Chisholm Trail Bike Ride charity event to benefit community

Kaete Schmidt

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Community members and cyclists will be meeting for the fourth annual Chisholm Trail Bike Ride on May 6 at Athletic Park. The ride consists of three different routes: a three mile up and back for families, children or inexperienced cyclists, a 31 mile option, and a 54 mile option for the more experienced cyclists or someone looking for a challenge.

“The most critical part in getting ready to ride is sit bones. Once you start getting over 10 miles that’s when your seat starts talking to you. So, riders need to practice and ride up to 10 or 15 miles and then they’re in good enough shape,” head of Ambucs Curtis Stubbs said.

The bike ride was started by the Rotary Club, Lions club, Kiwanis and the ReNewton bicycle initiative. It is now run by the Healthy Harvey Coalition, the Rotary Club and a charity group called Ambucs.

“I belong to the club in Wichita called the Air Capital Ambucs. It’s a charity. We take donations for qualified recipients and give out therapeutic tricycles from ages two on up,” Stubbs said.

The purpose of the ride is to raise money to promote safe cycling around Newton. In previous years the funds from this bike ride were used to put up the “three feet, it’s the law” signs, paint bicycle lanes and buy two therapeutic tricycles for qualifying recipients.

“So with the ride this year, the funds that we raise all stay local 100 percent. Part of the funds will go towards getting a therapeutic tricycle to an adult who qualifies because they can’t ride a bicycle,” Stubbs said.

At 10:30 a.m. there will be an opportunity for all of the people who have received a therapeutic tricycle in Newton to come and ride their tricycle around Athletic Park at no cost. Additionally, there will be a Bike Rodeo provided by the Healthy Harvey Coalition that will include giving away children’s helmets and teaching bike safety.

“Being able to give back like Curtis talks about with the adaptive bikes and the signage and everything, that’s what service clubs and people volunteer for,” Chisholm Trail Bike Ride founder Tim Marlar said.