~ The following appeared (in a slightly different order) in The Floyd Press on 5/21/09
1. The weather cooperated for the 3rd Annual Tour de Floyd last Saturday. Under sunny skies, 98 riders made the 63 mile loop, much of it along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Participants left the Floyd Fitness Center in groups at 8:30 and arrived at the downtown stoplight soon after.

2. With a green light, bikers cycle past the Floyd County Courthouse.

3. A group of mostly women wave and smile as they pass onlookers.

4. Heading out of town for Franklin Pike and then to The Blue Ridge Parkway.

5. Rest stops at Floyd Dry Goods and Buffalo Mountain Store were sponsored by The Partnership for Floyd. Some bikers made pit stops and enjoyed the views at Smart View, Rocky Knob, or Mabry Mill. Support vans and a rescue squad vehicle were on hand if needed.

6. Blacksburg resident Jan McGilliard said she was training for Team in Training, a national biking event at Lake Tahoe that raises money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. She rode Tour de Floyd in honor of her friend, a fellow athlete who recently died of cancer. Blogging about her fundraising efforts, McGilliard has raised $12,000 for the cause, her blog (janintraining.com) reports.

7. Wearing their Tour de Floyd T-shirts, provided by the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, Crey, Jean, and Alea Lacoste make a good support team for the bikers. The turn-out for the ride was up from last year’s 76 riders, Jean Lacoste said.

8. Holding more than a thumbs-up, Tour de Floyd organizer Paul Lacoste and a friend from Washington D.C. take a break from cycling to pose at the Saddle. The ride raised $3,000 for The Floyd Rescue Squad, Lacoste later said. “Everyone was all smiles and all went well,” he added, reporting that the last group of cyclists returned from the tour loop to the Floyd Fitness Center at 3:45 pm.

9. Houck and K.B. Medford from Winston Salem and Mimi and Mike Dannhardt from Vienna, Virginia, stop for fudge provided by Nancy’s Candy in Meadows of Dan. Houck Medford (seated), Director of the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, came out to support the Tour de Floyd riders and take pictures.

10. A list of Tour de Floyd sponsors, pictures, and a link to a Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation slideshow of the ride, can be found on the Tour de Floyd website at tourdefloyd.swva.net. Lacoste encouraged those interested in the event to volunteer for next year, saying, “The rides have been successful and are growing. With that growth comes a lot of work. If anyone wants to be involved in ways other than riding, they can go to the website’s contact and send us an email.”

~ Colleen Redman is a writer from Floyd who blogs daily at looseleafnotes.com. Her writer’s bio can be found HERE.