Virginia Tech senior Catherine Atwood and sophomore Andy Reagan will spend much of the summer on their behinds, but laziness isn’t the cause.
Atwood, a fifth-year architecture major; and Reagan, a chemical engineering, chemistry and mathematics major, will set out on a nearly 4,000-mile bicycle ride as part of the Bike & Build program.
Bike & Build is a nonprofit organization that helps send young adults ages 18-25 on cross-country bicycling trips. Cyclists pause in various cities to offer fundraising money and muscle for affordable housing projects set up by other nonprofits such as Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together.
Since its 2002 inception, Bike & Build has donated nearly $2.5 million and contributed more than 65,000 building hours.
Atwood pursued the opportunity because of her older brother’s prior Bike & Build experience. She said his enthusiasm upon his return convinced her to partake, though she needed his permission.
“My brother and I have this sort of relationship where I try not to step on his toes,” Atwood said.
Reagan began cycling in college and now competes with the Tech Cycling Club. He said a teammate’s personal cross-country journey inspired him, and another friend mentioned Bike & Build as a good way to follow through.
The 2010 Bike & Build season boasts more than 250 participants. They are broken into smaller groups to travel eight different east-to-west routes, beginning as far north as New Hampshire and as far south as Florida. Atwood and Reagan will start in Virginia Beach and end in Canon Beach, Ore.
But the two have several responsibilities before they pump the pedals.
“There’s three things you have to do before the trip,” Reagan explained. “You have to raise $4,000, you have to complete a 500-mile pledge, and you have to do sweat equity.”
Reagan is approaching $2,000, while Atwood is at a slight time disadvantage. She was on the wait list after the October application process, receiving a slot just before Christmas. However, a February fundraising event in Lee Hall boosted her funds.
Atwood and Reagan worked with Kroger on South Main Street to set up a donation-based dinner. Store Manager Mike Witt said they prepared approximately $80 worth of spaghetti, sauces and garlic bread. Intended for 30 to 40 people, the meal didn’t last.
“I had four pounds of noodles just laying in my room,” Reagan said, “and we bought two extra pounds of noodles and some sauce just as backups, and we ended up cooking all of that, too.”
About 70 attendees gave a collective $400, which Atwood and Reagan split. The pair said another potential fundraiser is a “spin-a-thon,” where they’d cycle in place for an entire day, discussing Bike & Build with passersby.
Otherwise, Atwood and Reagan plan to flood relatives’ mailboxes with letters seeking support.
Once Atwood reaches $1,000, Bike & Build will send her a bicycle for the trek; it already approved one of Reagan’s own bicycles. While Reagan will easily surpass the 500-mile pledge with the cycling club, Atwood needs that bicycle — and the time — to meet the mark.
“I’m a little nervous about it,” she said, “mainly because so much stuff is going on right now. I’m still trying to finish architecture and graduate and all that.”
Atwood said she has little cycling experience, therefore Reagan suggested she shadow the cycling club to find a rhythm.
“Monday and Friday they do a S.A.Y.G. ride,” he said, “which stands for ‘slow as your grandmother.’”
Yet cycling is only half of Bike & Build.
“They say trade in your bike for a hammer,” Reagan said.
Atwood and Reagan must log eight volunteer hours, or “sweat equity,” for a local housing organization.
In Jonesville, Va., Atwood spent a February day refurbishing homes with the Appalachia Service Project.
“It’s stuff like taking out insulation in the attic and putting new insulation in and putting a tin roof over a trailer,” she said.
Reagan said he hopes to assist Habitat for Humanity in the Roanoke Valley before the semester ends.
The 10 projects they’ll ultimately assist throughout the country vary.
Sharif Morad, a senior electrical engineering major at the University of Virginia, is one of four “route leaders” for Atwood and Reagan’s trip. He said it’s too early to know the tasks they’ll encounter after departing on May 19.
However, Morad completed Bike & Build last summer, during which his team completed jobs such as shaping a wheelchair ramp in Asheville, N.C., and pouring a concrete foundation in Colorado Springs, Colo.
After Morad’s team left Colorado, another Bike & Build team visited the same site.
“They stayed there for a week,” Morad said. “And for that whole week they did a ‘blitz build.’ Every day they built, and they completed that house.”
The eventual occupants of the homes are part of the efforts, Morad said. They, too, put forth sweat equity.
“You would meet the people that were going to own these homes and they were so appreciative,” he said.
Route leaders organize details including lodging, food stops and laundry locations. Hosts are often the local YMCA, churches, dorm rooms and campgrounds. Community members sometimes provide meals.
“There are times that we don’t have everything we need,” Morad said, “but that’s just part of the adventure. That makes it better.”
According to Reagan, a garden hose — or possibly a lake — could quench the riders need for a shower. He said Bike & Build isn’t an entirely grueling endeavor. If roadside water beckons for you, then hit the brakes and dive in.
Teams have a loose 4 p.m. deadline to reach daily checkpoints, so leisure has its place throughout the more than two-month tour.
“There’s some people on our trip that have expressed interest in finding the best cup of coffee along the route,” Atwood said.