by Raymond Duncan
Chairperson,Walk! Bike! Brockport!
Bicyclists on the Erie Canal trek make a stop at the Walk! Bike! Brockport! tent for a break.In July, the highly anticipated bicycle tours arrive in Brockport. Riders roll in from all across the United States and abroad – men, women and children from ages five to 90. They pedal on two wheels or three, on a single seat or tandem, and many are dressed like Tour de France competitors – colorful and flashy.
On Monday, July 8, the first group arrived from Buffalo on the Erie Canal trail, approximately 500 riders doing the “Cycling the Erie Canal Bike Tour.” An annual eight-day, 400 mile event from Buffalo to Albany, riders in this group cover 40 to 60 miles a day along the historic Erie Canal, a National Heritage Corridor. When they reach Brockport’s Main Street Lift Bridge, Walk! Bike! Brockport! volunteers are there in bright yellow vests to greet them with water, encouragement and information about the charm of historic Brockport – the only original Victorian Village on the Erie Canal. Many riders not only bike into Main Street and report back on how much they enjoyed it, but stay on for lunch and a look at Brockport’s canal side Visitor Center.
Riders on the Greet Big FANY Ride, a bicycle tour of 60 to 80 miles per day across New York State, make a stop in Brockport.The second cycling group came to town on Sunday, July 21 – around 140 riders doing the Great Big FANY Ride – a bicycle tour of 60 to 80 miles per day across upstate New York. Among other major layovers like Saratoga Springs, the village of Brockport is a featured stop. Here cyclists pitch their tents and unroll sleeping bags in the meadow adjacent to the Brockport Volunteer Firemen’s Exempt Benevolent Association building on West Avenue. Riders come from Cape Cod to California, and from Kentucky to Canada and Europe.
After tents were set up, volunteers from the Brockport Volunteer Firemen’s Exempt Benevolent Association, assisted by volunteers from Walk! Bike! Brockport!, served a hearty spaghetti dinner, complete with cake and ice cream. Some riders walked into Brockport for dinner and sightseeing. After dinner, everyone enjoyed songs and music performed by the four-man band, “Village Music,” led by Brockport’s Jim Foote.
All in all, the arrival of these tours underscore Brockport as a unique and historically important village enjoyed by residents and visitors alike.
