Experience A Century!

The first annual Great Ilinois Tour for Cancer, a two-day bicycling adventure to benefit the Leonard C. Ferguson Cancer Center, will be held on June 28 and 29.  The bike routes start and finish in Freeport each day.

Bicyclist may choose from approximately 30, 70, or 100 miles routes on Saturday, June 28, and from 30, 60 or 90 mile routes on Sunday, June 29th.  The tour follows lightly traveled blacktop roads.  Riders will travel past prairie and cornfields, up and down rolling hills, and through quaint and historic villages on this weekend journey.

All types of bicycles are welcome — from road bikes to recumbents, mountain bikes and tandems.  Helmets are required.

The tour will start each day from the YMCA’s parking lot on the Highland Community College campus.  There will be well-equipped rest stops, with free refreshments, such as fruit, cookies and granola bars.  Emergency medical services and bicycle repair will be provided along the route.  Riders will have dinner together on Saturday evening and a hearty continental-type breakfast on Sunday morning.  Additional dinner tickets will be available for family and friends.  Also on Saturday night, the YMCA indoor pool will be available and there will be free musical entertainment at the dinner.

Choices for overnight lodging include a space to unroll a sleeping bag on the floor of the YMCA, an outdoor camping area to pitch a tent, or riders may choose to stay in a hotel.  Showers will be available at the YMCA.

Participants may pick up tokens along the way to be eligible for prizes.  Every registered rider will receive a free t-shirt and is eligible for door prizes.

Pre-registration is encouraged, with discounted fees for early birds.  The registration fee until May 16 is $45;  until June 13, $50;  and after June 13, including ride day registration, $65.  For more information, or a brochure/registration form, contact Wendy Gustafson at (815) 599-7433, or e-mail wgustafson@fhn.org.

Gather all your biking friends and make it a group challenge and adventure to experience a “Century”!