This year more than 3,000 riders will pedal 50 miles a day across the plains of northwest Ohio, visiting local tourist attractions and camping in host towns along the 350-mile route. This year's tour begins June 17 at Ross High School in Fremont, then loops its way through Tiffin, Marion, Bellefontaine, Bluffton, and Bowling Green before returning to Fremont on June 24. The history that you find in these small towns, and the pride that people have in showing it off, is really spectacular. The event promotes family recreation and local business, and raises money for bicycle-related projects. One benefactor is a fund to establish a trail system from the Ohio River to the Erie Canal in the eastern part of the state, Mills says.
Luggage is trucked from site to site, and host communities provide meals.
Parishioners donated ham, beef, lasagna, potatoes, and desserts. So for us, we were doing the Lord's work feeding the hungry cyclists. Every morning, riders can enjoy a pancake breakfast. Last year, Steve Smith of Chris Cakes' catering company flipped hot flapjacks through the air as hungry cyclists tried to catch them. Dozens of other bicycle tours are held across the country, but unlike some of the more rugged ones, this one is very family oriented.