Dump the Pump Challenge II

As we hinted, next Thursday, June 17th, the City of Savannah, CAT, and a host of community organizations including your Savannah Bicycle Campaign will hold a National Dump the Pump Event to encourage residents to use alternative forms of transportation.

The main event will be the 2nd Annual Dump the Pump Challenge; a race between a cyclist, bus commuter and car commuter from the 12 Oaks Shopping Center on Abercorn to City Hall. Each competitor must obey all applicable traffic laws in racing to City Hall, where a local elected official will crown the winner.

Savannah Bicycle Campaign Executive Director Frank McIntosh as defending champion will again represent bicyclists in the competition. “In a city as flat and bikable as Savannah, there are a huge number of trips that are as fast or faster by bike as they are by car”, said McIntosh. “As the results of last year’s race proved, this can be one of them. I’m not guaranteeing victory—our bus system is extremely fast and efficient—but I feel good about my chances.”

McIntosh and the other competitors will be joined at the finish line by participants in the Savannah Bicycle Campaign’s monthly bicycle commuter group ride, Two Wheels to Work. The group ride, which is free and open to the public, will leave from Habersham Village Shopping Center parking lot at 7:30 a.m. and end at the finish line around 8:00am.

The finish line itself will be stocked with donated fruit from Polk’s Produce, free coffee from our friends Jittery Joe’s, and will be a carbon-neutral undertaking courtesy of a tree planting by Half-Moon Outfitters. For those thinking about trying an alternative commute for the first time, all Chatham Area Transit busses will operate fare free all day.

For more information on the event, contact Garrison Marr at (912) 651-6470 or garrison_marr@savannahga.gov.  Click on the image for a printable poster you can display at work.