Ride For Change to Rally Young Voters on Cycling Mission Along East Coast

August 21, 2004 -- On Labor Day, September 6, the members of the project Ride For Change will embark on a cycling mission from Boston, MA to Palm Beach, FL. Traveling over 2,000 miles by bike, the riders will follow the Atlantic Coast stopping along the way in such cities as Hartford, New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Richmond, Wilmington, Savannah, and Jacksonville.

Their purpose?

"Our mission is to register and energize young voters for the upcoming presidential election," said Ride For Change founder Mei Mei Hu. For Hu, a recent graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, the idea for the bike ride was born out of a dual sense of frustration.

"I was troubled by the current leadership of our country, and by the abysmal turnout rates I was seeing for young voters in recent years," she recalled.

And so Hu, 21, decided to do something about it. She planned a bike route, rallied together a group of friends from across the country, and persuaded companies such as Independent Fabrication bikes, Bicycling Magazine, and Trophy Bikes to sponsor them.

Stopping at college campuses, town squares, and other meeting points, Ride For Change riders will work with school organizations and other voting projects to register voters and get them motivated for the upcoming election.

In addition to conventional locales such as lunch rooms and high traffic streets, Ride For Change branches out to more unorthodox spots to reach voters. For instance, volunteers are coordinating visits to shelters in New York City and Philadelphia to register the homeless. Raphael Parker, a rider, addresses crowds on the subway and has passed out over 1,200 voter registration forms so far in the process.

Added Rowan Riley, a participant, "While we feel that positive changes can be made through different political leadership, our main goal is to encourage young adults to get out there on November 2 and vote, no matter what their political affiliation."

Ride for Change's campaign will be fully documented and open to anyone who would like to participate. Supporters can follow the progress of the riders through photos and journal entries online.

For more information, please visit www.rideforchange.org or contact Chrissie Schmidt at chrissie@rideforchange.com or Mei Mei Hu at meimei@rideforchange.com. Visitors can register through the website.



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