Round Two of Commute for a Cause runs from January 1 to April 30, 2010

Thursday, December 10, 2009

end of the first round of Commute for a Cause

My first round of Commute for a Cause ended last week.

One of the first things I did when it ended was look through my Bike Log to gather some data about my mileage:


  • The Cause ran for 196 days.
  • I rode 1,383 miles.
  • I was on the bike 72/196 days.
  • 71% of my mileage was on my touring bike.
  • 25% was on my single-speed mountain bike.
  • 2% was on my fixed-gear bike, and 2% was on my single-speed 'cross bike.

Here's my mileage by week:

I also saved 82 gallons of gasoline and prevented 1,640 pounds of CO2 from entering the atmosphere.

I have to admit that I am surprised by some of these numbers - mostly that I was on the bike "only" 72 of 196 days. I guess I had this vision of myself putting up some crazy number, definitely over 100 days. But that thinking didn't last long when I remembered why I started Commute for a Cause. I started it as a way to combine my love for biking and living a more sustainable life, and also to give back to my community.

Looking back, the seed for the idea was planted on my birthday in April - in a pub in New Zealand. Adria and I were recapping my 36th year and talking about goals for my 37th year. One of the things I told her was "I want to take my biking to the next level this year." At the time I thought the "next level" was competing in endurance single-speed mountain bike races or training for and competing in the upcoming cyclocross season.

When we returned from vacation the idea simmered, and I returned to my daily routine. Part of my routine at that point consisted of volunteering for a local non-profit organization. Around the same time some great life events happened and I needed more time to support myself, so I had to stop volunteering. But the desire to give back to my community was still strong. Around the same time, Adria's sister was running a half-marathon to raise money for cancer awareness through Team In Training, and that's when it hit me! Why not use my bike to raise money for a local non-profit? It was a perfect way to combine my love for biking, sustainability, and community.


Choosing the Homeless Garden Project was an easy choice and a perfect fit for my first Cause. HGP was created nearly 20 years ago as a way to "...provide job-training and meaningful work in a therapeutic environment" (from their website). I earn my paycheck by working in the organic produce business, so there's an obvious connection to sustainability with HGP. And by teaching homeless people important transferable job skills, HGP is helping strengthen our community.



If you take a few minutes to click through some of my previous posts, you'll get a little more insight into the great things that HGP is doing and why donating any amount of money would be greatly appreciated. There are two ways to donate. The easiest way is to click here and download the pledge form. If you do this, have a look at their "Wish List" - these are the tools that are needed to keep the HGP going. When you donate through their website the money goes directly to them. The other way to donate, and just as safe, is to get the money to me and I'll present all donations to HGP at once. Obviously, you'll probably only do that if you know me and know how to get hold of me.

You can also support them by visiting their retail store (perfect for holiday gifts) located in Santa Cruz at 30 West Cliff Drive @ Depot Park or online. To all the men out there...their store has lots of good stuff for the women in your life - homemade beeswax candles, wreaths and lots of soft, knitted things. Remember, all the goods here are produced locally, stay in the community, and go towards a wonderful cause.

And stay tuned for round two of Commute for a Cause. I'm researching the next non-profit to ride for, and also working on moving this blog onto its own webpage. I'm taking a break from updating this blog until the next round starts on January 1st.