Cyclists bike and build their way from N.H. to Vancouver
By Jennifer Gaudette, The Dartmouth Staff
Published on Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Bike and Build participant Billy Corbett '10 sits with his bike on the Green.
For 15 Dartmouth students, deciding what to do this summer didn't mean having to choose between soaking up the sun and performing social service. Instead, they'll get to accomplish both while traveling cross-country.
These students will bicycle across the United States as part of the Bike and Build program, which aims to raise money for and awareness about the need for affordable housing. Bike and Build coordinates six trips that last about two months and cover nearly 4,000 miles.
"It's an unforgettable experience," Diana M. Lopez Guevara '09 said. Guevara was a bicyclist last summer and said she is very happy she participated in the trip. "It was so great discovering [the country] on your own, all the mountains and the roads."
This year's bikers are all eager to begin their cross-country trek.
"I've always wanted to bike across the country," Shahen Huda '10 said. "This is a great opportunity."
The students will leave from Portsmouth, N.H., on June 17 and arrive in Vancouver, British Columbia, on August 23. While they will occasionally camp outside, they will spend the majority of their nights with host organizations like community centers, churches, and schools that provide both dinner and breakfast. In return, the Bike and Build students will give presentations on affordable housing to their hosts.
While the distance and time commitment may seem daunting, to these 15 students, the challenge is part of Bike and Build's allure.
"I see Bike and Build as the perfect combination of physical fitness and community service," said Billy Corbett '10, one of the students participating in Bike and Build this summer. "I thought it was the best way to spend my summer."
About once a week, the students will also work on Habitat for Humanity house projects at different stops. All students have to spend at least eight hours working at a local Habitat for Humanity site before they can go on their trip.
The eight hours is the smallest of their requirements, however. Students also have to raise $4,000 each to participate, meaning that the Bike and Build trips raise over $360,000 for Habitat for Humanity each summer.
Many of the students are excited about the impact their bicycling will have on the affordable housing problem.
"I thought this was a great way to learn a lot about the issue and make some change," Corbett said.
The main purpose of Bike and Build is to raise awareness, student-biker Sarah Alexander '10 said. That task is accomplished by getting as much local media coverage as possible.
"We try to get local newspapers and television news people to interview us," Guevara said. She said Bike and Build members want the media to recognize how devoted they are to the cause.
Huda said the social impact of the trips is important to him, but that he is also excited about getting the chance to explore more of the country.
"I'm most looking forward to being out on the road every day for two months and seeing the entire country, not from an airplane, not from a car, but under my own power," Huda said.