Des Moines' Original Bicycle Poker Run will thrill again with a new theme and seven new checkpoints taking participants on a tour of the city. What will the tour be this time? More murals? Another architectural odyssey? Time will tell, and so will this post. Soon.
As always, there will be fabulous door prizes awarded to the best poker hands, and trophies for fast finishers in the usual categories: Top Three Overall, Guy, Gal, SingleSpeed/Fixie, Bagger, and AARP. If you sign up for AARP, please be sure to bring your membership card.
This just in: Tandem category has been added!
Registration will Open on April 1, 2017. This year the souvenir will be a nice steel hip flask with funnel, 6 oz capacity, with a laser etched Cyclo de Mayo design. The whole thing will be in a luxurious black velour pouch. Fancy! Early registration, until May 1st, will be $30 per person. After May 1st registration will be $35. I will add a registration link as soon as the time comes, which should indeed be April 1st.
All proceeds from Cyclo de Mayo benefit the Joan S. Gill Memorial fund. Some of the fund is used to install and maintain the public repair stands at Ashworth Pool/Bill Riley trail head and Mullets/Meredith Trail. The rest of the fund benefits the Joan S. Gill Scholarship at Mercy College. Joan was a compassionate nurse and an avid cyclist who always had a smile. From the Mercy College scholarship offerings page:
Joan S. Gill Nursing Scholarship
Funded by the relatives and friends of Joan S. Gill, Diploma Nursing Class of 1994, this scholarship will be awarded to full- or part-time students enrolled in any nursing degree program who are non-traditional in age (older than 25) and raising a family, with a cumulative GPA of 2.7 or higher, and who may struggle with dual roles student/parent. Joan died in 2008 after serving as a mother/baby nurse upon completion of her degree at Mercy.
Ms. Gill was herself a non-traditional student, who understood the challenges of parenting and fulfilling her educational dreams. Family members wish to honor her legacy through scholarships to students in similar circumstances.
Please be sure to arrive before 12:15PM so that you have time to check in and get your race materials.
The course will open at 12:34PM. Checkpoint 1 will be announced at 12:30PM. Racers must complete the 7 Checkpoints, in order, and return to the Start/Finish Line before the course closes at 3:14PM in order to be eligible for trophies and prizes.
As I acquire prizes for the big day I'll list them here, and I will be updating other specifics of the event as details are available, so check back often.