The Buzzards Bay Watershed Ride provides one of the most scenic coastal cycling courses in all of New England, and it returns for its 14th year on Sunday, October 4. Cyclists of all ages and abilities can sign up now to bike 35, 75 or 100 miles at the Buzzards Bay Watershed Ride by visiting www.savebuzzardsbay.org/ride.
Participants who sign up before Monday, June 1 will save $10 on the registration, too.
The Watershed Ride is a fun community event that supports a great cause: clean water in Buzzards Bay. More than 300 cyclists participate in the Watershed Ride each year, pedaling through 11 coastal communities and passing more than 3,300 acres of conservation land protected by the Buzzards Bay Coalition and other conservation organizations.
Starting in Little Compton, R.I., the 100-mile route travels past coastal farms and villages, picking up the 75-mile riders at Horseneck Beach State Reservation in Westport and the 35-mile riders at idyllic East Over Farm in Rochester. All three route options finish together at a waterfront celebration in Woods Hole on Cape Cod, complete with cheering supporters, a hot dinner, beer and wine bar, live music, and complimentary massages. With a fun food truck lunch stop, water and snack stations every 20 miles, ace bike mechanics on the route, and shuttles for both people and bikes, cyclists are well cared for and supported.
Dartmouth resident Sandra Medeiros is preparing to participate in her fifth Watershed Ride with the South Coast Bikeway Alliance team. “I ride because I love my Bay. I swim in it, kayak on it and hike and ride along it. I appreciate all that the Coalition does to protect it. Giving residents equal opportunity to all that the South Coast offers along with clean water is important.
“Our South Coast Bikeway Alliance team supports these efforts and like the Coalition is working to connect communities,” Medeiros said. “The 50-mile Bikeway, when completed, will connect people and places in the South Coast with pathways that offer safe, equitable transportation as well as opportunities for recreation.”
Last year, riders like Sandra raised a total of more than $220,000 to support the Coalition. Each rider raises a minimum of $300, and prizes go to riders and teams that raise the highest totals. Many riders form a team with friends and training groups like the “Bourne Rail Trail Blazers,” “ReThink Plastics,” and “Cape Cod MOVES.”
To sign up for the Buzzards Bay Watershed Ride, visit www.savebuzzardsbay.org/ride.