News

Registration open for Tour d'Apple

By Bill Moss, Published: August 19, 2016

Registration is open for the fourth annual Tour d’Apple, a Labor Day ride that offers routes from 25 to 100 miles through Henderson County.

A benefit the charitable projects of the Hendersonville Four Seasons Rotary Club, the ride begins at 8 a.m. from Blue Ridge Community College.
Routes include:
• Honey Crisp Unbelievable 100-Mile Century with over 8,000 feet of ascent and six mountain climbs: Sugarloaf Mountain, Bearwallow Mountain, Terry’s Gap, Pinnacle Mountain and Jump Off Rock.
• Gala Challenge Metric 100 Kilometers (66 miles) with over 4,000 feet of ascent over three mountain climbs: Sugarloaf Mountain, Bearwallow Mountain and Terry’s Gap.
• Jonagold Lite with 45 miles of hills and apple orchards with 1,500 feet of ascent.
• Green Apple Enthusiast 25-mile ride with just 1,000 feet of ascent.

Event T-shirts are guaranteed only for riders signing up before discount pricing ends at midnight Aug. 26. The first 250 to register get free Defeet socks.
The bicycle ride has grown from 220 its first year to 370 last year.
“Registration is about 25 percent ahead of last year,” said Dick Miley, the race co-director. “We’ve had 20 to 25 percent growth every year.”
Four Seasons Rotary Club hopes to build the race to a capacity of 1,000, although Miley predicts that this year’s event will tip out at around 500.
“We have made the Jonagold a little bit less hilly,” he said. “We’re calling it the Jonagold Lite, down from 3,300 to about 1,500.” To flatten the 45-miler, course designers eliminated the steep Oleta Road uphill and the longer Lamb Mountain climb.
“The Jonagold riders can still add 10 miles by taking the legendary climbs up Bearwallow Mountain and over Terry's Gap and see 'you did it' on the pavement," Miley said.
Asheville Bicycling Co. will station mechanics at rest stops 1 and 2 and Sycamore Bicycles will have mechanics at rest stop 3.
Pardee Hospital and Ingles Markets are presenting sponsors.
“Exercise and fitness is key to healthy living,” Pardee CEO said in a news release. “Supporting the largest cycling event in Henderson County aligns with our mission to improve the health of our community.”
The Tour d’Apple again features the Kids Crabapple Mini Tour, a free event at 10 a.m. for cyclists ages 5-13 and their parents. The mini tour includes a Bicycle Safety Clinic and fun drills to develop bicycle skills and balance and ends with a three-mile bicycle ride around the BRCC campus. Registration is on site only, beginning at 9:30 a.m. The first 50 entries will receive a kids complimentary T-shirt from Chick-fil-A.
After early registration, riders can still sign up on line until Sept. 3. Race-day registration is also available. Registration is $45 through Aug. 26 and $55 after that. To sign up visit active.com.