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Kathy Stahl, an employee of Janus Capital Group in Cherry Creek, bikes to work twice a week and plans to participate in Bike to Work Day today.

Her bike ride from West Mineral Avenue and Santa Fe Drive works for her on three levels: It keeps her in shape, contributes to cleaner air and, with local gas prices at an average of $2.76 a gallon for unleaded regular, saves her money.

“I would say I probably save … about $10 a week,” Stahl said of riding her bike. “The best part is I don’t have to fill up within the week. I can make it a full week with one tank of gas.”

Stahl, who drives a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee, has company in turning to her bike these days.

Bike sales for the five Bicycle Village stores throughout the Front Range were up 33.3 percent for May and are up 22.9 percent year-to-date.

Bruce Douglas, regional manager of the Bicycle Village stores, said he thinks Bike to Work Day will help raise awareness of bike commuting.

Campus Cycles, 2102 S. Washington St., also booked an increase in bike sales. Owner Greg Seebart, 52, said he saw an 18 percent year-to-date increase in bike and accessories sales “partially because of gas prices.”

Seebart, who also operates the Cherry Creek Bike Rack, where bicyclists can park for free as well as get bike maintenance and buy gear, has had a 10 to 15 percent increase year-to-date in the use of bike racks. Campus Cycles operates the Cherry Creek Bike Rack in partnership with Transportation Solutions.

“That’s definitely because of gas prices,” Seebart said. “If it (gas) gets up over $3, we will see a jump in commuter bike sales. There are certainly a lot more people commuting on the bike paths, almost double on the bike paths than last year.”

Today’s 50th annual Bike to Work Day will be held across Colorado. Last year, about 18,000 bikers participated.

The event is coordinated by the Denver Regional Council of Governments. It will include more than 100 breakfast stations and 38 safety-check stations for commuting bikers across Denver and Boulder.

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper plans to ride his bike from the Bicycle Village store at 2802 S. Havana St. in Aurora to his downtown Denver office this morning.

“Denver has a great climate for biking to work; (it has) more miles of bike paths than any other city in the country,” he said. “Not only do you get into better shape and live longer, your experience is much better in getting to work.”

Denver is a bronze-level biker-friendly community, while Boulder won a gold community award, according to the League of American Bicyclists.

Staff writer Ameera Butt can be reached at 303-820-1374 or abutt@denverpost.com.

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