Bicyclists hit the road for D.M. mayor's ride

Sun April 22 2007
Posted Apr 22, 2007
2,233

Warm weather greets more than 1,000 riders in the 20th annual Ride for Trails. By TODD ERZEN REGISTER STAFF WRITER A mini-RAGBRAI passed though Des Moines streets Saturday morning as the Mayor's Annual Ride for Trails reached its 20th year. More than 1,000 bicycle riders participated in the event that began at City Hall and looped back either 20 or 30 miles later, depending on the chosen route, for food and entertainment at the Simon Estes Riverfront Amphitheater. Temperatures ultimately approaching the 80-degree mark gave people plenty of reason to stick around. "I am fully going to take credit for the weather today," said Mayor Frank Cownie before seeing the bikers off. Only a portion of the ride took place on an actual trail, leaving many riders on traffic-filled roads they would not otherwise travel. Virginia Snodgrass, 65, of Linden said a quality trail system can be life-changing for many people. "You are talking to a total diehard," she said, mounted on a hybrid recumbent bike she named Black Maria. "And it's not just for recreation. People want to be able to use the trails to get somewhere." In the case of the mayor's ride, that somewhere was often an area tavern. Ride organizer Robin Leever said she is well aware of such pit stops. "When I try to change the route and there's not enough bars, I hear about it," she said. For John McCannon of Urbandale, who sipped a beer at the Waveland on University Avenue, the Des Moines area's trails provide the casual setting that many riders desire and allow for other social activities to be incorporated into a day trip. "For us, this is more about friends and fellowship," he said. "We could ride 40 miles down the highway but never be able to talk to each other." Cownie said local efforts such as the refurbishing the city's red railroad bridge and the widening and resurfacing of the Bill Riley Trail are some of the things being done to achieve "bike friendly" community status by 2009 from the League of American Bicyclists. The roughly $18,000 the mayor hopes to raise from Saturday's ride is only a small part of the $1 million or so that is spent annually on 34 miles of trail. Those funds have gone in the past to pay for amenities such as bike racks on the front of buses, trail signs and artistic bike racks recently added in the East Village. And with the coming addition of the Principal Riverwalk and trail connectors throughout Polk and area counties, Bob German of rural Dallas County said more and more people will find reasons to buy bikes and pedal their way into the city from all over. "It's unbelievable how many people were out on (the Raccoon River Valley trail) once they connected it to Des Moines," he said. Reporter Todd Erzen can be reached at (515) 284-8527 or terzen@dmreg.com