Western Pennsylvania has its share of challenging bicycle rides, including the Bike MS (for multiple sclerosis) Escape to the Lake, on which riders push up to 164 miles from Moraine State Park to Conneaut Lake over two days in June, and the fall Dirty Dozen, on which those with iron quads must climb 13 of Pittsburgh’s steepest hills.
And then there’s the June 3 Tour de Donut, on which participants pedal various loops of up to 60 miles around New Wilmington, Lawrence County. The hard part is stopping periodically for the “donut-eating challenge.” Riders who consume a dozen get that rarest of prizes — a “donut medallion.”
“You really have to push yourself,” says Tyler Cathcart. “If you eat 12, that says something.”
Last year, so many of the inaugural ride’s nearly 250 participants met that challenge that he and other organizers had to take names and custom-make and fire even more clay medals and then mail them out. They’re still working on how to make medals for this year’s field, which they will cap at about 500.
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Mr. Cathcart, who notably is an elementary physical education teacher, came up with this highly caloric idea for a community-building event with his wife, Katanya, after they moved to this bucolic college town north of Pittsburgh. He’s not a cyclist, but he’d heard of other bike events that involve doughnuts, including some races where competitors’ times are reduced per doughnut downed.
This event, he stresses, is not a race nor an eating competition, “not that we shouldn’t have those.” Rather, doughnut eating is voluntary and just meant to add to the fun.
Doughnuts make sense in this area where signs pop up, especially on Saturdays, at Amish businesses and homes offering homemade raised doughnuts.
You don’t even need a bike to get in on the fun, as the ride is part of that weekend’s Donut DAZE, the town’s two-day celebration of the fact that it’s within an hour’s drive of two dozen independent doughnut shops. That Friday, June 2 — National Doughnut Day — downtown New Wilmington will be filled with booths for a Donut Crawl, where folks can pick up various varieties with their choice of coffee or milk.
Cost is $15 for one doughnut from five places (Creep level), $25 for one doughnut from 10 places (Crawl level) and $35 for a doughnut from all 15 (Coma level).
A “skilled panel” of eaters will judge them and name one doughnut of the year. Meanwhile, doughnut-themed music will play, while people play games such as jelly doughnut bingo and doughnut toss (www.livenewwilmington.com/donut).
The next day’s second annual Tour de Donut will be offering bikers the famous honey wheat cake doughnuts from a local landmark, the Apple Castle. Riders/eaters will keep track of how many they consume on the honor system and may even count other doughnuts they eat along the way toward their total.
But Mr. Cathcart knows the ways of the Amish and warns, “Those doughnuts are no joke. They’re huge!”
Riders younger than 12 need to eat only six doughnuts to receive a medallion. And yes, there will be a gluten-free option.
And doughnuts are just part of the tour’s food, which organizers purposefully sourced from local businesses that are among the many sponsors. At the ride’s start at Westminster College participants can sip on Two Rivers Artisan Coffee from New Castle, and, along the way, stay fueled and hydrated with fruit and water and Gatorade at stops, including Maria’s store (an 1800s general store) and Ferris Farm (that by then might have strawberries). Then, afterward, if riders have room for it, they can get a packed lunch from New Wilmington’s Dirty Pickle for $10.
That’s optional on top of the $20 registration, which also gets each rider a goodie bag and a limited edition T-shirt. You might want to order at least one size up?
In terms of how far you ride, you can do just one of the three loops — of about 10, 25 or 35 miles — or you can combine more than one for a longer trip.
Registration just opened at www.nwtourdedonut.com and continues through May 19. After that, you can still register up to the day of the event, but shirts will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis — same as the doughnuts.
Proceeds, says Mr. Cathcart, will go back into the community via LIVE New Wilmington, a campaign promoting the town’s arts, education, environment and people. “We just want to promote the area and what’s here.”
Registration also is open for the June 11-12 Escape to the Lake to benefit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society at www.bikems.org.
Bob Batz Jr.: bbatz@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1930 and on Twitter @bobbatzjr.
First Published: April 1, 2017, 4:00 a.m.
