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Gran Fondo early registration deadline nears
By Gerry Warner
Cranbrook Sunrise Rotary Club
Less than a week remains to register early and make a substantial saving on what could become one of Cranbrook’s most popular recreational events in the future.
June 30 is the last day for early bird registration for the first Kootenay Rockies Gran Fondo, a cycling event for everyone like similar organized cycle outings springing up around the world.
If you register at WWW.KRGF.CA by the end of the month you’ll save $30 and on Sept. 8 you’ll be able to join friends and family and hundreds of other riders along the North Star Rails to Trails between Cranbrook and Kimberley as well as other scenic East Kootenay routes, beginning and ending at the classic St. Eugene Golf and Mission Resort.
Participants will receive food and beverages along the way, a special “dry-fit,” breathable T-shirt just for participating in the event and at the end of the ride there will be a full buffet at the St. Eugene Pavilion with live entertainment. “It’s not a race,” says Fondo organizer Glenn Dobie of the Cranbrook Sunrise Rotary Club, which is sponsoring the event with its title corporate sponsor the Western Financial Group. “Most of all it’s a friendly social, and recreational event that will allow people to get on their bikes and cycle through some of the most beautiful routes in the East Kootenay.”
Gran Fondos sprung up in Europe in the 1980s in Italy and France and in recent years began springing up in North America as well with others in Whistler, Canmore, Coeur D’Alene and elsewhere. Up to a thousand or more participate in the larger fondos with timed races and prizes. But the Kootenay Rockies Gran Fondo will be capped at 500 in its first year and will basically be a low key, family-friendly affair, says Dobie.
“And it will be a fund-raiser for the Cranbrook-Kimberley Rails to Trails Society and other Rotary charities while at the same time giving people a chance to ride through spectacular scenery crossing three rivers on quiet roads with minimal traffic at one of the most beautiful times of the year.”
On Sunday Sept. 8, riders will begin leaving the St. Eugene Resort at 9 a.m. in waves 10 to 15 minutes apart for the three distances of 52 km, 100 km and 150 km that make up the event. The 52 km distance, which basically goes to Kimberley and back on the North Star Trail, is called the “Piccolo” or small in Italian. The “Medio” (medium) also covers the North Star Trail and passes back through Wasa before returning to St Eugene while the “Gran” (big) Fondo travels along the scenic Bull River Road at the foot of the Rockies.
Early September was chosen because of the likelihood of good weather at that time of the year,” says Dobie. “Skies are likely to be blue, temperatures in the low twenties and little wind. It should be perfect.” Even if it isn’t, there will numerous aid stations along the route providing food and beverages such as Gatorade, fruit juices, water, muffins and fresh fruit as well as mechanic support for cyclists. There will also be traffic-directing volunteers wherever the route crosses major highways or at busy intersections. Medical support will be available at every aid station courtesy of the Kimberley Ski Patrol.
An event as big as the Kootenay Rockies Gran Fondo will need dozens, if not, hundreds of volunteers and anyone interested in being a volunteer should go on-line to the web page (WWW.KRGF.CA) and follow the links to volunteers. Assistance will be needed for registration, course setup, food stations, clean up and more. There will also be a volunteer appreciation social a week after the event with prizes and food for those who help out. Volunteers will receive a T-shirt.
Excitement is already building for the Gran Fondo, which has great potential as a future tourist attraction for the region, says Dobie. The Fondo has been getting “tremendous” support from the local business community, Dobie says. It will be a long day for some, but a day filled with fun, camaraderie, food, entertainment and the knowledge that you’ve done something for a good cause while having a great time yourself.
