For avid cyclists, weekend riders and first-timers alike, this Thursday is the day to don a helmet, jump on a bike and take a spin on “Bike to Wherever Day” in San Francisco.
May is National Bike Month, and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is going all out for Bike to Wherever Day, as are cycling organizations all over the Bay Area. The San Francisco event includes energizer stations and city-wide rides culminating in a rally at City Hall.
“Bike to Wherever Day is all about getting people out on their bikes, so that they can experience the joy we know it brings and see that it’s an enjoyable, sustainable and affordable way to get around,” Krissa Cavouras, spokeswoman for the coalition, said in an email.
The day’s events begin with rides starting at 7:30 a.m. in four locations: Golden Gate Park, Embarcadero, Andytown Coffee in the Sunset district and Cayuga Slow Street. (The Cayuga Avenue Slow Street extends 1.7 miles through the Cayuga Terrace, Excelsior, and Mission Terrace neighborhoods.) Details are available on the website.
The rides all end at the same point: A blowout Bike to Wherever Day rally on the steps of City Hall at 9 a.m.
Mayor London Breed will speak at the rally, along with a raft of cycling advocates and city officials. Ride to Wherever tote bags filled with healthy snacks and other cycling-type schwag will be available at an energizer station at the rally.
Eighteen energizer stations will also be placed strategically throughout the city at different times and locations including the Caltrain station on Townsend Street near Fourth Street and the JFK Promenade in Golden Gate Park.
It’s not too late to take the pledge to ride a bike on Bike to Wherever Day, the spokeswoman said.
“Last year, about a thousand people living and working in San Francisco took the pledge to ride on Bike to Wherever Day,” Cavouras said.
To take the pledge, and to get more information about the event, visit the organization’s website.