Gearing up for college: prospective students can experience Goshen College by bike

Biking is a popular way for Goshen College students and staff to get around the 135-acre campus and the broader community. Now, a new program will provide bikes for prospective students to borrow during their campus visits.

The college provided the bicycles for this project from a collection of bikes that had been abandoned by students on campus over the years. They were repaired and re-painted by students for the project, which has been dubbed “Brenneman’s Bikes” in honor of the college’s president, Dr. James E. Brenneman.

“Goshen College has a rich and vibrant bicycle culture which we should share with prospective students who visit our campus,” said Richard Aguirre, director of communications and marketing, and the one who came up with the idea. “This will help prospective students experience what it would really be like to attend Goshen College.

During the school year, students’ bikes fill the dozens of bike racks around campus, and cycling is the main mode of transportation for many. In addition to riding on campus, three bike trails – the City Center Trail, the Winona Trail and the Millrace Trail – all pass near or through campus, connecting the college with parks, schools, businesses and Goshen’s downtown. Altogether, the city of Goshen has about 30 miles of bicycle and pedestrian trails.

“I believe this program will also allow prospective students to become immersed in the Goshen College bike culture while they have some fun,” Aguirre said. “When you’re a prospective student, you often feel self-conscious and know you don’t blend in when you visit a college campus. On a bike, however, you can relax and feel like any other student.”