Cyclists surpass 1 million miles in Wisconsin Bike Challenge

Bicyclists participating in the Scott Get Up & Ride Bike Challenge have surpassed 1 million miles traveled, according to the tally from the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin.

That puts the total over the goal, with the full month of September left to ride.

Kimberly-Clark and the Bike Fed launched the challenge in 2010 to motivate workers across the state to take the self-propelled route. Nearly 600 of the company's workers pedaled 205,000 miles in 2010, setting the foundation for the statewide expansion this year.

To date, 4,538 participants have registered to track their miles. Employees from Kimberly Clark, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Northwestern Mutual and Trek Bicycle Corporation are leading the competition.

By the Bike Fed's calculations, the riders have burned 33,400,000 calories and saved $250,000 in gas and car expenses. By biking instead of driving, they kept 513,000 pounds of CO2 from being emitted into the atmosphere.