Two groups of Biking for Babies rids left Columbus early Monday, July 11, headed in opposite directions on what might be their most important ride ever.
One contingent of six cyclists departed for St. Louis, where they were to meet three other teams starting from Wisconsin, Mississippi and Kansas on Saturday, July 16 for a celebration of life.
Six other riders wearing distinctive yellow jerseys and a crew of support personnel headed east toward Washington, D.C., a new route for Biking for Babies that also culminated with a celebration of life on July 16 in Arlington, Virginia.
Columbus has served as a starting point for the east route for the past few years.
Biking for Babies was launched 13 years ago by two college students as an endeavor to raise awareness and financial support for women’s pregnancy resource centers. The nonprofit has expanded since then.
This year, 56 college students and young adults will cover close to 4,000 miles in six days, averaging about 17 miles per hour while staying overnight with host families along the way.
Each rider has a fundraising page at www.bikingforbabies.com where donations for any amount can be made.
This missionary work takes on added importance this year, in light of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month that has led to abortion restrictions in many states, including Ohio. As a result of Roe v. Wade’s reversal, pregnancy centers anticipate greater traffic as more women choose life.
“When we talk about fundraising in the past to someone who is pro-choice, they’d say, ‘I don’t support that mission,’” said Sophia Mittman, the Biking for Babies route leader from Columbus to St. Louis.
“But more recently we’ve been hearing people say something like, ‘I’m pro-choice, but given the court case, these pregnancy resource centers are going to need all the help they can get,’ and so they’ll give.
“I gave a talk at a parish, and one gentleman said, ‘You know, I’m pro-choice, but I support what you do.’ And so, it does seem like there has been a realization that these places are good.
“At the same time, there’s still that portion of the population who lashes out at them. And so, part of the mission is to dispel some of those lies and explain what they really do and what they’re really like, the resources they actually offer and the physical help that they provide.
“I think part of the mission is just telling people what they actually do versus what you hear in the media.”
Mittman, a southern California native who recently graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in materials science and engineering, works for a startup company in the Boston area.
Her sister, Sara, a student at UCLA, was responsible for getting her interested in Biking for Babies.
“When COVID hit (in 2020), I started realizing the hypocrisy of society and protecting human life but not protecting those most vulnerable,” Sophia Mittman said. “And I was so frustrated by it. For the first time, I really felt like I need to do something physical for the pro-life movement because I hadn’t really done anything.
“Going into college, I was pro-life, but I was scared to say anything. In high school, all the girls would bring it up, and I would never say anything. I was way too scared. And by the time I got to college, there was a pro-life group, and a lot of the Catholics were in the pro-life group, and I went to meetings every once in a while but didn’t do much else besides that.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a cross-country bike trip that she had planned to participate in was canceled.
“I’m not a cyclist, but it was on my mind that I wanted to do a big bike trip,” she said. “And my sister actually texted me about Biking for Babies. She said, ‘They’re young adults, athletic, Catholic and pro-life.’ And I was like, ‘Wow, this sounds great.’
“And then when I saw it was like 600 miles in six days at 15 to 20 miles an hour, I was like, ‘Nah. That’s not me, I’m not doing it,’ and I just kind of put it to the side.”
A month later at a SEEK Conference for young Catholic adults, Biking for Babies was one of the sponsors. She talked to the directors through a virtual booth and started thinking that maybe she could participate despite having little experience or biking gear.
“There were so many God moments that were just like, ‘This is something I need to do,’” she said. “I signed up and frantically got my bike gear together and started training while I was in school.”
Her first ride came in July 2021, when she joined five other bikers and the support team on the northern route that started in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
“It was really hard,” she said. “But it was such an adventure, and I raised over double my fundraising goal. I realized that people were so generous, and on the actual ride itself all the hosts were incredibly generous.
“It was just so beautiful to see what the pro-life worldview is. Just endless generosity. So much love and support from the community.”
That definitely gave the riders a boost when they’re tired.
“Physically, some days were long, and my knees hurt,” she said. “But knowing what mission we were riding for made all the difference.”
Along the way, drivers honked at them to show support. Some stopped to inquire about their mission.
“We’ll tell them our story, and a lot of them were like, ‘I’ve never heard of that, but it’s awesome,’” she said. “One gal, she drove past us and slowed down and rolled down her window and said, ‘Oh, my gosh, I love the mission you’re doing. My mom was about to go into an abortion appointment to get me aborted when my father like stopped her. She decided not to, and here I am.’”
For this year’s ride, Mittman started training about three to four times per week beginning in March before ramping up to four to five times a week with longer rides (50 to 70 miles) on the weekend. Her sister, who is starting from Kansas, came to Boston last month to train with her.
“It takes up a lot of time, which is, I think, the part of the mission itself is for us to just get a taste of what it might be like for mothers who are facing unplanned pregnancies and carry the child,” Mittman said. “They can’t wake up a day and decide not to (be a mother). We’re getting kind of a little taste of that kind of commitment.”
A route leader this year, she and the team began arriving in Columbus two days before the start of the ride. This was her first time riding with all of the members of this group. Some had done Biking for Babies before, and others were making their first trip.
The Columbus-to-Washington route included several riders who have participated multiple times and some newcomers as well.
The two groups’ destinations differed, but in the end, the miles they travel all led to the same result: the end of the line in two cities, a celebration of life for the riders with food and festivities, and the opportunity to raise money for pregnancy resource centers.
“The sheer joy and relief that we made it, and meeting the other missionaries and hearing the stories of the crazy things that happened to them along the way and congratulating each other, I think that’s the best part of the entire ride,” she said.