In a historic effort to inspire more women to ride bikes, more often, six amateur female bicyclists are tackling the entire 3,479-kilometer 2012 Tour de France route. The women will ride each stage in a single day, one day ahead of the racers. They are riding to encourage growth in women’s bicycling and also to raise $60,000 for the Bikes Belong Foundation.

The project is named Rêve, after the French word for dream. The six Rêve riders include women from Oregon, California, Colorado, and Puerto Rico. Bikes Belong’s research analyst and communications coordinator, Kate Powlison, is one of the six riders.

“Increasing women’s bicycling participation is a longstanding interest of mine, both personally and professionally,” said Powlison. “At Bikes Belong, we work to make bicycling safer and stress-free, a proven way of getting more women to ride bikes. I’m doing the Rêve Tour to support more women riding bikes in the U.S. and to prove to any woman that no matter how daunting the trip—whether it’s a Grand Tour, a century ride, a steep hill out of town, or a riding to work for the first time—it can be done.”

The riders will average more than eight hours a day on their bikes. Bicycling without the shelter of a large peloton, they will have to work together to ride efficiently enough to finish in daylight. Top of the line equipment support from sponsors—Cannondale, SRAM, Giro, Strava, CAPO, FSA, ZIPP, Schwalbe, Fizik, Zacuto, Quarq, Alpinestars, SmallHD, Osmo Nutrition, and Westone—ensure that the women have every possible mechanical advantage.

Supporters can follow the project on Strava, peloton.com, and on Twitter at #revetour.

You can help the riders raise $60,000 for the Bikes Belong Foundation by making a donation on the ride’s fundraising page.