Bike to work day is everyday for the dedicated cyclists. But for those who need a nudge to try it, this Friday is Bike to Work day.

There are two organized Bike to Work rides to Detroit this year. They are a combination of last year’s rides hosted by Detroit Synergy and American Cycle and Fitness.

If you need another excuse, Armadillo Printwear is cooking up some cool T-shirts for participants.

Here are the Friday itineraries with the estimated times:

Woodward Avenue Route

• 6:15AM Start: American Cycle & Fitness in Royal Oak
  29428 Woodward Ave. (just north of 12 Mile Rd)
• 6:25AM Royal Oak Farmers Market, West Entrance
• 6:40AM Ferndale, Southbound Woodward Ave. @ 9 Mile Rd
• 7:35AM Cultural Center/Midtown, WSU
• Welcome Center – Woodward Ave. @ Warren Ave.
• 8:00AM Finish: Downtown, Campus Martius Park
• Afternoon ride leaves Campus Martius @ 5:30pm. Arrive in Royal Oak @ 7pm

Grosse Pointe Route

• 6:15AM Start: American Cycle & Fitness Grosse Pointe, 20343 Mack Ave. (6 blocks south of Vernier Rd)
• 6:35AM City of Grosse Pointe Village, Kercheval @ St. Clair. Parking at Trader Joe’s Parking Garage
• 6:50AM Grosse Pointe Park/Detroit, East Jefferson Ave @ Lakepointe – Grosse Pointe Park Public Library
• 7:30AM Rivertown/Indian Village, 6533 East Jefferson Ave @ Bellevue ?Parking on Bellevue Street
• 8:00AM Finish: Downtown, Campus Martius
• Afternoon ride leaves Campus Martius @ 5:30pm. Arrive in Grosse Pointe @ 7pm

For more information on these rides, visit the Detroit Synergy and American Cycle and Fitness web sites.

Ferndale’s bike network was largely initiated with strong support from former City Manager Tom Barwin. The network’s bike lanes were some of the first properly designed lanes in the motor city.

That given, it should be of little surprise that he’s receiving kudos on a Chicago bike blog. Tom is now the Village Manager for Oak Park, Illinois:

The Village of Oak Park, which has already earned recognition for such environmental accomplishments as building the state’s first green public works facility, has added bicycles to its fleet of more than100 vehicles powered by alternative fuels. Two bikes have been refurbished, equipped with panniers and locks, and have been made available for use by employees in the Department of Public Works. Owen Read, the Oak Park Pedestrian and Bicycle Ambassador, yesterday visited the Oak Park DPW for an hour-long information session touching on reasons to ride, bicycle safety, and rules of the road. A number of Public Works employees, from experienced cycle commuters to eager novices, showed up to ask questions and share their own experiences.

Today had two bike to work events sponsored by American Cycle and Fitness and Fox 2. One started in Grosse Pointe, another in Royal Oak. Both ended up a Campus Martius where a Trek commuter bike was raffled off to one of the participants. The weather was great as Fox 2’s Lila Lazaras led us down Woodward.

And a special thanks to Lila for noting how great it would be if Woodward Avenue had bike lanes.

Tomorrow is Detroit Synergy’s ride from the Royal Oak Farmers’ Market to Campus Martius. More ride details

Here is the latest all-in-one schedule for bike to work week in Detroit. Note that the Wednesday American Cycle and Fitness ride is now on Thursday due to the weather forecast. Their Commerce-to-Southfield route is canceled. Detroit Synergy’s Grosse Pointe ride has also been canceled.

• May 14th, Wednesday, 7pm, REI’s free Bike Commuting workshop at their Troy store.
• May 15th, Thursday, 6:30am, American Cycle & Fitness, Royal Oak to Campus Martius.
• May 15th, Thursday, 6:30am, American Cycle & Fitness, Grosse Pointe to Campus Martius.
• May 16th, Friday, Detroit Synergy
  • 6:25am Royal Oak Farmer’s Market
  • 6:40am Ferndale Post Office
  • 6:55am Palmer Park, Woodward at Merrill Plaisance
  • 7:20am New Center/Techtown at Java Exchange
  • 7:35am Cultural Center/Midtown at Wayne State Welcome Center
  • 8:00am Campus Martius
  • 5:30pm Campus Martius back to Royal Oak
• May 23rd, Friday, Detroit Synergy
  • 6:45am Dearborn City Hall
  • 7:30am Corktown/Southwest Detroit at 14th Street/Mercury Coffee Bar
  • 8:00am Campus Martius
  • 5:30pm Campus Martius back to Dearborn

You can still register to win a commuter bike from American Cycle and Fitness.

If you still need motivation, the AP recently ran a story on bike commuting’s growing popularity.

Bicycle shops across the country are reporting strong sales so far this year, and more people are bringing in bikes that have been idled for years, he said.

“People are riding bicycles a lot more often, and it’s due to a mixture of things but escalating gas prices is one of them,” said Bill Nesper, spokesman for the Washington. D.C.-based League of American Bicyclists.

“We’re seeing a spike in the number of calls we’re getting from people wanting tips on bicycle commuting,” he said.

There’s a new blog GoogleMapsBikeThere.org that’s leading a petition to get bike directions added to Google Maps. In other words, when you type an address into Google Maps, you could request biking directions instead of driving directions.

In some cities, there is an option to select public transit options rather than driving directions. It’s called Google Transit and Detroit SMART bus routes are included. It’s a very cool mashup.

So why not do that for bikes? Google apparently likes bikes. They sell Google bike jerseys. Their Ann Arbor office has secure bike parking. They encourage their Birmingham employees to commute by bike.

I think the biggest problem is safety. (more…)