The Chicagoland Bicycle Federation will honor participants and winners in the 2004 Bicycle Commuter Challenge on Friday, September 17, 2004, at noon, at the Chicago Hilton, 720 S Michigan Ave. The event is presented by SRAM.

More than 1,000 employees from 76 organizations left their cars at home and rode their bicycles to work June 12-18 in an effort to gain their organization a win in the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation,s 2004 Bicycle Commuter Challenge. The week is highlighted by seminars, demonstrations and the Bike to Work Day Rally hosted by the Mayor,s Office of Special Events on the final day of the challenge.

"We really notice a difference in bicycle traffic during Bike to Work Week," said Randy Warren, Chicagoland Bicycle Federation Program Director. "When people ride their bicycle to work just once, they soon realize that it isn't as hard as they might have thought. People are much more likely to commute by bike after just one successful experience."

Bicycle Commuter Challenge categories include Public Agency, Business/Non-profit, and Bicycle Related Business. Each category is divided by size, including 5-24 employees, 25-99 employees, 100-499 employees and 500+ employees. The Chicagoland Bicycle Federation provided support materials, including "how to" booklets on commuting to work and discounts at area bike shops, to the team leader of each organization.

The team leaders then encouraged their fellow employees to ride their bicycles for at least part of their trip to work. Each team competed against teams from other organizations of similar size and category.

Awards will be presented to the winners in each category, while all participant organizations will receive a certificate. Individual prizewinners will also be awarded. The category winners are:

Business/Non-profit
500+ employees - Swedish Covenant Hospital
100-499 employees - University of Chicago Press
25-99 employees - Center for Neighborhood Technology
5-24 employees - The Pepper Group

Public Agencies
500+ employees - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
100-499 employees - U.S. Army corps of Engineers - Chicago District
25-99 employees - Chicago Area Transportation Study
5-24 employees - Scripps Networks

Bicycle-related businesses
25-99 employees - SRAM Corporation
5-24 employees - Turin Bicycle

Sponsors and supporters of the 2004 Bicycle Commuter Challenge include SRAM, Hilton Chicago, Clif Bar, Mayor,s Office of Special Events, Planet Bike, Tazi Hydration Bottle, Mayor's Fitness Council and CTA.