What happens when you ask cyclists to arrive early to an MIT PN2K bike event? They deliver! This was our queue at 3:00 PM (for a 3:30PM start):
[left] Dingfang, Yaoming, and Will setting up for the bike event. [right] A queue of cyclists.
Each year, MIT’s newly admitted students (“prefrosh”) are welcomed to campus by four days of free food, music, and festivities in what is called MIT’s Campus Preview Weekend (CPW), sponsored by the Office of Admissions. This is a time for prefrosh to meet and greet, attend MIT classes, explore the diverse culture, and learn about MIT’s nearly 500 student groups dedicated to causes ranging from community service to performance arts, cultural awareness, and much more…
MIT PN2K jumped in at the start — On the first day of CPW, we started welcoming students in and showing them how we were making improvements to bicycle culture and safety in the community. As an undergraduate, you can walk or take the MIT shuttle easily. However, there’s a whole world out there to discover beyond MIT! A bike frees you from the clutches of MIT and allows you to cycle with friends, crack open a textbook on the esplanade, and quickly commute from one place to another on weekends when public transit is not so frequent. As a freshman, we know you’re on sensory overload, so trust us when we say you won’t want to stress over bike lights, helmets, or failing brakes — and you won’t have to — because MIT PN2K now exists! We take the hassle out of biking and repairs and leave you with fewer excuses not to get a bike when the benefits outweigh the costs.
Now, our partners!
We are only able to pull this off with the help of Bike Boom and our initial collaborations with Roy, the store owner. We were thrilled as ever to have Armando, our pro bike expert, back with us! Along with Dan, they diligently led our bike repairs. They had to escape before we were able to catch a proper group photo with them – Next time!
For the first time ever, we also had the exciting opportunity to welcome into the scene the Boston Cyclists Union!
(front) Pete Stidman, Boston Cyclists Union (BCU) with a fellow cyclist.
Pete, from BCU, was noticeably impressed by our pressure washer:
Our team is working on the day of our May bike event, so keep an eye on this space for news and updates! We will be taking all the feedback from previous events into account and making some changes to provide a better experience for everyone.
Keep Calm & Pedal On,
MIT PN2K team
[left to right] Yaoming, Dingfang, Ye, Alpha, Will