WASHINGTON, April 30, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 34,000 riders can't be wrong: The 2013 National Bike Challenge succeeded in uniting Americans to pedal 19 million miles. Now, rider feedback and a reinvestment in the platform have helped propel an even more engaging, dynamic and user-friendly 2014 Challenge.

Tomorrow, the League of American Bicyclists, in partnership with Kimberly-Clark's SCOTT NATURALS brand, is excited to announce the kick-off of the 2014 National Bike Challenge. 

The goals for the friendly, online competition remain the same: to get more Americans bicycling, whether it's for fun, for work or for health. And we're aiming high for the 2014 Challenge: 50,000 riders pedaling 30 million miles. 

The National Bike Challenge, now in its third year, is a fun, free, game-changing event that runs from May 1 to September 30. Last year, 30,000 Challenge riders from across the country logged nearly 19 million miles. 

"We're so pleased to continue to have the SCOTT NATURALS brand be the lead sponsor for the annual National Bike Challenge," said John Cayer, VP of North American Rolled Products at Kimberly-Clark Corporation. "Whether participating to achieve a more sustainable lifestyle or for health benefits, we're encouraging people to give biking a try. With an expected 900 K-C riders, we hope to continue to serve as a model for other companies and employees to consider supporting and participating in the National Bike Challenge."   

And the new Challenge website will make it easier than ever to log miles and encourage other riders. It will allow users to choose from three different mobile applications, in addition to manually logging miles ridden on a computer. Users can pick from Moves, Map My Ride or Endomondo, allowing users to seamlessly synch their trips throughout the Challenge.  

"This is the third straight year Endomondo has supported the National Bike Challenge," said Mette Lykke, co-founder and CEO of Endomondo. "Endomondo is all about making fitness fun for our tens of millions of users around the world, and we've found that some friendly competition with colleagues is a great motivator for many people. We're excited by the prospect of getting even more people to ride bikes to work this year."  

"Our mission at MapMyRide is to make fitness social, simple and rewarding," said Robin Thurston, President of MapMyFitness. "Now avid cyclists and commuters can participate and challenge others across the country through this empowering initiative by simply syncing to their MapMyRide account." 

"We're excited be one of the official apps for the National Bike Challenge this year," said Sampo Karjalainen, CEO of Moves. "Moves is great for tracking everyday biking without the need to remember to start and stop tracking."

We're building on the Challenge's strengths and improving the areas where we know there is room to grow. Riders will also be able to create and build new online communities beyond teams, workplaces and cities. "Leagues" will allow teams and workplaces to compete in additional categories. Administrators can create their own public or private leagues to face new opponents.

"The Challenge is a great tool in achieving our mission of creating a Bicycle Friendly America," said Andy Clarke, President of the League of American Bicyclists. "We're excited to see the increased use and accessibility that comes with the new website platform."

It's never too soon or too late to join the Challenge. Ride your bike for fun, to work, on the trail -- anytime you can. 

"It is exciting to see something that started with four Kimberly-Clark employees on a whiteboard in Neenah, WI grow into a national program motivating 50,000+ people in 2014 to take charge of their health and wellness," said Rob Gusky, Engineering Technical Leader at Kimberly-Clark, who also serves as K-C's Ambassador of Cycling.

Sign up at www.nationalbikechallenge.org and get riding!

SOURCE League of American Bicyclists