Cyclists set up camp

Seeing Tennessee the fun way. Pictured are Rick and Debbie Archer who take in the sights from the seats of their Tandem Santana. The two were in McMinnville as part of Bike Ride Across Tennessee.

‘People have been asking me if this is Bonnaroo,’ said Parks and Recreation director Carlene Brown. ‘This is one of the many good things the state of Tennessee does. One of the large things this is trying to promote is a healthy lifestyle and an active lifestyle.’

Bike Ride Across Tennessee participants began pedaling into Warren County around noon on Wednesday. The seven-day bike ride is in its 19th year. Around 300 cyclists are staying in McMinnville.

Because the event is geared to seeing the scenic sites of Tennessee, participants were directed into town on South Chancery Street to the Barren Fork Greenway. From there, the group made its way to Riverfront Park and then to the Civic Center.

The bikers, ranging in age from their 20s to 80s, have been taking scenic trips around Warren County since their arrival.

They are riding everything from standard bikes, two-person bikes called tandem, low-racer styles called recumbent and two-person low riders.

Yesterday, the group took a trip to Rock Island State Park. After the ride, members were treated to a pool/ice cream party at Gilley Pool.

The event began in Nashville and will end Saturday at Long Hunter State Park with several hundred miles in between. At this leg of the ride, participants have seen Henry Horton State Park and Tims Ford State Park.

According to one group member, it was a long trek Wednesday morning to reach McMinnville.

‘It took about 78 miles this morning to get here,’ said Rick Archer, who rides a Tandem Santana, a two-person bike, with his wife, Debbie. ‘Doing the BRAT every year gives me a sense of accomplishment. You can also get addicted to the physical hype. You’re left feeling confident and satisfied when you push yourself physically.’

Although shying away from calling physical activity an addiction, Rick’s first BRAT trip was in 1989 and he has joined the ride every year since. When his wife decided to go with him rather than stay home and let him have all the fun, a two-seater was purchased in 1995.

‘It’s fun,’ said Rick when questioned about the enjoyment of a vacation that requires seven days of pedaling. ‘This is the best group of people. Most of them are the same people every year. We are all here to have fun and we do. We trust and look out for one another.’

The Archers live in Johnson City and take at least two to three long bike rides each week ‘ every week ‘ all year long. This is the second double bike, as they wore out the first one. Proud of the miles on the $6,000 bike, Rick points out the odometer which reads 24,241 miles.

The group left this morning for Cedars of Lebanon State Park before ending the ride at Long Hunter State Park.

Next year’s route won’t bring the group to Warren County. For next year’s ride, the route will go through East Tennessee for a mountain ride.