URBANA — A sparkling morning of pedaling through some familiar and less familiar tree-lined routes awaits you, your helmet, and your bicycle this weekend thanks to a group of charitable-minded Uni students.

"Getting tired of running two miles every other day in fitness? Want to get a different kind of exercise while helping out a great cause?" advertises Rachel Hyman, president of Students for a Better World, or S4BW.

The club's latest project is the Champaign-Urbana Community Bike Ride, set for Saturday morning. Proceeds will go to A Woman's Fund.

Bikers should register outside Cardinal Fitness, at the east main entrance of Lincoln Square Mall in downtown Urbana.

Check-in starts at 8 a.m. and ends at noon, though there is no time limit for completing the course.

Participants have the choice of three marked routes, consisting of 16, 45, and 58 miles.

No matter the length of their route, student riders will be granted a day off from fitness by Uni Athletic Director Sally Walker.

"We asked for the fitness incentive to attract Uni students," explains Hyman. "Last year, we targeted elementary school children for a family experience. We're certain high school students can also handle the routes and enjoy helping out charity. … We [still] encourage families and riders of all abilities to participate."

This will be the fourth semiannual bike ride S4BW has hosted. The first was held April 28, 2007, followed a few months later by a second on Oct. 28.

The third ride took place April 26 last year. Together those rides raised $1,186.

The bike rides have always benefited A Woman's Fund, a nonprofit umbrella organization which provides help for assaulted or maligned victims of domestic abuse. Emergency and transitional housing is available for 35 women and children, along with counseling and outreach programs.

"Hopefully, it will get the school in charity mood in time for X-Week!" exudes S4BW vice president senior Natsuki Nakamura, referring to Uni's annual series of fundraising events that takes place near the end of each school year. (The 2009 version begins Monday and will raise money for the Don Moyer Boys & Girls Club of Champaign.)

The cost of the bike ride is $8 for students, $15 for adults. And don't forget — helmets are required!