Riverhead Town organizes free bicycle contest for students
Students in fifth through ninth grades and live in Riverhead Town will have an opportunity to win a free bicycle and helmet in an upcoming essay contest.
The second annual contest — sponsored by the town’s Alternative Transportation Committee, Cornell Cooperative Extension and Twin Forks Bicycles — requires contestants to write a 250-to-500 word essay that demonstrates an interest in bicycling.
The essays will be judged by committee members based on the content, grammatical correction and neatness, said Councilwoman Jodi Giglio, who is the Town Board liaison to the committee.
Some of the topics students may consider for the essay include: the importance of bike safety, reasons for wanting a bike, the importance of bicycling for personal health and well being, the importance of bicycling for recreation, the environmental benefits of bicycling, and the history of bicycling in Riverhead, according to the contest’s rules.
The bikes are “gently used” and have been donated through a bike drive, Ms. Giglio said. Cornell Cooperative Extension will supply the money to repair them, and Twin Forks Bicycles on Main Street will do the repairs, she said.
Anyone donating a bike also gets a voucher for 10 percent off the cost of a new bike at Twin Forks Bicycles, Ms. Giglio said.
The committee awarded five bikes last year at the Police Athletic League Bike Rodeo day, she added.
The essays must be submitted by March 31 to the following address: Office of Councilwoman Jodi Giglio, Riverhead Town Hall, 200 Howell Avenue, NY 11901.
