After taking place in northern and central Missouri for the first five races of its existence, Bicycle Across Missouri is bringing its Big BAM Ride to Southeast Missouri soon.
This year’s Big BAM Ride will kick off Sunday, June 13, in Poplar Bluff and will continue across Southeast Missouri before concluding Friday, June 18, in Ste. Genevieve.
“We wanted to come and see what growing cotton and rice looks like,” said Danita Allen Wood, editor-in-chief of Missouri Life, which sponsors the ride. “Seriously, we thought it would be fun to see a different region and whether we could all handle the hills — although North Missouri has some wicked hills, too. We know we’ll have gorgeous scenery.”
After the Big BAM Ride begins in Poplar Bluff, it will travel through the Southeast Missouri countryside and many of its small towns, taking advantage of about 300 miles of paved roads. Riders will stay overnight in places like Sikeston, Cape Girardeau, Perryville and Farmington before the ride reaches its end in Ste. Genevieve
Riders also will be treated to special music each evening in the ride’s overnight town, and community members are invited to join the cyclists for those performances.
Riders have until 5 p.m. Saturday, June 12, to sign up for the full ride and can register online at www.bigbamride.com. Registration fees for the ride include gear transport, camping, support and gear (SAG), bike repair services, free coffee in the morning and shower trailers located next to the camping area.
“This is important so we know how much gear and transport service we need to provide,” Wood said. “But we also welcome day riders, too, who can come to the registration desk each morning before 8 a.m. to join the ride if it’s for a single day. If people want to ride only two to three days, they can do that, too, but they also need to register in advance.”
It also will include water and food stops every 10 to 15 miles — important with Southeast Missouri heat and humidity that is common in mid-June.
“We try to provide a shady water stop with a place to rest when possible,” Wood said. “We hand out free cold water bottles to the cyclists so they can refill their water bottles. When it’s that hot and humid, you can drink a lot of water. We also give riders an opportunity to SAG at these points, if they’d prefer to quit riding and have their bike and their body transported to the next town or the overnight town.
“Just as important is bathroom facilities. The men may not mind going behind a bush or tree, but we like the ladies to be comfortable, too. So we either arrange porta-potties or we’ve worked with the very nice churches or other locations along the route for this important comfort.”