Students, many of whom were sophomores, woke up at 6 o’clock in the morning to volunteer at the 24th annual St. Paul Bike Classic, a bike tour that goes around St. Paul. Bicyclists had the option to bike 15, 32, or 47-mile routes. Starting at Cretin Derham-Hall High School, the route included much of Mississippi River Blvd and circling all the way up to Lake Phalen.

Upper School English Teacher Mr. Hoven, one of the organizers of the student volunteering along with Upper School Math Teacher Dr. O’Louglin, was proactive in getting more volunteers and emphasized the event to sophomores, who need 12 service hours before their retreat in February. 41 out of 47 students who volunteered to cheer on the bikers were sophomores.

“It was a really heartwarming experience. I would definitely do this next year. It was nice seeing how happy the bikers got when we cheered them on” sophomore Mimi Longe said.

Sophomore Garrett Pauly, who was also a volunteer that encouraged the bikers, also appreciated this service opportunity. “Although I didn’t feel like like I did a lot individually, all the volunteers who cheered did a lot as a whole. I would for sure do this next year as a junior and the year after that as a senior” said Pauly.

Cheering on the bikers didn’t just help the sophomores with their service hours, it made the bikers’ days as well, even with a small shout of encouragement.

At Pauly’s intersection, Longe’s intersection, and seemingly many others, the bikers expressed their gratefulness by trying to give high fives to the volunteers and yelling at or with the volunteers, each time making their appreciation clear.

For both sophomores and anyone of any age, the St. Paul Bike Classic is a great opportunity to have fun and get involved with the community. Both Longe and Pauly would recommend doing it each year.