{"678453":{"#nid":"678453","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech Places First in Atlanta Bicycle Challenge ","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech employees biked more than 21,000 miles during the month of October, putting them at the top in the Atlanta Bicycle Challenge.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EWith \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.lovetoride.net\/atlanta\/companies\/5862?locale=en-US\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EGeorgia Tech winning overall\u003C\/a\u003E for workplaces with more than 2,000 employees, the GTRI\u2019s Thighs team came in first among all teams. The \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.lovetoride.net\/atlanta\/teams\/16759?locale=en-US\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Egroup of 10 riders\u003C\/a\u003E from the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) rode more than 6,400 miles during the challenge.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFrancisco Valdes, a senior research engineer at GTRI, rode about twice as much as he normally would have in a regular month.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cBeyond fitness or competition, cycling gives me a space for mental clarity, a kind of meditation under physical pressure,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a time to unwind, reflect, and push the limits. I also appreciate the bike as an engineering marvel.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003ECycling has been a significant part of Valdes\u2019 life for many years, but he just joined the GTRI\u2019s Thighs team last year. He planned his schedule around his rides to maximize his contributions to the team.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022It was amazing to see how the friendly competition brought out everyone\u2019s best efforts,\u201d he said.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe Biketober challenge takes place each October as a way to encourage cycling in the area. This year, 2,726 riders participated and biked 348,585 miles. Their trips equated to nearly 46,000 pounds of carbon dioxide kept from being emitted via other transportation methods.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor those who are newer to cycling, Valdes suggests starting by building up strength over time, and investing in a bike that suits your needs and is fitted to your body.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cChoose routes where you feel safe and comfortable, and eat well,\u201d he said. \u201cAs you start to see improvements, the enjoyment and gains will motivate you to ride more.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech employees biked more than 21,000 miles during the month of October, putting them at the top in the Atlanta Bicycle Challenge.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Georgia Tech employees biked more than 21,000 miles during the month of October, putting them at the top in the Atlanta Bicycle Challenge. "}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2024-11-15 15:09:00","changed_gmt":"2024-12-17 02:01:40","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2024-11-15T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2024-11-15T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"675867":{"id":"675867","type":"image","title":"Georgia Tech Winning Biketober Team","body":"\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech Winning Biketober Team\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1734400840","gmt_created":"2024-12-17 02:00:40","changed":"1734400840","gmt_changed":"2024-12-17 02:00:40","alt":"Georgia Tech Winning Biketober Team","file":{"fid":"259541","name":"Biketober Award.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/12\/16\/Biketober%20Award.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/12\/16\/Biketober%20Award.png","mime":"image\/png","size":22259834,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/12\/16\/Biketober%20Award.png?itok=vRrIPcNR"}},"658385":{"id":"658385","type":"image","title":"Earth Week Bike Ride","body":null,"created":"1653011665","gmt_created":"2022-05-20 01:54:25","changed":"1653011665","gmt_changed":"2022-05-20 01:54:25","alt":"Students, faculty, and staff participate in the Earth Day Bike Ride in April 2022. Photo by Joya Chapman","file":{"fid":"249584","name":"DSC_1166-dd.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DSC_1166-dd.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/DSC_1166-dd.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1049097,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/DSC_1166-dd.jpg?itok=IPNvccoU"}},"675653":{"id":"675653","type":"image","title":"Francisco Valdes with a 2023 Bikeober trophy","body":"\u003Cp\u003EFrancisco Valdes with a 2023 Bikeober trophy\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1731697967","gmt_created":"2024-11-15 19:12:47","changed":"1731697967","gmt_changed":"2024-11-15 19:12:47","alt":"Francisco Valdes with a 2023 Bikeober trophy","file":{"fid":"259301","name":"IMG_4171.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/11\/15\/IMG_4171.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/11\/15\/IMG_4171.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2144373,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/11\/15\/IMG_4171.jpg?itok=hn0qgIzG"}}},"media_ids":["675867","658385","675653"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/www.lovetoride.net\/atlanta\/companies\/5862?locale=en-US","title":"Georgia Tech Results - 2024 Atlanta Bike Challenge "},{"url":"https:\/\/www.lovetoride.net\/atlanta?locale=en-US\u00a0","title":"Atlanta Bike Challenge"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:kristen.bailey@comm.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EKristen Bailey\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}