Readers. Bike riders. Randonneurs. Always Be Coffeeneuring Club members. Scenesters. People (on Earth)!
It’s back again and it’s a big one. That’s right, it’s the 15th edition of the Coffeeneuring Challenge. You’re only 15 once so let’s make it the most of it. Saturday, October 11, we launch.
If you ride a bike, enjoy low-key two-wheeled adventures, drink coffee or tea (or hot chocolate, coffee stouts, cider, pumpkin-flavored things, or some other seasonal beverage I’m likely overlooking), please join us.
The 2025 edition is all about celebrating our 15th year, a special milestone for sure. We are still here and it’s because of you, coffeeneurs past and present.
What better way to celebrate year 15 than with more bike rides that include a stop for our favorite fall beverages, and perhaps the consumption of a pastry? Solo or with friends, shared on the socials or analog mode. How you complete the Coffeeneuring Challenge is up to you.
The cortado version of the Coffeeneuring Challenge is as follows:
- between October 11 through November 24, 2025,
- ride your bike 7 times,
- to at least 6 different places (you can repeat 1!)
- at least 2 miles round trip every time,
- max 2 rides per week,
- drink 7 total cups of coffee (or another approved fall-type beverage), and
- document your coffeeneuring (either photos, Strava tracks, journal entries, control card, etc.) just in case the Coffeeneuring Challenge Committee and the Intern (yes, the Intern’s back and still trying hard!) ever conduct an audit.
The 14 official Coffeeneuring Challenge rules are described below. These are totally manageable, possibly sometimes breakable, and all who complete the challenge must follow them within reason. You may even be left with extra days for bonus rounds (c+1!).
The rules accommodate many coffeeneuring styles and preferences. So make it your own as we celebrate this special season together.
How to Complete the Coffeeneuring Challenge
This is the extra shot, extra flavor, extra whip, extra large, extra foam, full set of 2025 guidelines.
If this is your first time participating, these rules may look overwhelming at first blush. (I mean, everyone keeps telling us there are a lot of rules!) But lots of thought go into these and as you read through them I think you will see that it’s really an expansion on the cortado version. In summary, you can do it!
- General Rule. Ride your bike to 7 times to 6 different locations from Saturday October 11 through Monday November 24, 2025, and drink a coffeeneuring-approved beverage. Any place where you can drink a coffeeneuring-approved beverage counts as a location. This could be a coffee shop, café, gas station, or even a coffee shop without walls (see #3!). You may use one location twice (see Rule 12)! Reusable cups or mugs highly encouraged! Please, whenever you can, bring your own mug or ask for a real drinking cup that can be washed. That may not be feasible everywhere, but let’s do our part where we can.]
- Early Bird Friday. Want to start your official challenge Friday October 10 instead of waiting until Saturday? You can because Early Bird Friday is here! Just go for it. The early bird get the worm and who doesn’t love worms?! Celebrate!
- Coffee Shop Without Walls. Fresh air is a tonic for body and mind. A coffee shop without walls is a place like a park, campsite, gazebo, picnic table, field, a bridge (either under or over it), or even a parking lot. A coffee shop without walls is anywhere you pause during your ride to prepare and/or drink a beverage.
- Two Rides Maximum Per Week. You can coffeeneur any day of the week. A maximum of two rides per week qualify. Only one coffee location per day counts toward official completion. There is latitude with how one defines their week. As long as you define it as seven consecutive days, you can start your week any day. You make the call, and don’t switch it around. If you reach your 7-ride total, take yourself out on some c+1 rides, you’ll thank yourself!
- Eligible Beverages. Hot and cold beverages are eligible for this challenge. Hot chocolate qualifies, as does tea. Chocolate milk for the kiddos? Okay! Apple cider is also a coffeeneuring-approved beverage. Hard cider counts! Iced coffee too. Iced tea is a yes – hopefully something better than Lipton! Espresso martinis are a yes. Coffee porters or stouts qualify as well. Affogato counts, yum! Coffee ice cream can count, but don’t go crazy with ice cream, it’s a beverage-focused challenge after all. Notefor emphasis: Drinks do not have to be hot! They just have to be coffeeneuring-ish type drinks. Again, reusable cups when possible, por favor.
- Controversial Beverage Rule. Sometimes participants introduce a questionable drink into the challenge. Don’t be shy, tell us what it is! We want to know, and we will have thoughts! The beverage eligibility will be arbitrated in the Court of Coffeeneur Public Opinion and ruled on by the Coffeneuring Challenge Committee and the Intern, who has recommendation privileges only.
- Controversial Ride Rule. Sometimes participants introduce a questionable ride into their challenge. They are welcome to solicit the views of the Court of Coffeeneur Public Opinion, but must ultimately appeal to the Coffeeneuring Challenge Committee to request that the ride qualify.
