Ride the Rockies rolls into Hotchkiss

Community invited to enjoy live music, food with the visiting riders

Colorado's largest bicycle tour, Ride the Rockies, first visited Hotchkiss in 2009 and will again call Hotchkiss home for a night on Sunday, June 10.

Over 2,000 riders will wind their way along Highway 92 from Gunnison, through Crawford, and on to Hotchkiss, arriving at their overnight headquarters site at the Hotchkiss K-8 school, between about 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Riders will depart on Monday morning between 5-8 a.m, traveling via Back River Road to Paonia and on to Carbondale over McClure Pass.

The Hotchkiss Community Chamber of Commerce has coordinated with the Hotchkiss K-8 School to handle all the arrangements for the overnight stay of this bicycle tour.

Riders will enjoy an afternoon and evening of good food, drink and music at the Delta County Fairgrounds Park, in Hotchkiss, between 3-9 pm.  Local non-profit groups will serve up dinner to raise funds for their causes, there will be a beer and local wine garden, and live music will be provided by North Fork Country, Work Release and Metamoocil Mountian Boys.

The entire community is invited to join in the fun.

As a warmup, on Saturday, June 9, as part of "Hotchkiss is Happening," everyone is invited to participate in "Bikes on Bridge Street." There will be bike decorating, an informal parade at 9 a.m., and local merchants are encouraged to offer specials, including some for those who arrive via bicycle. Cyclists are also invited to take short rides around Hotchkiss. For information contact Elaine Brett at 210-9717.

Ride the Rockies is an annual bicycle tour of Colorado, sponsored by the Denver Post. Now in its 27th year, riders from around the country spend a week pedaling through some of the most beautiful and interesting areas of Colorado.

This year's participants will travel 442 miles over six days, climbing over five mountain passes and past two National Parks. The ride begins Sunday, June 10, in Gunnsion and travels to Hotchkiss along Bue Mesa Reservoir and then over Black Mesa along Highway 92 through Crawford and into Hotchkiss.

After spending the night in Hotchkiss, the riders will then head for Carbondale, passing through Paonia and over McClure Pass along the 68-mile route. They will then ride over Independence Pass to Leadville, north to Granby, over Trail Ride Road through Rocky Mountain National Park to Estes Park, and ending in Fort Collins on June 15.

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