KRTC News

[Secretary]

Bicycle Relay from Lexington to Ashland
Kentucky Rails to Trails Council
National Trail Day Activity
May 31, Saturday

Contact people:
Dixie Moore 859-227-6165
Lexington – Keith Lovan 859-254-6850
Winchester – Kenny Book, 859-744-0013; Jon Walker 859-974-4817
Mt. Sterling – Lynda Wilson, 859-498-8732
Morehead – April Haight, 606-784-1818
Olive Hill – Pati Porter, 606-286-5533
Ashland – Jim King, 606-831-5243; Melanie Bailey 606-661-0544


The fourth annual Kentucky Rails to Trails Council bicycle relay ride from Ashland to Lexington is a National Trail Day Event on Saturday, May 31st, 2008. The ride is to promote the development of multi-use trails throughout the state and specifically the creation of a continuous railtrail over the abandoned 106 mile CSX railroad corridor between Lexington and Ashland. A railtrail is a multi-use trail developed on an abandoned trail corridor for non motorized transportation (walkers, runners, hikers, horseback riders and cyclists). The relay will follow county roads close to the corridor and in a few places be on the corridor or adjacent to it.

The route is on the Map My Ride website at http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ky/ashland/688242343. The maximum elevation is 1065 and the lowest is 599. The full ride will climb 915 feet and descend 1,177 feet. The cue sheet is at http://www.kyrailtrail.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=214.

The Relay
The relay will start at 7 AM at Princess in Boyd County and end at Pleasant Ridge Park, 1350 Pleasant Ridge Drive in eastern Fayette County. The distance of the cycling relay is 133 miles and can be completed with a road bike. The estimated arrival and leave times for each stage are based on an average pace of 15 mph. The last rider is expected to arrive in Lexington at 7:00 PM.

The start location is at the parking lot at the First National Bank Branch off Exit 181 of I-64. Cars can be parked there Saturday.

Riders from the Bluegrass Cycling Club, the Ashland Cycling Club and Morehead will provide many of the riders. Experience road cyclists who ride at a slower pace are encouraged to join in and ride shorter distances with the relay riders and may join in at any of the scheduled Stages listed below. If it rains, some or all of the stages may be cancelled; the safety of the riders and participants is the prime consideration. There is no rain date.
Greeters and support people will be needed along the route. If you want to volunteer or help sponsor the ride please contact Dixie Moore (contact information below). Volunteers who sag will be reimbursed for gas mileage.

Scheduled Leave Times & Distances
Stage 1 7:00 AM Princess (mile 0) to Grahn, 38 miles
Meet At: First National Bank Branch off Exit 181 of I-64.
Stage 2 10:00 AM – Grahn (mile 38 ) to Olive Hill, 8 miles
Meet At: Community Center
Stage 3 10:45 AM- Olive Hill (mile 46) to Salt Lick, 30 miles
Meet At: Restored Train Depot, Railroad St.
Stage 4 1:30 PM - Salt Lick (mile 77) to Mt. Sterling 24 miles
Meet At: Fire Station
Stage 5 3: 45 PM – Mt. Sterling (mile 100) to Winchester, 16 miles
Meet At: Train Depot, 1 block South of Locust St.
Secondary stop at 5980 Ecton Rd (mile 108)
Stage 6 5:30 PM Winchester (mile 116) to Lexington, 17 miles
Meet At: City Hall, Wall St. (one way, enter from Broadway St.)
(The Pine Grove Stop has been cancelled)
End – 6:30-7 PM Lexington (mile 133)
End at: Pleasant Ridge Park, 1350 Pleasant Ridge Drive

Loops: [/b]
1. Starting at the 5980 Ecton Rd. at 10 AM and riding east to Salt Lick and then back with the relay. 62 miles
2. Starting at Winchester at 2 PM, riding east to Mt. Sterling and then back with the relay. 32 miles

The Ashland Cycling Enthusiasts, ACE are planning to hold their monthly meeting at Armco Park near Princesses on Friday night. They have invited the riders and support personnel to a cookout that evening.

A rest stop with food and liquids is being planned for Mt. Sterling between 3:30 PM and 4:30 PM.

