Pedal to Plate bike ride shines light on locally produced food

Robert Brophy of Hamilton looks at the route map.
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Pedal to Plate bike ride shines light on locally produced food Valleyjournal

Ronan, MT – Cyclists left the Lake County Fairgrounds on Sunday morning for the all-day 40-mile Mission Mountain Area Pedal to Plate ride to support several goals.

Janet Sucha, one event organizer, took a minute to talk to about 60 riders. “We wanted to do this to increase biking in Lake County,” she said. A portion of the profits from the $50 entry fee is going towards bike donations and maintenance. Proceeds will also be used to promote cycling safety and efforts to make the Mission Valley a safe place to walk and cycle.

The second annual ride was also organized to support local agriculture and eco-tourism. The Lake County Community Development Corporation supported the scenic ride that included a view of the Mission Mountains and farmlands.

Participants were scheduled to stop at seven different stations along the way to taste local produce, including cantaloupe from Dixon Melons, popsicles from Fresh Roots Farm, homemade bread from Crow’s View Farm and artisanal cheese from the Flathead Lake Cheese Factory. A locally-sourced dinner was catered by Trina Felsman of Qene’s Catering. Additional farms and providers included Glenwood Farm, Lowland Farm, Shady Maple Farm, Simply 406 and Dobson Creek Coffee.

After several miles of riding with a short hill climb, bikers stopped at the first station in Pablo at the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Complex parking lot for tarts in several flavors from Home on the Range. “These are better than energy bars,” one participant said.

Robert Brophy of Hamilton rolled into the station on a three-wheeled recumbent bike. He said he attended the first event last year and had so much fun that he came back for the second event. He was looking forward to sampling the different local foods available during the ride.

“This is a wonderful day for a ride,” he said. “There are nice roads and scenery.”

At the same stop ...

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