Back in May, BikeTexas mentioned the National Bike Challenge right as it was kicking off. The challenge is now coming up on its halfway point.
To date, the program has just over 28,000 riders nationwide who’ve ridden more than 6 million miles. Altogether, riders in the challenge have burned more than 144 million calories and saved over $1 million in transportation costs since May 1. (Please remember that the challenge site updates frequently; these numbers will go up quickly!)
Here in Texas, 834 people are taking part in the challenge, for a combined 181,065 miles ridden and 5,943,704 calories burned. We’re 35th in the standing for states.
On the city level, 26 metro areas in Texas are in the top 600 on the leaderboards. Stephenville is nearly into the top 100; they’re sitting at number 101 in the nation, with the Dallas-Plano-Irving area also breaking into the top 200 at #169.
In addition to a state and city, participants can also participate with a workplace or team. BikeTexas is #400 nationwide for teams; another Texas team, Bike Friendly Richardson, “is mostly made up of commuters and utility cyclists,” according to team captain Jenny Rilling. Together, they’ve saved $1,306 in transportation costs since the challenge began, while covering 3,818 miles. Meanwhile, Texas Instruments is the star of Texas cycling workplaces, coming in at #7 nationally!
The challenge runs until August 31. Go to the National Bike Challenge to join in or log your miles! Let’s lift Texas out of 35th place and closer to the top where we belong. You can also visit the challenge’s Facebook page.
The challenge is sponsored by Kimberly-Clark, with support from the League of American Bicyclists and Bikes Belong.
Endomondo is a fitness tracking and networking community that is serving as the platform for the National Bike Challenge.
