Chris Castillo hadn’t planned to participate in CycleMAYnia, until he spotted pop-up tents for the Mayor’s Ride outside Trek Bicycle from his family’s Goleta Floral shop in Old Town Goleta.

Electric Bike Winner Chris Castillo with his son, Nico, at the CycleMAYnia Grand Finale at Leadbetter Beach. (Courtesy photo)
Electric Bike Winner Chris Castillo with his son, Nico, at the CycleMAYnia Grand Finale at Leadbetter Beach. (Courtesy photo)

Curiosity got the better of him, and he and his son Nico spontaneously joined the ride using the Old Town bike lanes, learning about new bike projects underway in Goleta.

A week later, at CycleMAYnia’s grand finale at Leadbetter Beach in Santa Barbara, Castillo was awarded the grand prize — an Aventon Level.2 e-bike — by Fernando Tessari, owner of Santa Barbara E-Bikery.

Castillo’s impromptu ride earned him a CycleMAYnia raffle entry, which was ultimately drawn as the winner of the monthlong series of events’ top prize.

“I didn’t expect to hop on a bike that day, but I’m so glad I did,” Chris Castillo said. “CycleMAYnia showed me how much is happening in the biking world. Now, I can’t wait to ride more on my new e-bike.”

CycleMAYnia brings together youth, families, commuters and riders of all abilities to promote cycling as a simple, accessible form of everyday transportation.

Participants took small but meaningful steps, such as inflating tires and setting riding goals, which built confidence and led to increased bike ridership across the region.

Data collected for CycleMAYnia activities showed:
• Eighteen percent of participants reported they hadn’t biked recently, but CycleMAYnia helped get them back on their bikes.
• Riders explored new bike-friendly routes throughout the county.
• More participants identified as bicyclists, helping normalize biking as a regular mode of transportation.
• A total of 198 riders competed on SmartRide.org for employer and community trophies.
• Riders logging trips through the platform burned more than 1 million calories, prevented 9 tons of carbon dioxide emissions, and saved nearly $14,000 compared to the cost of driving.

Among the SmartRide.org competition winners, the UCSB team claimed the Gold Trophy and Cottage Health won the Platinum Trophy.  

This year’s Bike Your Way theme encouraged participants to embrace biking in unique ways, including: surrey ride with Blind Fitnes; Bike with Pets in Santa Barbara; a mountain bike class at Rancho Alegre; Guadalupe bike parade with street closures; Transportation Trivia Night in Santa Barbara; and finale group ride using new State Street underpass and promenade lanes with the 805Chromies.

“CycleMAYnia is a great example of how partnerships across the region can spark connection, bringing people together and showing that biking can be for everyone,” said Marjie Kirn, Santa Barbara County Association of Governments (SBCAG) executive director.

“We’re proud to support CycleMAYnia events that make active transportation accessible, fun, and community-driven,” she said.

CycleMAYnia is made possible through public and private collaboration, leveraging Measure A Bicycle & Pedestrian funds to support local biking initiatives. CycleMAYnia 2025 partners and sponsors include:

E-Bikery, MOVE Santa Barbara County, Cottage Health, EcoStiks, Santa Barbara MTD, Santa Maria Regional Transit, Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District, Central Coast Clean Cities Coalition, BCycle, Cycling Without Age, Blind Fitness, UCSB.

Santa Barbara City College, Allan Hancock College, Solvang Chamber of Commerce, Dr J’s Bicycle Shop, Chicano Culture de Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Independent, Bob’s Well Bread, Cuyama Buckhorn, Brass Bird Coffee Co., Santa Barbara Strong Towns.

County of Santa Barbara, and the Cities of Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpinteria, Guadalupe, Santa Maria, and Solvang.

To learn how to save money and bike more, visit SBCAG.org/commute. Through SmartRide.org, the public can log trips and earn rewards year-round.