How does "Commute for a Cause" work?

It's simple, really.

I am going to contribute a fixed dollar amount to the Homeless Garden Project for every mile that I ride my bicycles.
And I am going to encourage others to do the same.

Here are some questions I've been asked that you may be asking yourself:

Q: How long are you going to do this?
A: For 27 weeks - starting Mon., May 18 through Sun., Nov. 29th.

Q: How much are you going to contribute?
A: I am going to give .10/mile for every mile that I ride.

Q: How many miles per week do you ride?
A: I ride anywhere from 50 - 120 miles per week. A conservative estimate of my mileage for the 27 week period is 1,600 miles (*). At that mileage my contribution would be $160.

Q: How can I contribute?
A: You can contribute a couple of ways. On a "per-mile" basis at whatever dollar amount works for you. You can do a penny per mile, a nickel per mile, a dollar per mile. Or you can just give a flat amount. $10. $29. $107. Whatver amount works best for you.

Q: What if you ride so many miles that I can't match the contribution at the end of the time period?
A: Then you just pay what you can.

Q: How else can I contribute to HGP?
A: Check out their website - you can make a donation there AND there's a list of equipment that they need replaced from a fire in winter, 2007. http://www.homelessgardenproject.org/Donate.htm#wishlist. Or buy a gift from their retail store in Santa Cruz, or their online store here: http://www.homelessgardenproject.org/store/index.html

Q: What if I want to contribute after the start date of 5/18?
A: No problem. You can just make your contribution based on the mileage that I put in starting on that date. For example, if you want to start contributing on August 3, your contribution will be based on my mileage from August 3 to November 29.

Q: How do I get the money to you?
A: I'm still working with HGP folks on this - stay tuned!

Q: How will you update us on your mileage?
A: Every Sunday I will update this blog with my weekly mileage. I keep a little log of how many miles I ride every day, what bike I rode (I've got 6), and what the purpose was (commuting, mountain biking, road riding, or touring.) I will also post other bike-commuting related stuff - GPS maps of cool rides, pics of stuff I take on my rides, silly commentary about stuff I see on the rides, and updates and information about the HGP.

(*) I am planning a three week bike tour from Banff in Canada down to Jackson Hole, Wyoming in September. That will add about 800 miles that I did not include in this 1,600.