Benefit bike ride offers celebrity touch

0
236
local community news brief stock image

Daily Reporter staff reports

NEW CASTLE — Cyclists who participate in the 16th annual Raintree Ride this weekend in New Castle can meet and ride with athletes from Indiana University’s Little 500 Cutters Cycling Team, made famous in the popular Hoosier film, “Breaking Away.”

The Saturday cycling event features a choice of routes for every level of cyclist, including a 6-mile route on Henry County’s Wilbur Wright Trail, a paved, multi-use path. There also are 30- and 62-mile routes available, both making stops at tourist destinations in Henry County.

Both of the longer routes, which start at the Henry County YMCA, 300 N. Wittenbraker Ave., offer riders a break at Knightstown’s Hoosier Gym community center, where parts of “Hoosiers” were filmed. Complementary snacks and water will be available, and riders can take pictures inside the gym.

Henry County’s Wilbur Wright Birthplace Museum is the featured rest stop on the second half of the 62-mile route. Snacks, water and restrooms, along with the museum’s robust collection of Wright memorabilia, as well as a life-size replica of the Wright Flyer, await cyclists. The second leg of the long route also encircles Summit Lake State Park, one of Henry County’s most scenic areas.

A complimentary T-shirt will be given to all participants who pre-register for the 2016 Raintree Ride.

Returning 2015 participants’ registration fee is $25. Registration fee for all others is $35. Registration continues until the morning of the event. Shirts and, in particular, shirt sizes are not guaranteed to participants who register after the pre-registration deadline.

Registration and check-in begins the day of the ride, Saturday, at 8 a.m.

All proceeds from this event will go toward developing the recreational trails system in Henry County being designed and constructed under the supervision of and through efforts put forth by Healthy Communities of Henry County, a nonprofit committed to enhancing the quality of life in Henry County.

For more information, visit hchcin.org.

[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”If you go” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]

Registration for the 16th annual Raintree Ride Saturday is open until the event begins. The cycling event features a choice of routes for every level of cyclist, including a six-mile route on Henry County’s Wilbur Wright Trail, a paved, multi-use path. Thirty- and 62-mile routes are also available, both making stops at tourist destinations in Henry County.

Pre-register for $35 ($25 for returning riders) at www.hchcin.org.

[sc:pullout-text-end]