WILLMAR -- The coldest, darkest mornings were the worst, but Randy Frederickson has made it through most of the winter now.
The science teacher is well on the way to his goal of riding his bicycle to school 100 days to raise money for solar panels to be installed above the main entrance at Willmar Junior High. He's pedaled the 5-mile round trip a total of 63 times since last fall and has 37 trips to finish before the end of May.
Frederickson has about 90 sponsors, with pledges ranging from a penny a mile to 50 cents a mile. His most famous sponsor is explorer Will Steger. If he reaches his goal of 500 miles, the donations from the sponsors will range from $5 to $250 each, but he's not sure exactly how much he's on track to raise.
Frederickson said he is pleased with the support, though he had hoped for even more small pledges.
"The whole goal was to get a lot of people to do a little, not a few people to do a lot," he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
The solar panel project is part of the Schools for Energy Efficiency program, but its organizers hope that people will see it as a community project.
"We want people to feel a sense of accomplishment as a community," Frederickson said. "It's not a huge thing, but it's a positive step, and we actually did something concrete."
Students throughout the district will be able to use computers to monitor the panels to see how much energy the panels are generating and the effect on the environment.
Junior High students have been visiting service clubs to seek donations. They still need to raise about $6,000 to complete the $25,800 project. No school district money is being used for the panels.
The students are enthusiastic about the project and their ability to do something, even something small, about global warming, Frederickson said.
"It's their generation that is going to be stuck with this problem to fix," he added. "I think once it's in place, it's a nice stepping stone for whatever comes next."
Frederickson said he's learned a few things during his months riding to work.
"Normally, I do try to ride pretty much every day," he said this week. He drives some days, maybe once a week, when he has a lot to carry or has errands to run after work, he said.
ADVERTISEMENT
He tries to avoid icy conditions, because that can be dangerous, and he avoids days with a lot of salt on the roads, because that's hard on his bike. Sometimes, during the shortest days of the year, it could be tough to make himself put on his face mask and a head lamp to make the ride in the dark. "You feel kinda like you're the lone ranger out there," he said.
Frederickson said he hasn't necessarily lost weight, but he knows he's in better shape since he started riding to school. Right now, he makes the 2½-mile trip from northwest Willmar to the Junior High in about 15 minutes, depending on train traffic. Once the weather is warmer, and the air is a little easier on his lungs, he hopes to improve his time.
