On September 9th, Bike Anchorage celebrated the 2015 Bike, Bus & Walk Commuter Challenge and all of our winners. It was another fantastic summer for the Challenge. Here is the recap:

• 623 people joined the Challenge
• 93 Teams
• A total of 85,239 miles by bike 
• A total of 27,432 miles by bus
• A total of 3,489 miles by foot

Our winners were:

• Business category - XS (1-4 employees): Kittelson & Associates, Inc. with 63.7% of their trips by bike, bus or foot.
• Business category - S (5-15 employees): Trek Store of Alaska with 56.5% of their trips by bike, bus or foot.
• Business category - M (16-50 employees): Kinney Engineering, LLC with 33.3% of their trips by bike, bus or foot.
• Business category - L (51-200 employees): The Anchorage Museum Art Peddlers with 11.6% of their trips by bike, bus or foot.
• Business category - XL (Over 200 employees): The Alaska Dept. of Fish & Game Fin and Fur Commuters with 5% of their trips by bike, bus or foot.

Award winner: Kittelson & Associates 

 Award winner: Trek Store of Anchorage

 Award winner: Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game Fin and Fur Commuters 

We also had some outstanding individual achievements that are worth highlighting. First, we had several folks who made 100% of their trips to and from work this summer by bike, bus or foot. This outstanding achievement is inspiring, to say the least. These participants will receive a gift certificate from the Moose's Tooth or Midnight Sun Brewing.  Congratulations to:

• Gary Katsion with Kittelson & Associates
• Ryan Young with AES Bikers
• Sean Eeyore with Evading Car Interiors
• Brian Lamson with Kinney Engineering
• pblock with RDI Riders
• orind with Keep'n the PeACE
• Waryhoose with the Alaska Railroad Chain Gang
• Brig2nowhere with Honey Badgers Don't Car
• Mistertoad with the Alaska Railroad Chain Gang

We also had some particpants that chalked up some serious miles. Our top miles were:

• flyrescue with the 176 WG - Alaska National Guard with 1748 miles by bike.
• Jan with Keep'n the PeACE with 5664 miles by bus.
• aerode92 with the 59th Signal Battalion with 471 miles by foot.

The Summer Challenge wouldn't be possible without several people. First, a huge round of thanks goes out to Alex Jones and John Hettinger of RDI, Inc. They are the masterminds behind the Challenge's web interface. We simply couldn't host the Challenge without their help. Second, the Challenge wouldn't be what it is and we wouldn't have all the amazing awards and door prizes without Catherine Call, Blue Sky Studios and our co-sponsors at AIA Alaska. Third, the Awards Party and Fashion Show would not have been possible without the amazing support of Alaska Public Media, Alaska Pacific University and folks from the Trek Store and Paramount Cycles. We also want to thank Alaska Public Media for all the work they put in to promoting the Challenge throughout the summer with the on-air reminders about the Bike Fridays bike stations around town. 

We also want to extend our thanks to all the businesses that donated some great gifts that we were able to hand out as door prizes and awards for Challenge participants. Thanks goes out to:

• The Alaska Railroad
• The Alaska Club 
• The Bear Tooth and Moose's Tooth
• The Bicycle Shop 
• The Trek Store of Anchorage 
• City Diner 
• Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop 
• Great Harvest Bread Co. 
• Midnight Sun Brewing Co.
• REI
• Snow City Cafe
• Spenard Roadhouse
• Steamdot Coffee
• Alaska Public Media

In addition, we need to thank all of our Bike Fridays bike station hosts who helped encourage all of us to go by bike through the summer. Thanks to:

• Alaska eBike Store
• Alaska Public Media and Alaska Pacific University
• Alaska Regional Hospital
• Credit Union 1
• CRW Engineering
• Denali Alaskan Federal Credit Union
• Great Land Trust
• RIM Architects and Corvus Design
• Stantec
• Trek Store of Alaska
• United Way Emerging Leaders
• Visit Anchorage

And of course, none of this would be possible without our amazing team of volunteers. We hope you enjoyed the Challenge and that it inspired you to leave the car at home. And finally, thanks to all of our particpants! Congrats to a great summer supporting active transportation. Stay tuned for more fun and exciting events that will encourage you to go by bike!