BRAG Stops on Monticello Square
If you happened to be headed to work or out and about Monday anytime before noon you may have had to share the road with Cheri Lyn Cupka (pictured right) and others that totaled what was approximately 865 bicyclists.
Miss Cupka is nine years old and is from Greenville S.C. She has been riding since she was a year and a half old, and participates in two week long rides a year, and several weekend rides with her family. Other cyclists came from all over the states, with the majority of them residing right here in Georgia, but some from as far away as Alaska and Texas.
They were all peddling through our small, yet picturesque town with an organization known as BRAG (Bicycle Ride Across Georgia).
BRAG was started in 1980 and modeled after the bicycle ride in Iowa. The first ride in Georgia went from Savannah to Columbus, and was about a 300 mile trip. Of the 120 cyclists who began the first trip, only about half made it the entire route. Along these routes, people in various towns rolled out the “red carpet,” per se and welcomed the bikers with friendly faces, water and refreshments.
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This is what took place on our square Monday. There was a water station for cooling, and a refreshment tent awaiting the cyclists’ arrival. This stop was considered a pass-through stop, where the cyclists simply did just that rather than stay overnight to continue the next morning.
While I was walking around the square, chatting about the experience with the riders, everyone agreed that “it is hot.” Some of the out-of-towners, did not understand that the Georgia heat could be as bad as it was before 10 in the morning. One cyclist I spoke with said that he was “excited and could not wait until the end, because it’s like the Tour de France where groups of people were awaiting our arrival, cheering and holding signs, and that is an awesome feeling.”
Another female biker said, “I did my first ride three years ago, and remember saying, ‘wow, now that’s over and I can cross it off of my list and don’t have to do it again’…then here I am back out here, cycling.”
BRAG accepts all types from beginners, to highly experienced riders. People come to train, and to have a family-friendly experience. It is advertised as a week long, fully-supported bicycle tour. Note that I did not say that it was a bicycle race. There is no prize for arriving at the finish first, or last. This experience is to be a healthy way to have fun and meet other riders with similar interests.
The rides begin in one town and end in another and there are several stops offering refreshments and rest rooms of sorts along the way. The cyclists that we saw began their tour at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, and will conclude at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah. The cyclists that were on our square were en route to Milledgeville, from Oxford for their day’s ride, and were about half way on a roughly 60 mile ride when they reached our Square. There are assistance vehicles that also make the ride for support and emergency assistance. The luggage (which has to meet requirements) that you bring is packed each morning and is on site when each cyclist arrives at the final destination for the day.
Once at the final destination, the riders can choose to camp or be bused to a nearby hotel for accommodation. For a discount rate, BRAG sets up some lodging for mass groups usually in a gym or auditorium that is usually (but not always) air-conditioned with “real” toilets and showers.
Many of the cyclists expressed joy at having “real, flush toilets” to use in the visitor’s center, as the group often has to rely on portable toilets.
For the trip BRAG also offers meal plans, for as little as morning coffee, to full breakfast lunch and dinner plans.
As with any form of travel, BRAG offers scenic routes for the cyclists and equips each rider with a map. This map contains interesting facts and attractions about the places that the cyclists see, along with mileages, elevation changes that aid the riders. BRAG even offers nightly activities and entertainment on overnight visits….pretty complete overall experience if you ask me…to learn more about BRAG visit www.brag.org.