- 2-Mile Minimum Distance. Your ride must be at least two miles total for each trip you take, but there is no maximum distance so you could ride 100 miles or more for a cup of coffee. You do you! At least two miles round trip though.
- Documentation. The honor system continues at Coffeeneuring Headquarters. All finishers will complete this form when they are done because we are into forms. THE FORM IS HERE. Please keep some evidence of your ride. People take photos, some post on Instagram or in the Coffeeneurs Facebook Group, others illustrate their rides, some provide links to Strava, and still others have done handwritten journals. The trust level is high in this challenge. Therefore, we do not request proof of all rides, only completion of a Google form once your challenge is complete. Easy peasy! Basically don’t cheat, the Spirit of Coffeeneuring always rides with us (see Rule 11)! Just keep some ride documentation on hand in case you 1. Want to send it to me just for fun; or 2. In the event the Coffeeneuring Challenge Committee and/or the Intern reaches out to you for a spot check.
- Spirit of Coffeeneuring Rule. This is the most righteous rule of all. Regardless of when or how you choose to coffeeneur, you must always abide by the Spirit of Coffeeneuring. What is the Spirit of Coffeeneuring? The answer is inside you. Yes, you! If you wonder whether a particular ride should count then ask yourself, should this ride really qualify? Ask, do I really think it should count? Listen to the Spirit of Coffeeneuring, and let your conscience be your guide. It’s always there for you.
- Meetup Option. The coffeeneuring meetup concept continues in 2025. If you want to gather a group of people for a coffeeneuring ride, do it! We put together a meetup in DC last year, and it was so fun! You can use the Facebook group to publicize it, if you want, or any other way that works for you. Just be sure you all ride at least two miles round trip.
- Theme Within a Theme Option! How much do I love this rule? SO MUCH! A theme within a theme is any additional theme you use to go coffeeneuring. As an idea, a person might go coffeeneuring and knit, some are dedicated to the coffee outside theme. Others have done a coffeeneuring and painting theme, coffeeneuring with friends, an exploration of teas, or supporting independent shops. Coffeeneuring and reading. Someone did a pairing of unique mugs and coffee outside last year. The sky is the limit! This is an optional rule, so apply as you like. I love the themes!
- 7 Trips to 6 Different Places (on Earth!) Rule. To qualify, take 7 total trips to 6 different locations. Does the math look strange here? Simply put, if you have a favorite spot to go coffeeneuring, you can use it two times during the challenge.
- Earth Rule. No need to obsess about space travel yet, we remain Earth only in 2025! There are no geographic limitations to the Coffeeneuring Challenge, except that you must coffeeneur on planet Earth. So don’t even think about asking Katy Perry about hooking you up to go into space to coffeeneur. Because you can’t!
Submitting Coffeeneuring Challenge Rides
Submissions. There is one way to submit rides this year, and that is with the form I will be posting in the near future! Please submit your entries by December 10 or so, please.
Prizes! You are eligible for a small prize for completing the challenge. Doug at Umbrella Works has partnered with the Coffeeneuring Challenge once again to design something great for our 15th year celebration. I will get back with you on grand prize details as well as cost.
The Socials. Fill us in on your coffeeneuring via any of the following methods. Post as you like, but don’t feel obligated to do so. The socials can be fun and they can also be distracting. So post as you please!
Blog it: Remember blogging? You must if you’re reading this! If you blog your coffeeneuring, let us know!
Facebook: There is a Coffeeneurs Facebook group where you can post and share about all sorts of coffeeneuring matters. It’s a nice group of people!
Flickr: Share your photos in the Coffeeneuring group on flickr. Shawn over at Urban Adventure League curated it for us last year.
Instagram: Tag @coffeeneuringclub when you post! The hashtag for the Coffeeneuring Challenge is #coffeeneuring, or #coffeeneuring2025, but hashtags on Instagram are now weird so it’s more difficult to find posts. You can also add #alwaysbecoffeeneuring for any ride you do. We’ll also be posting about the Coffeeneuring Challenge at @coffeeneuringclub.
Mastodon: Several coffeeneurs can be found on mastodon.social. Label your rides with the hashtags #coffeeneuring and #coffeeneuring2025.
Strava: It’s here! Strava Coffeeneuring Club!
TikTok: We’re not on TikTok but if you are, and you want to lead the Coffeeneuring Challenge charge there, please send me a note!
I think that covers everything, although it’s also tradition that I forgot something and made at least one error! Any questions or anything I missed, please comment or send me a note.
Many thanks to all who have participated and brought the Coffeeneuring Challenge to life in the past, and a huge welcome to those who will take it on for the first time in 2025!
Seven locations, six weeks. We can’t wait to turn the pedals with you again. Remember, you’re only 15 once (twice if you’re a coffeeneur) so let’s make the most of it!
Chasing Mailboxes 