UW News

March 29, 2007

Time to get ambulatory: Walk In 2007 is afoot

UW News

Maybe you are thinking that because you ride the bus to work every day, you can’t participate in the 2007 Walk In, which this year runs through the month of April.


Not so. You could get off the bus a few stops early and — to coin a phrase — walk in.


You say you drive to work? You could still participate by taking walks at lunch, on your breaks, or to and from meetings, if the trip takes you longer than 10 minutes.


No one to walk with? You poor thing, why not try the Walk of the Week? Walkers will gather every Monday in April at 12:05 p.m. at Drumheller Fountain. You could walk with a group, or maybe you’ll meet a walking companion. Your walk could be for 15 minutes, 20 minutes — whatever you like.

Then there are the Campus Clues, another way of motivating you to get out and stroll around. Each week of the challenge a new clue will be posted on the Walk In Web site with a question that requires a bit of a walk to solve. Correctly answered Campus Clues are worth additional points in the competition.

All of which is to say that there are many ways of participating in the Walk In, all of which are a step toward better health, and a chance to win a prize or two. For instance, anyone who recruits two first-time participants will be rewarded with a nifty reflective, zippered bag that lets you carry a key and ID safely attached to your shoe or wrist with a Velcro strap.


The Walk In is sponsored by the UW Transportation Office, the folks who bring you U-PASS and Ride in the Rain. Now in its fifth year, the campaign awards points for different walks taken by participants, individually or in teams. At the end of the month, points will be tallied and small prizes awarded to the winners at a special luncheon in May. Everyone who makes at least 16 one-way walking commutes during the challenge will be invited to the luncheon.


Elena Fox, public information specialist for the Transportation Office, is an excellent evangelist for all things related to the Walk In. She said, “The Walk In campaign provides encouragement and gentle prompting to socialize and exercise. Seattle’s dark winter months make us kind of pull into our routines. The Walk In is a great way to shake off those blahs.” She added, “Besides, friendly competition and some fun activities can give people the little push they need to try something different in their commute.”


The first Walk In drew about 100 participants, Fox said, but the numbers have gone up steadily since then. Last year, she said almost 300 people took part.


This year, Fox said, the dates were changed from May to April to accommodate those wishing to participate in the City of Seattle’s Bike to Work Month in May.


Fox and those at the Transportation Office also added a light-hearted new feature to the Walk In, partly prompted by the extraordinary response they got when they asked for haiku poems from Ride in the Rain participants. This year they are asking participants to submit Walk In jokes — that is, clean jokes involving walking. Knock-knock jokes, why-did-the-chicken-walk across-the-road jokes and guy-walks-into-a-bar jokes are all fair game, Fox said, and a few are already posted on the Walk In Web site.


For more information all things related to the Walk In, visit online at http://www.washington.edu/commuterservices/walkin/.