Letter to the editor from the Bluffton Ride to Remember Committee.

The Bluffton Ride to Remember Committee and the Lion’s Club and Foundation want to thank all who helped to make the 2023 Ride to Remember a great success. We especially want to thank the Bluffton Community Church for welcoming the Ride to begin and end at its church on Main Street, Bluffton. The facilities were excellent and the members of the church were very welcoming. 

Thank you also to all of the sponsors of this year’s ride: The Taylor Steele Family, Bike Crazy, ADS Recycling, Kira’s Flipside Grill, Bluffton Family Y, Ryan DeMarco of Edward Jones, Ameriprise Financial, PromoHits, Bluffton University, Community Markets, Lewis Family McDonalds, Bluffton Area Chamber of Commerce, Bluffton ICON, Citizens National Bank, Shirley’s Gourmet Popcorn, United Way of Greater Lima and First National Bank. We also thank the more than 50 area businesses who contributed items and coupons to the cinch sacks that each rider received with a total value of more than $120.00.

The many volunteers who make the ride happen include those who plan the routes, mark the routes, create and place the fun signs along the routes, the publicity people, those who organize and manage the rest areas, the person who designs the commemorative shirts and the volunteers who organize the sale of them, the online registration manager as well as the registration crew on the day of the ride,  the sag crew checking along the routes for those who might need help, the Triplett family, the Bluffton Police Department members who escort riders through Bluffton, the DJ who provides information and encouragement to riders preparing to begin, Mitch Kingsley for riding the Lion’s Club high wheeler down Main Street, and the many others who contact sponsors and contribute to the success of the ride.

The 2023 Bluffton Ride to Remember saw 205 riders participate. Three riders rode a total of 135 miles each while two others completed 124 miles in the rain. The event raised close to $10,000 to help fund more bike and pedestrian pathways around Bluffton – with progress being made now along County Line Road and Route 103. Thank you to all!

The Bluffton Ride to Remember Committee