The 2026 Bay Area Bike Challenge is complete
Thanks to everyone who participated! We’re crunching the numbers and will share winners, stats, and stories soon.
Make Every Mile Count
Every trip you log in May is a chance to win! With 12 prize tiers designed for all levels, anyone on the leaderboard can take home a prize. From daily commutes to grocery runs to epic bridge crossings, every mile moves us closer to our goal.
Track your rides using the Ride with GPS app to qualify for prizes. It integrates with Strava, Garmin, and Apple Fitness so you never miss a mile.
Prefer to log manually? You can still help hit the collective 175,000-mile goal by logging your miles via your browser. Just make sure everything is recorded by May 31!
We’re Here to Help
New to the challenge or hit a tech bump? Check out our detailed FAQ for step-by-step recording tips and prize details. If you still need a hand, reach out to our team at any time. We want to see you on that leaderboard!
Prizes
With 12 different prizes across three tiers, anyone from first-time riders to randonneurs can take home prizes and get their stories told!
TIER ONE - The Most!
Winner #1: Most Miles Overall ($500 gift card)
Whoever tracks the most miles using the Ride with GPS app wins this grand prize
Winner #2: Most Trips Overall ($500 gift card)
For those who use their bike for everything, whoever tracks the most individual trips using the Ride with GPS app wins this other grand prize
TIER TWO - Creative! Make something awesome
Winner #3: Most Creative Route - Design ($250 gift card)
What designs can you draw with your bike routes? Go beyond lines and loops to create an image in the streets!
Winner #4: Most Creative Route - Points of Interest ($250 gift card)
Oh the places you’ll go! How many Bay Area landmarks or treasures can you fit into one ride?
You can plan your creative route ahead of time using Ride with GPS and then open it in the app for turn by turn directions! Or you can simply record your ride as your creating it live. To submit your route, please add "Creative" to the name of your ride, then email the ride’s link to info@bayareabiketowork.com. And check out last year’s creative routes for inspiration!
TIER THREE - Raffle! Everyone has a chance to win
Winner #5 & 6: Raffle Based on Miles ($200 gift card)
This prize can go to anyone who rides! Every mile you track gets your name in the hat another time. Increase your odds by riding further. Anyone can win!
Winner #7: Raffle Based on Trips ($200 gift card)
This prize can go to anyone who rides! Every trip you track gets your name in the hat another time. Increase your odds by riding more often. Anyone can win!
Winners #8, 9, 10, 11, & 12: Register and Ride Raffle ($100 gift card)
Everyone has an equal chance of winning this prize, no matter how many miles or times they ride. Register and then ride at least once in May for a chance to win! Anyone is eligible whether they are tracking their rides live via the Ride with GPS app or logging them manually.
While you can log any amount of miles or trips you want towards the challenge and our collective 175,000 miles, only miles and trips tracked live with the Ride with GPS app will be counted towards prizes. The challenge will run from 12am Pacific Time on May 1st to 11:59pm on May 31st.
In the unlikely event of a tie, a prize rewarding the most miles will be broken based on whoever has the most trips of the two, and a prize rewarding the most trips will be broken based on whoever has the most miles between the two.
Staff members at host organizations for Bay Area Bike to Wherever Days will be ineligible to win prizes. This includes: Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Silicon Valley Bike Coalition, Bike East Bay, 511 Contra Costa, Marin County Bike Coalition, Napa County Bike Coalition, San Francisco Bike Coalition, Solano Transportation Authority, Sonoma County Bike Coalition, and Next Steps Marketing. They are still encouraged to participate!
FAQs
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Throughout the month of May for Bike to Wherever Days, we are challenging the Bay Area to collectively log at least175,000 miles on their bikes. And we can’t do it without you! The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) proudly presents this challenge to strengthen community bonds and promote unity across the region. Last year we crushed our goal for a total 159,200+ miles, so we know we can do it! But we can’t do it without you. Whether you're commuting to work, running errands, or simply enjoying a leisurely ride, every mile counts toward our goal. Join the Challenge!
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Yes! If you are downloading the app for the first time you may see a pop-up window with the option to upgrade, but you can always close that window and proceed with signing up for the app and the Challenge free of charge.
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It’s easy! Here are the steps:
Open the Ride with GPS app on your phone
Find and hit “Record” on the bottom of the “Home” screen
Hit “Start Ride”
Press and hold the “Pause” button when your trip is over
Make sure to click "Finish Ride" so your ride saves and is added to the Leaderboard!
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As long as you are signed up for the Bay Area Bike Challenge, any ride you record in Ride with GPS from May 1-31 will count towards the Challenge!
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Yes! While only miles and trips tracked directly by the Ride with GPS app will count towards most of the prizes, you can still contribute to our collective goal and be eligible for the “Register and Ride” Raffles. You can manually enter your rides via a web browser instead of through the app. Here’s how:
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In a web browser, log into your account at www.ridewithgps.com. (NOTE: this will NOT work from the Ride with GPS phone app. You may use a web browser on your desktop or your phone.)
Select “Upload” from the main menu on the left side of the home screen.
Click “Create Manual Ride” on the right side of the screen.
Fill in the details of your ride. You can enter each ride individually, or estimate all of the miles you rode in May in one giant ride.
Click “Save” to complete your manual ride log.
Learn more here: Manually Logging Miles in Ride with GPS
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Yes! You can connect your Ride with GPS account to Strava, Garmin, and more, so that when you log your miles for the challenge they will also show up in your favorite tracking app. Click here to learn how!
Note: you will still have to use Ride with GPS for the miles you want to count towards the challenge, because this connection is a one-way street. Ride with GPS data will automatically show up in Strava, but Strava data will NOT show up in Ride with GPS. If you can’t bear to use anything else but Strava, you can also log your rides manually throughout the challenge. Here’s how.
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Yes! All you have to do is download the Ride with GPS app and be sure to add the app to your watch. Then all you have to do is open the app from your watch, hit “Record,” and you’re done! Be sure to hit “pause” and then “finish” when you’re done. Your rides will automatically show up in your Apple Health data, though there may be a slight delay. Click here to learn more.
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Yes! In addition to being able to log your miles and help us with our regional goal of riding 175,000 miles, you’ll also have access to our route library to learn all sorts of awesome new routes by bike. Plus, there’s a whole community of cyclists on Ride with GPS.
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Looking to win a prize for a creative route? Whether it’s for most creative design or for creative points of interests, please submit your route(s) by doing the following:
Adding “Creative” to the name of your ride
Adding a description so we know what it is or what you saw. Be as detailed as you want!
Emailing the ride’s link to info@bayareabiketowork.com
Pro tip! You can use Ride with GPS’ route planning tools to plan your creative route before your navigate it: Route Planning 101
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We celebrate and keep riding! Remember, every mile and every trip you track acts like a raffle ticket, and every ride counts up until May 31st at 11:59pm. Let’s see how far we can go, together!
Explore Past Years’ Challenges!
From collectively tripling our 30,000 mile goal for the 30th anniversary of BTWD to riding the Bay Trail in a day, every year has stories and moments worth remembering. Join this year’s challenge and maybe we’ll share yours!
The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) proudly presents this challenge to strengthen community bonds and promote unity across the region.