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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:  Laurel King
  American Lung Association
  916/444-5864

100th Anniversary of Bike Trail Part of Celebration

CALIFORNIA BIKE COMMUTE 1996 SET FOR MAY 16

On May 16, Sacramento-area bicyclists will join thousands of other 
cyclists
throughout California in celebration of California Bike Commute 1996. 
The
goal of the Sacramento event is to encourage at least 2,500 commuters to 
try
cycling to work or school May 16. Twenty-two local large employers have
pledged to participate in bike-to-work day promotions and activities.

Activities in Sacramento include morning commute groups called Pedal 
Pools,
the annual bicycle parade down Capitol Mall at 11:30 a.m., followed
immediately by a Bikefest on the West Steps of the State Capitol. A 
Pedal
Home along the American River Parkway Bike Trail to commemorate the 
100th
anniversary of the bike trail (see attached) is also scheduled.

California Bike Commute highlights in Sacramento include: * American 
River
Parkway Bike Trail Morning Pedal Pool - Sacramento County Supervisor 
Dave
Cox and his aide Jim Purcell will lead the pedal pool on a tandem. They 
will
leave the fish hatchery parking lot at the corner of Hazel Avenue and 
Gold
Country Boulevard at 6:45 a.m. and pedal more than 20 miles to downtown
Sacramento. Other riders are welcome to join them along the way.

* Bicycle Parade - All bicyclists are encouraged to participate in this
parade down Capitol Mall. Riders should congregate in the staging area 
on
the Sacramento side of the Tower Bridge beginning at 11 a.m. for the 
11:30
a.m. start. The parade will conclude with a rally on the West Steps of 
the
state Capitol. Free bike parking will be available. The Bikefest 
includes
more than 20 exhibit booths, live music, Bicycle Friendly Award
presentations and awards for the best decorated bike helmets. 

* Pedal Home: Groups of cyclists will leave from the California State
Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. and head
approximately 9 miles to Alumni Grove at California State University,
Sacramento. Snacks will be served by the American River Parkway 
Foundation.
The goal is to attract at least 500 riders to this event - the same 
number
of cyclists who participated when the first stretch of the bike trail 
opened
a century ago.

The goal of the California Bike Commute is to show that bicycles are a
legitimate and healthy form of transportation that reduces smog and 
traffic
congestion. Flat terrain makes Sacramento a great place for bicycling.

In Sacramento, California Bike Commute activities are sponsored by the
Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates (SABA) and the American Lung 
Association
of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails. The statewide event is sponsored by the
California Bicycle Coalition.

Large employers participating in the Sacramento event include Aerojet
General, Apple Computers, California Air Resources Board, cities of 
Folsom
and Sacramento, Sacramento County, California Department of General
Services, California Department of Water Resources, Franchise Tax Board,
Hewlett Packard, Intel Corp., Kaiser Permanente, McClellan Air Force Base,

Mercy Hospital, Packard Bell, Regional Transit, Sacramento Housing and
Redevelopment Agency, Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management
District, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, The Sacramento Bee, UCD
Medical Center and U.S. Computers.