Tour Des Lakes this weekend in Kosciusko County
News Coverage:
July 7, 2016
Tour Des Lakes this weekend in Kosciusko County
Denise Fedorow | Goshen News
SYRACUSE - Formerly known as the Liberty Ride, the event now known as Tour Des Lakes will take place in Syracuse on Saturday. In 2010 several Syracuse-Wawasee non-profit organizations joined together to organize and host the Tour Des Lakes bicycle ride with a couple of goals in mind — to introduce riders to the natural beauty of Kosciusko County and to raise funds for the continued growth of the Syracuse-Wawasee trail system.
There are three different routes available — 25k, 50k and 100k. Organizers have said the most popular route is the 100k, which takes riders around several lakes, including Lake Wawasee, Webster Lake, Chapman Lake, Winona Lake and Tippecanoe Lake, as well as a few smaller lakes.
The first 50 registrants received a free T-shirt, designed by Wawasee High School student Wynter Rhodes. The committee held a student design contest this year and received more than 30 entries. Megan McClellan, director of the Syracuse-Wawasee Trails stated in a past press release that they narrowed the selection down to two choices but both were created by Wynter. Although the free T-shirts have been spoken for, they are still available for sale for $20.
As of this week there were more than 200 people pre-registered for the ride, which is more than double the number registered last year at the same time. Megan McClellan said they had a total of 220 riders last year with half of the registrations coming in the day of the event. Registrations will still be taken the day of the event at a cost of $40 or $80 for a family. The cost includes a map of the route, emergency numbers and SAG stops for quick, healthy snacks and drinks along the route.
Registration will be from 7 to 9:30 a.m. All rides should be completed by 4 p.m. Riders under the age of 18 must have a parent or guardian’s signature and those under 12 must be accompanied by an adult over 21.
Tour Des Parks
A family friendly Tour Des Parks Scavenger ride features several parks within the Town of Syracuse. Tour Des Parks is a 2.5 mile ride and participants are given a passport at the start of the ride and if they turn in a completed passport at the end for prize drawings. This is the third year for the Tour Des Parks ride, sponsored by the Syracuse Parks Department. There is no charge to participate in this ride and no need to pre-register.
There’s also a professional BMX show by Solution Action Sports. McClellan said the shows will be at the Community Center on North Long Drive and a portion of that road may also be closed. She said this year shows will be held at 11 a.m., noon and 1 p.m. Between shows a “jam session” will be held with invited BMX riders who are not with Solution Action Sports will perform some stunts. She said performers with Solution Action also stress safety rules of bike riding to the youth in attendance.
“They have incredible stunts,” she said.
For the first time this year there will be vendor booths available at the Syracuse Community Center and a raffle.
Proceeds from this event go to support the Syracuse-Wawasee Trails, the Syracuse Rotary REAL (Rotarian, Effecting, Advancing, Learning) Program, Chautauqua-Wawasee for programming and the Syracuse Parks Department.
