Bike & Build

Bike & Build 2014

Pedaling for affordable housing

"Through service-oriented cycling trips, Bike & Build benefits affordable housing and empowers young adults for a lifetime of service and civil engagement.  Since being founded as an independent 501(c)3 organization in 2002, Bike & Build has engaged over 2,000 riders and has donated more than $4.5 Million and 160,000 hours to affordable housing groups throughout the country.  Progress reports from our 2012 competitive grant recipients indicate that our riders' donations helped fund more than 1,100 homes, impacting nearly 6,000 individuals and engaging more than 13,000 youth and young adults.  Our goal is to continue to increase these numbers and spread our impact in the 2014 season."
~ 2014 Bike & Build Brochure

This summer, approximately 250 young adults (ages 18-25 for participants, and 18-28 for trip leaders) will bicycle across the country.  No "adults" are part of this trip, as the purpose of Bike & Build is to encourage and motivate young adults to be active in their communities and get involved in addressing the country’s affordable housing crisis.  These 250 young adults are split into 8 groups of riders, each taking a separate path across the US (as depicted below).  Starting on the East Coast, they will begin this epic journey by first dipping their wheels in the Atlantic Ocean before setting off across the country.  Along the way, they will meet with community leaders to talk about affordable housing, give presentations, collect en-route donations for the cause, and stop at predetermined locations to help build houses with local affordable housing groups.  The trip comes to a conclusion after 8-9 weeks of traveling, averaging 70 miles a day, when participants dip their wheels in the Pacific Ocean.

As for me, I'll be riding the Southern US (SUS) route, along which I'll be traveling over 4000 miles and stopping at 12 separate build sites where I'll spend a total of 17 days helping to build affordable housing.

2014 Routes:

• Maine to Santa Barbara (S2S)
• Northern United States (S2S)
• Providence to Seattle (S2S)
• Providence to California (S2S)
• Central United States (S2S)
• North Carolina to San Diego (S2S)
• South Carolina to Santa Cruz (S2S)
• Southern United States (SUS) - that's me!