Cycle North Carolina “Mountains to Coast” Tour Begins September 28th: Visits Caldwell County

DURHAM, NC, (September 19, 2019) — Cycle North Carolina is eager to begin an all-new route for the 2019 “Mountains to Coast” tour of scenic North Carolina. This twenty-first annual ride is scheduled for a Blowing Rock to Atlantic Beach trek, from September 28^th to October 5^th.  With beautiful tourist stops along scenic back roads, the “Mountains to Coast” route is the highlight of the year for many cyclists from across the nation.

Cyclists Will Ride More Than 450 Miles from Blowing Rock to Atlantic Beach…

DAILY SCHEDULE

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Caldwell County stops on Sunday, September 29th

8:00 am Rest Stop #1 opens: Patterson School
(4646 Patterson School Dr, Lenoir, NC)
Rest Stop Highlights – This site is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a farm business incubator. Local blue grass music representing the Happy Valley Fiddlers Convention will be performed!

9:00 am Rest Stop #2 opens: Kings Creek Elementary School
(3680 Wilkesboro Blvd, Lenoir, NC)
Rest Stop Highlights – The school will be offering food for sale to raise money for a field trip. Local musicians will perform blue grass music!

10:00 am Rest Stop #3 opens: Dudley Shoals
(6156 Petra Mill Rd, Granite Falls, NC)
Rest Stop Highlights – The Sims family will provide famous Sims BBQ for donations to raise money for a scholarship left as a memorial to Tyler Sims who was killed by a motorist while riding his bicycle to work.

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Cycle North Carolina will begin its full-service, cross-state ride on September 28^th from downtown Blowing Rock and will arrive at the Atlantic Beach Circle on October 5^th, with roughly 1,000 cyclists in tow. The cyclists represent 37 states (AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, NC, ND, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV), the District of Columbia, and both Ottawa & Toronto, Canada. The youngest cyclist to ride for the entire week is just 6 years old, while the oldest participants are 82 years old.

Over the course of the week, riders will bike an average of 65 miles per day. Additional overnight stays are planned in Hickory, Spencer, Siler City, Clayton, Greenville, and New Bern. The route will also pass through many other towns and communities along the way, including Patterson, Yadkin Valley, Kings Creek, Lenoir, Conover, Claremont, Troutman, Cleveland, Franklin, Salisbury, Denton, and Asheboro over the first three days. The route heads southeast from Siler City through Moncure, Holly Springs, Micro, Farmville, Fountain, Ayden, Vanceboro, and through Bridgeton. Riders will pass through Brices Creek, Pollocksville, Maysville, Swansboro, Cedar Point, Emerald Isle, Indian Beach, & finally Pine Knoll Shores as they make their way to the finish.

In this year’s tour, bicyclists will experience numerous instances of North Carolina’s unique topography including ample farmland, several creeks, winding rivers, and much more. The route will pass near interesting sites in the state such as The Blowing Rock, Governor Charles B. Aycock’s Birthplace, and the Croatan National Forest. Several water features are along the route including; the Tar River, Neuse River, Yadkin River & Valley, Lake Hickory, Lake Norman, High Rock Lake (and Hydroelectric Power Plant), Haw River, Bass Lake, Lake Benson, Deep River, Trent River, Brice Creek, Bogue Sound, and the Atlantic Ocean!

Three to five rest stops are scheduled daily to break up the ride and allow riders an opportunity to take a break from pedaling. Some of the featured rest stops which are planned for the ride include the Patterson School in Lenoir, Troutman Depot Shelter with nearby Randy’s BBQ & Southern Sweets, Bicentennial Park in downtown Asheboro, New Hope Valley Railway in Bonsal, the “GlaStation” in Farmville, Yoder’s Dutch Pantry in Grifton, & the Pugliese Pavilion in Swansboro.

The Cycle North Carolina “Mountains to Coast” Tour is the state’s only fully-supported ride. Luggage is transported in vehicles from one overnight host community to the next; rider support vehicles are available to aid cyclists who experience physical or mechanical trouble; outdoor camping areas with amenities are set-up in overnight host communities; and rest stops will be available every 15-20 miles along the route, with beverages and snacks for all participants. Riders can register for the entire distance, three-day options, or first-day & last-day only options. Online registration is still open at www.ncsports.org!

Hosted by North Carolina Amateur Sports (NCAS), Cycle North Carolina was developed to promote North Carolina’s scenic beauty, heritage tourism, visitor attractions, historic sites, state parks, fitness, healthy lifestyles and the benefits of bicycling to individuals and our state. During the past 20 years, Cycle North Carolina has stopped overnight in more than 100 North Carolina towns and visited over 700 North Carolina communities.

Cycle North Carolina is presented by Retire NC. Partner organizations of Cycle North Carolina include: Powerade, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, BB&T, Capitol Broadcasting Company, Harris Teeter, Sheetz, Morningstar Law Group, the N.C. Department of Transportation, NC By Train, and Trek of Greensboro.

For more information on Cycle North Carolina, contact NCAS at (919) 361-1133, or visit the Cycle North Carolina Web site at, www.cyclenorthcarolina.org.

North Carolina Amateur Sports is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization that annually organizes the Powerade State Games of North Carolina and Cycle North Carolina. NCAS is dedicated to the promotion of the spirit of amateur sports, physical fitness and health to all ages and skill levels through the participation in organized events which enrich the state of North Carolina. For more information on NCAS and its events, please access www.ncsports.org.

A Cycle North Carolina Press Release