The month of May is Bike Month in Napa County and across the Bay Area.
Each year, the Napa County Bicycle Coalition honors one individual as Bike Commuter of the Year, for their dedication to riding to work or school. We hope that the stories of this year’s winners inspire you as much as they’ve inspired us!
Dave Kearney Brown
Dave Kearney Brown has ridden a bike as his main form of transportation off and on all his life. This latest stretch, though, dates back about six years and is a direct result of his desire to lower his contributions to greenhouse pollutants.
He commutes from his home in Napa pretty much every day to his job as a third-grade teacher at Napa Valley Language Academy. And while he does have a car, it gets used very infrequently. In fact, recently, he went 2.5 weeks without driving, and 3 months without filling up the 10-gallon tank.
In addition to commuting to work, most of Dave’s miles are to do the weekly shopping, but he does venture out on longer rides when he has meetings to attend in other locations. For example, he recently rode to from Napa to American Canyon for a Napa Climate Now commitment.
Said Dave, “I want to get a T-shirt that says: ‘The ultimate multitasking: Exercise-Check!, Getting stuff done-Check!, Saving money-Check!, Having Fun-Check!, Saving the Planet-Check!’ ”
Aileen Carroll
When Aileen Carroll moved to San Luis Obispo for college, she started riding a bicycle for transportation. It was the easiest way to get around town and she quickly fell in love with the rush of riding on the road alongside people driving cars or sitting in traffic.
Today, Aileen and her fiancé purposely choose to live within biking distance of their respective jobs. “My 2-mile (12-minute) commute to Van Winden’s Garden Center is often the best part of my morning, and always a good way to unwind after the workday,” she said. She avoids arterial roads with fast car traffic and instead rides side streets that she often has all to herself in both directions.
And Aileen is not a fair-weather commuter. “I ride to work every day, rain or shine, and love to take the bike path to the Napa Farmers Market on Saturdays,” she said.
