Celebrate Bike to Work Day and Bike to Work Week 2009

May is National Bike Month. The third week is Bike to Work Week and Friday of Bike to Work Week is Bike to Work Day. There are many ways to celebrate Bike to Work Day so try to find the combination that suits you the best.

Of course, the most obvious way to celebrate would be to ride your bike to work all month, week, or especially on Bike to Work Day 2009. To do this, you must make sure that you bike is in good working order and that you have planned a safe bike route, have a working helmet, and have packed sufficient water. If you are going to bike to work, you might need to pack a change of clothes for when you get to work if you live in a hotter region.

If biking to work would be too inconvenient, then try just biking home from work by bringing your bike to work. There are many cheap bike racks for cars available at Target, Walmart, Sears, and local sporting good stores. You will also want to make sure that you wear bright colored clothing and have a set of reflectors or blinking lights on your bike spokes so that people will be able to see you. Make sure to bike in the far right lane of the road.

If biking to work is not a possibility due to distance, you could arrange to bike to a coworkers home who is closer to work and then car pool. If you don't work, you could bike to the store for an errand or to a friends home. If you have children, you could bike to school with them and encourage them to bike to school if you live close enough. If none of these options will work, plan a bike trip on Friday evening or Saturday with your spouse, children, family, friends, or coworkers. Bike a local trail or down the beach or to a local park to celebrate.

If biking is completely not an option due to balance, age, health, or the lack of owning your own bike, you can encourage friends and family to participate. At work, you could pass out cool bottles of water to those who bike in on Friday. If you don't work, walk next to your children while they ride their bikes to school. Basically be an encourager to those who can participate in the event. Be a positive influence. Encourage them to maintain and appreciate their good health. And if you have somewhere to go during bike to work day or bike to work week, but are unable to bike, walk there. Walking like biking leaves a much smaller footprint on the earth than driving a car.

For grandparents or parents, another great way to celebrate bike week is to teach and model giving. Purchase new bikes for your children and grandchildren to celebrate Bike to Work Week or Bike to Work Day. You can even purchase a bike for grown children or grown grandchildren to encourage good health. Make sure that they have needed helmets and safety pads for children especially. Encourage your children and grandchildren who receive new bikes to give their old bikes to a needy child or a charity so that more bikes will be available for others to use.

If your family already has all the bikes they need, you can give bike supplies or extras like baskets, mirrors, pom poms, etc. You could also pick a needy family and supply their children with bikes. If you need help finding a family just ask a local church or nonprofit to steer you in the right direction. Some local pregnancy centers will accept small bicycles for the children of clients and some homeless shelters will accept bikes so the homeless clients will have transportation to work. Or just donate to an organization who refurbishes and distributes bikes to needy people or children.

There are many ways to celebrate Bike to Work Day, whether as a biking participant, an encourager, a supporter of those who bike, or by supplying those you love or those in need with bicycles to use.