 300 registrants already, and California has over 200. We’re ahead of Oregon, but just barely.

Cities and towns all over Washington are already represented: Bellingham, Spokane, Cheney, Woodinville, Vashon, Mountlake Terrace, Seattle, Snohomish, Lynnwood, Ellensburg, Olympia, Fife, Walla Walla, Tacoma, and Vancouver so far.

If your dot isn’t on this map yet, sign up and tell us in the comments below. We’ll report our rankings again before April 1 when we all get rolling.

If you’re blogging about your 30 days of biking, let us know that too–we’ll post a round-up of your experiences undertaking the challenge. For those of you on Twitter make sure you use #30daysofbiking in your tweets; add #bikeWA or @bikeWA and we’ll spot them.

Some motivators for you:

• Think of it as a warm-up for National Bicycle Month in May.
• It might be a way to get one of your friends who’s been considering riding to head out with you: “Help me stick to my pledge–ride to the coffee shop with me Saturday.” (Another bit of science tells us we’re more easily persuaded to do something by someone we like or admire, so you’ll be inspiring your friend under the guise of your friend helping you.)
• You could check out somewhere you haven’t ridden before, either in your city or as a weekend destination to a regional trail. (Bonus points: Could you bike in a different place in Washington every day for 30 days? Take it on and write a guest post for us about the experience!)
• If you’ve been a recreational rider for years but haven’t done any errands by bike, now’s your chance. A grocery store run for a few items or your first time riding to work will help you check the box.

Ready to roll for 30 days in a row?