Riders and other participants can order the new KRTC t-shirt when they fill out their waiver. The first 30 riders to sign up and ride will receive a wooden commemorative spike.
Plans are being made to give a gift certificate to the most valuable rider to the relay, the best “team” rider, the rider with the most outstanding personal best.

Plans to have a van shuttle for KRTC members have been cancelled due to most riders making their own arrangements. Carpooling for riders and bikes to Princess is being coordinated by KRTC Secreatry. Contact dixiemoore@insightbb.com

Non-smoking rooms have been reserved as a block by KRTC at the Day’s Inn and Holiday Inn Express in Princess for Friday night, May 30th.
Day’s Inn – a room with two double beds, approximately $63.00
Holiday Inn Express – a room with two double beds, approximately $95.00.
Motel information at http://www.kyrailtrail.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=259 .

Photos along the route and of the motels, a map of Princess, and a listing of sponsors are at
http://www.kyrailtrail.org/gallery/view_album.php?page=1 .

Riders are encouraged to send in their waivers prior to the race; some waivers will be available at the Stage Points. Riders should make sure their bikes are in good working order; there will be limited sag support. Volunteers from the Amateur Radio Emergency Road Service will be asked to monitor the ride and alert the towns when the riders are approaching. Ride safe. - This is a relay not a speed race.

Requirements: To ride in the relay you must be over 18 years of age, wear a helmet and sign a liability wavier. There is no fee to ride. If you would like to participate or ride, please sign and return the liability waiver to Dixie Moore, Ste 8A, 121 Prosperous Place, Lexington, KY 40509 or fax 859-263-2770. Once a waiver is received you will be put on the official contact list for ride information. Waivers can be downloaded from the homepage of the KRTC website, http://www.kyrailtrail.org/PDF/2008Release-WaiverofLiability.pdf

You can sponsor one rider for $25.00, a rest stop for $100 or a sag vehicle for $200. If you are interested in being listed as a supporter, participating in the event or donating as a sponsor please contact Dixie Moore at 859.227.6165 or at dixiemoore@insightbb.com. Sponsorships can be sent directly to KRTC, PO Box 597, Lexington, KY 40588-0597.

More information about the Kentucky Rails to Trails Council, the history of the Lexington Big Sandy Corridor, the relay time schedule and the cycling guidelines can be found at the KRTC website at http://www.kyrailtrail.org and http://www.kyrailtrail.org/projects/big-sandy.php .

Pictures along the abandoned railway corridor are in the photo album on the KRTC website at http://www.kyrailtrail.org/gallery/LBS-Fay-Bath and http://www.kyrailtrail.org/gallery/LBS-Carter. Pictures from past relays are also in the Photo Album. Many thanks to all the people who have offered encouragement and support for this project.

History
The railroad between the Bluegrass and Ashland was built to service the iron industry that grew up around Ashland, Kentucky in the mid 1800s. In June of 1985, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad started to abandoned parts of the railway between Lexington and Coalton. At that time people began to talk of converting the railroad bed into a cross-state, multi-use, non motorized trail.

This is the 8th bicycle ride along the old CSX route. The first ride was a Bluegrass Cycling Club Ride from Lexington to Mount Sterling in 2001.

Railtrail Plans

The Lexington Big Sandy Railtrail is envisioned to run along the now abandoned CSX corridor between Lexington and the outskirts of Ashland. The abandoned corridor has reverted to private land owners. The process of obtaining easements and right of way to create the railtrail has already begun. It would traverse Fayette, Clark, Montgomery, Bath, Rowan, Carter & Boyd Counties for a length of 106 miles. It would go from the central Bluegrass, across the Knobs and through the eastern coalfields. Several tunnels exist in the hilly terrain of Carter County including the Triplett Tunnel near Soldier, the Needle's Eye Tunnel near Aden, and the Sinking Creek Tunnel near Leon and the Mean's Tunnel near Williams Creek. Winchester, Mt. Sterling, Olive Hill and Lexington have all received funding to do short sections along the corridor within city limits.
_________________
_________________
Posted by Dixie Moore, Secretary KRTC