Here it comes, 5th annual “Trails & Trills” bicycle ride, June 6, on the Raccoon River Valley Trail. Musicians include 20-piece Town & Country Band as well as a brass quintet, and more. Cyclists can get a handy registration form here. “Iowa’s slowest bike ride” will again cover 8 or 16 miles between Jefferson & Cooper. Lots of fun musical stops and lunch, too!
JEFFERSON, Iowa, May 27, 2009 – The fifth annual “Trails & Trills” ride is scheduled for Saturday, June 6, on the Raccoon River Valley Trail between Jefferson and Cooper. It’s one of the slower, easier bicycle rides of the year, to be sure, but cyclists of all ages seem to enjoy the ride while local and regional musicians play at locations scattered up and down the eight miles of trail.
“Trails & Trills Ride is a fun, relaxing, family-friendly ride that really highlights how much fun bike riding can be on the trail,” says Carla Offenburger, RRVT Association, president. “The musicians are a wonderful bonus.”
The event is sponsored by the Raccoon River Valley Trail Association, along with the Greene County Conservation Board and the Committee for a Super Cooper, with all proceeds going for enhancements along the RRVT. Register before June 1 and the fee is $18 per cyclist (children under 10 are $14). After June 1, registration is $20 for adults, and $16 for children under 10.
The registration fees include a commemorative T-shirt and lunch, prepared and served by the Committee for a Super Cooper. The public is welcome to show up for lunch, too, and pay a nominal fee for the food.
Packet pick-up and late registration begins on Saturday, June 6, at 8:30 a.m. at the Jefferson Depot trailhead. All riders start out at 10 a.m. Most cyclists ride both ways on the ride, but some riders — including some of the youngest — prefer getting lifts back to Jefferson, and those are provided.
As they’ve done for the last four years, the 20-piece Town & Country Band will be playing in Cooper from 10:30 to 11:30 am. Other musicians being featured this year include a brass quintet with some members coming from the High Society Big Band, which has performed at the Cooper Proms. Also new this year is the duet “Ordinary Cowboys” featuring Chris Nelson from Jamaica and Dave Harding from West Des Moines on vocals, guitar, harmonica and drums.
Others in the musical line-up are several top instrumentalists at Jefferson-Scranton High School.
There is still room for more musicians, both vocalists and instrumentalists. Please contact Carla or Chuck Offenburger at 515-386-5488 or chuck@Offenburger.com to schedule a performance spot.
Bicyclists can obtrain a handy “Trails & Trills” registration form by clicking here. You can print out the PDF document, fill it in and then send it by U.S. Mail to the RRVT Association, using the mailing address that is on the form.
