The Go By Bike Challenge wrapped up last weekend with nearly 30,000 pledgees who committed to replace 11 million auto miles with their bike trips.  That’s remarkable! 

It’s been fun picking bike winners every day and while the “win a bike” part of the challenge is over, you are all encouraged to keep on riding and keep sending me your commute photos and tales from the two wheeled road. I have to say that one of my favorite parts of the Go By Bike Challenge was going through all the postcards.  The above photo is just some of the 5,000 or so postcard entries we received.  Yes, I looked through all of them.  Had to, actually because a lot of other people’s mail got stuck in the pile of cards.  So everyday I looked through your cards and noticed some trends:

1) Most Commonly Received Postcard

Yep, Gumby and Pokey.  I loved watching Gumby and Pokey as a kid! I received about 40 of these–far more than any other card.  Is there a Gumby and Pokey store somewhere??   I’d like to get a Pokey showercurtain. Really.

2) Olives

Yes, who’da thunk that olives are a popular postcard subject? I happen to like olives very much and these postcards made me hungry. 

3) Animals Who Want to Ride Trek Bikes

The little pig is saying “No more stinkin’ procrastination, I pledge to ride my bike!” I’d like to see a pig riding a bike.    The dog is pledging to ride 3 miles.  Or maybe it was the owner who pledged to ride and the dog would run along side??

4) Handmade Postcards

This is an interesting category; people cut up food boxes and wrote on the back, stuck a stamp on it et voila..postcard!  These came in all shapes and sizes and clearly, America is eating a lot of junk food.  I’d never heard of “little bites” but this was a popular box to use for a postcard.  I do like Skinny Cows though–it’s one habit I picked up in my racing days that I can thank my old teammate Julie for.  Thanks, Julie. I’m still hooked on Skinny Cows.

5) Exotic Places

Now here’s some cool places! Istanbul and Fjordland Sound of New Zealand.  I’ve traveled to hundreds of towns around America to race my bike but these postcards gave me a case of wanderlust.  The kind that requires a passport.

6) Cool Art

These are just two of some dozen or more postcards that were of original art.   The cubist postcard is by Jean Metzinger, in case you are wondering.  I’ve never heard of this artist so it was fun to learn a new (old) artist!

7) Cheesy Tourist Postcards

Now I know what people really buy touristy postcards for.  They send them to poor contest organizers!  For the record Trek is in Wisconsin and I got a lot of “Wiscowsin” cards.   Also received a lot of Florida cards and these flamingos cracked me up.

Alrighty, enough on the postcards. Here’s the last bunch of winners and thanks to everyone who pledged.  Keep it up–you all are fueling the Go By Bike Revolution!

August 25: Melissa Beaudry

August 26: Cary Reeves

August 27: Jennifer Pipkin   

August 28: Jeff Strawn

August 29: Edgar Arroyo

August 30: Jason Davis

August 31: Aimee McNamara

 Congratulations, all!