Photography: Rich Gunn

I love reading letters to the editor even more than writing my column, because it means that a connection has been made. A spark has flown. And not only a spark, but a spark bright enough to overcome all the other things a reader should be doing in order to sit down to write a letter to the editor. This is a hallowed civic tradition that whispers to me that everything is all right with the world because someone has taken the time to pause, reflect and respond. I’m delighted to share with you one of my recent favorites.

When is the next office group bike ride?

Businesses are always looking for new ways to reinvigorate employees and to attract top talent. At BPM, we found that a group bike ride in an exhilarating location can accomplish both of these things! At 8 a.m. on a cold Sunday morning, a group of 20 riders met at the Ferry Building in downtown San Francisco and biked together along the waterfront to the Golden Gate Bridge. Our group included co-workers, friends and family, and job-seeking students from San Francisco State University. Some were first-time riders, while others had never ridden on busy city streets. We started out early so we could enjoy the ride through the Wharf before the traffic started. With breathtaking views of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands across the bay, we had no lack of inspiration. But as we pedaled off on our separate ways, we each had the same question on our mind: when is the next office group bike ride?

The sign on our office door says that BPM stands for the founders’ names, Burr, Pilger & Mayer. It could stand for the firm’s philosophy, Because People Matter. But one chilly Sunday morning, it stood for Bike-Powered Momentum!

Submitted by Rich Gunn, a bike-powered partner at BPM, an accounting and consulting firm.