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Press Release: May 22, 2014

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contacts:
Scott Cowan, Owner, Century Cycles
Phone: 440-356-5705 (office) 330-730-9928 (mobile)
Email: scott@centurycycles.com

Dianna Foley, Rocky River City School District
Phone: 440-356-6702
Email: foley.dianna@rrcs.org

Karen Derby-Lovell, Bay Village Schools
Phone: 440-617-7307
Email: Karen.Derby-Lovell@bayschoolsohio.org

Bike To School Challenge concludes
tomorrow with school-wide assemblies to report
success and award prizes to students

ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (May 22, 2014) - Bay Village and Rocky River schools conclude Bike To School Challenge (BTS) tomorrow with school-wide assemblies that will celebrate the students' bicycling accomplishments, report the impact of their bicycling efforts on their health and the community, and award grand prizes of bicycles and more. For more information about BTS, visit www.centurycycles.com/for/BTS.

Media are welcome to attend the 40-minute assemblies, plus it's the last chance to see the inspiring sight of hundreds of student-bicyclists as they arrive and depart from school.

Rocky River Middle School (1631 Lakeview Avenue)
Student arrival on bicycles: 7:30 to 8:05 a.m. (ending bell: 3:18 p.m.)
School Assembly: 1:00 p.m.

Bay Middle School (27725 Wolf Road)
Student arrival on bicycles: 7:00 to 7:40 a.m. (ending bell: 2:55 p.m.)
School Assembly: 2:15 p.m.

Special Guests and Awards

Special guests include Chris Speyer, Chief Executive Officer of Accell North America, parent company of Raleigh Bicycles. Chris will present the bicycle grand prizes to the students. Also attending will be Charlie Cooper, Vice President of Membership and Development at People for Bikes, a national bicycling advocacy group. Other guests include Mayor Deborah Sutherland of Bay Village (tentative), Mayor Pamela Bobst of Rocky River (tentative), and Century Cycles owner and BTS organizer/founder Scott Cowan.

Grand prizes are three new Raleigh bicycles at both Bay Middle School and Rocky River Middle School. Students in the "Gold Card Club" (those who rode to school every day of the challenge) will also be eligible to win passes to Cedar Point. Ten Gold Card Club students from Bay Middle School and ten Gold Card Club students from Rocky River Middle School will be randomly chosen for a bicycle outing in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park on May 30, with free rental bicycles provided by Century Cycles, followed by a pizza party at the Winking Lizard Tavern in Peninsula.

One new Raleigh bicycle each will also be awarded at Bay High School and Westerly Elementary School. Students at Westerly Elementary will be treated to an ice cream party provided by Honey Hut, beginning immediately after the school's closing bell at 2:10pm. Westerly Elementary is located at 30301 Wolf Road in Bay Village.

Drawings will also be held in each school for bicycle accessories provided by Century Cycles and Raleigh Bicycles and other prizes provided by the program sponsors.

Program Stats

Despite one of the rainiest springs in a half-century, students in Bay Village and Rocky River embraced two-wheeled transportation during Bike to School Challenge. Final program statistics for this year will be released after the final ride day is counted, but so far they've racked up big numbers, with an average of 61% of students per day biking to school at Bay Middle School.

During the 2013 Bike To School Challenge, Bay middle and high school students biked a total of 28,257 miles on a total of 9,783 round-trip rides to school. This saved them and their parents $4,965 in gasoline costs, prevented 31,083 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions, and burned 480,369 calories--the equivalent of 3,431 cans of Coca-Cola.

In 2013, Rocky River Middle School students biked a total of 14,618 miles on a total of 4,568 round-trip rides to school, saving $2,568 in gasoline, 16,079 pounds of CO2, and burning 248,506 calories (or 1,775 cans of Coke).

National Averages

These high bicycling numbers are in contrast to national averages. Studies show only about 15% of U.S. children bike or walk to school today, versus approximately 50% in 1969. As a result, as much as 20 to 30% of morning traffic is generated by parents driving their children to schools and one-third of schools are in "air pollution danger zones." More than 33% of U.S. children are now overweight or obese or at risk of becoming so, with many now suffering from diabetes and other weight-related illnesses.

About Bike To School Challenge

Bike To School Challenge sponsored by Century Cycles is a three-week program from May 5 to May 23 in which students at the four Northeast Ohio schools commit to ride their bicycles to school to help the environment, improve their health and beat high gas prices - plus win great prizes and have fun. This is the fourth year Rocky River Middle School students have taken the challenge. Now in its seventh year in Bay Village, the award-winning program has had a big impact upon the lakeside community. Westerly Elementary in Bay Village joined the program for the first time this year; both Westerly Elementary and Bay High School held a one-week Bike To School Challenge this year from May 19 to May 23.

National bicycle manufacturer Raleigh Bicycles has joined Century Cycles since the beginning as the official bicycle sponsor of the Bike To School Challenge. In Bay Village, Bike Cleveland, Subway of Bay Village, Honey Hut, Bay Village Kiwanis, Bay Schools Parent Teacher Student Association, Project Earth Environmental Club, and the Bay Skate and Bike Park Foundation are also sponsors. In Rocky River, Bike Cleveland, Subway of Rocky River (Detroit Road), Honey Hut, Starbucks, Yogurt Plus, and Rocky River Schools are also sponsors.

For regular updates about Rocky River Bike to School Challenge and Bay Bike to School Challenge, visit www.centurycycles.com/to/bts.

Bike To School Challenge Organizers

About Bay Schools

The schools in Bay Village, Ohio, are award-winning and consistently earn the state’s highest ratings for student achievement. Newsweek ranked Bay High School in the top 5% of high schools in the nation and it was named a National Blue Ribbon School in 2010 by the U.S. Department of Education. www.bayvillageschools.com

About Rocky River Schools

With an enrollment of just over 2,700 in grades K-12, the Rocky River School District provides students with the benefits of a small-school setting and all the resources of a larger school district. Long known for its tradition of academic quality and support of physical activity, Rocky River received an “Excellent with Distinction” rating on the latest State Report Card showing that Rocky River students have continued to excel academically. Nearly 90 percent of River students continue on to college or universities across the country. The Rocky River Schools were ranked 5th in the prestigious Top Ten List of Cleveland Area Schools in the June, 2010 issue of Cleveland Magazine. www.rrcs.org

About Century Cycles

Century Cycles is an award-winning, locally-owned chain of independent bicycle stores in Medina, Peninsula, and Rocky River, providing all types of bicycles and friendly, expert service to northeast Ohio bicyclists and their families. Founded in 1992, Century Cycles is an authorized dealer of Raleigh, Giant, Electra, Surly, Salsa, and Haro bicycles, as well as Santana tandems. The Peninsula store also rents bicycles year-round for riding on the Towpath Trail in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. For nine consecutive years, Century Cycles has been voted one of "America's Best Bike Shops" in the United States by Bicycle Retailer & Industry News magazine, a trade publication that honors the nation’s top independent bike stores. Century Cycles was voted “Cleveland’s Best Bike Shop” by the readers of Cleveland Magazine every year since 2010. www.centurycycles.com