Joining the Mayor on Bike-to-Work Day
Friday, May 15, 2009 4:38 PM
On National Bike Day, 10 members of Team METRO, along with other Houstonians, joined Mayor Bill White, biking from Memorial park to city hall downtown.
About 300 cyclists pedaled the 15-mile route, making it a leisurely and conversational event. The ride began at 7:30 a.m. when the day was still refreshingly cool.
"It was fun. The weather was great," said Nicole Adler, a METRO bike team member. "This was an opportunity to see how easy it is to bike to work. It encourages you to do it."
Tom Pham, a ride leader of Team METRO, said this annual event helped trigger the creation of METRO's bike team.
"We're supporting the mayor's efforts to extend bike trails all over the city, and we're also promoting our bikes-on-bus program. It's a fun thing to do - it's a national event. It's awesome. I wish more employees would attend," said Pham. 
Team METRO poses with Mayor White in the photo on the right. From left to right, first row: Hao Le, Armando Trevino, Mayor White., Lovie Miles, Tom Pham. L to R, back row: Reginald Giles, Marjorie Carter, Brian Rogers, Charlene Lewis, Nicole Adler, Randy Frazier
Hao Le, Team METRO's vice president, said he hopes today's event will convince people that traveling to work is feasible.
"I think one event over a period of time will spread the message and convince people," said Le, who bikes to work four out of five days.
For one day at least, the bikers who joined the mayor chose a healthy, environmentally-friendly way to get to work. Bike advocates are hoping this will become a habit for workers, who will trade four wheels for two on a more regular basis.