Centennial Trail finished in time for 12th annual cycle celebration

The Centennial Trail resurfacing has finished just in time for the 12th annual Cycle Celebration in Spokane Valley on Sunday.

“Valleyfest is very excited that the Centennial Trail has been resurfaced and is open in time for the ride,” said Peggy Doering, executive director of Valleyfest. “Our riders say it is fantastically smooth to ride on. ”

The three routes in Cycle Celebration use the Centennial Trail to a large degree, so the timing works out nicely for the organization.

“We’re just very fortunate to have the Centennial Trail and other trails to use,” Doering said.

The Cycle Celebration is part of Valleyfest, Spokane Valley’s community festival in September, and is put on with the help of volunteers and community donations.

Registration prices are $29 or less, and all proceeds from the Cycle Celebration are donated to Valleyfest’s Children Foundation. The foundation is dedicated to providing students with small grants and the tools they require to continue their education in the arts, sciences, culture or math.

Participants of the celebration can choose to ride a 50-mile route, 25-mile route or a 10-mile “family-friendly” route that starts at 9:30 a.m. and follows the Spokane River on the Centennial Trail.

“The Adventure Ride,” the 25-mile route, begins at 9 a.m. on the Centennial Trail, goes through Liberty Lake, past the Saltese Uplands Conservation Area and the Saltese Flats Wetland Area, and finishes up back on the Centennial Trail.

The 50-mile ride, aptly named “Hills Around the Valley,” heads north of the Peone Prairie and takes participants along a lot of back country roads and on some challenging gravel routes.

“You really have a variety of a ride and beautiful scenery along the way,” Doering said. “You can see Mount Spokane and animals and farmland as well.”

Along with the scenery, “Hills Around the Valley” has three large elevation changes between 500 and 815 feet.

“A lot of riders really like challenging hills, and so every year we try to see how we can challenge our riders with adding another hill in in the mix somehow,” Doering said.

Frank Ping, a long-time recreational rider who has been volunteering for the Cycle Celebration since its inception 12 years ago, agreed.

“I like challenging rides; sometimes a little bit hillier rides are more fun than just flat,” Ping said.

There are several volunteers, such as Ping, who are signed up to help run the Cycle Celebration.

They rode the routes earlier this week, marking them with signs on the roadways for riders to follow.

Before the rides, some volunteers help participants with any bike repairs and guide them to their starting locations, and others man break stations or sweep the routes for any issues.

“They’re all cyclists and very helpful, so we can’t do it without our volunteers. They are super nice people, and they love cycling,” Doering said.

SCOPE, Sheriff’s Community Oriented Policing Effort, will also be on some of the routes redirecting traffic and helping riders make safe transitions onto roadways.

There will also be signs ahead of time to give riders a heads-up to any upcoming turns or hazards, and there will be vehicles on standby for any riders who need to be picked up.

“The heat, thank goodness, is going to be gone a little bit,” Doering said.

According to meteorologists, the highest temperature for Sunday will be 84 degrees, not nearly as hot as recent temperatures .

Safety is Doering’s and the volunteers’ biggest priority, but riders should focus on having a good time.

“At the end, we have sack lunches, and we have music, fun games and we congratulate everyone for riding with us, looking at the valley and having a good time,” Doering said.

The Cycle Celebration is one of the last cycling events in the area after the SpokeFest and the Leg Aches bike rides dissolved.

“Hopefully, we can continue to give some of these people an outlet to come do something fun on a bicycle,” Ping said.