2024 Events Generate Over $53,000 for Nonprofits
The very fabric of Bike Adirondacks is showcasing and supporting the incredible nonprofit organizations and community groups who work tirelessly to care for the landscape and communities that call this special place home.
by Doug Haney, Bike Adirondacks
Those who've experienced our events know - because I say it a lot - that everything we do at Bike Adirondacks is designed to get more people riding bikes in the Adirondacks. The biggest way we do that is featuring the landscape and communities of this special place by lifting up those who work so hard to care about both.
This year alone, that resulted in over $53,000 being generated for nonprofit organizations and community groups. Since 2020, that total is now over $170,000. And we're just getting started.
Sure, we put on the bike events, but you made those numbers happen by signing up, buying an extra raffle ticket, a t-shirt or maybe making an extra donation. Hopefully, you went home with a better understanding of what makes the Adirondacks so special because of the stories told by these organizations through our rides. Maybe you even became a sustaining member of one or more.
After soaking in the beauty of - and then swimming in - the spectacular Ausable River, perhaps you discovered why Kelley Tucker and her staff at the Ausable Freshwater Center care so deeply for this pristine mountain watershed.
Maybe you looked out over Harrietstown Hill toward Whiteface Mountain during the Weekender at Paul Smith's College and wondered how, in this day and age, was a view like that not checkered with McMansions in the fields below. Then, while roasting a s'more around the campfire you listened to Olivia Dwyer of the Adirondack Land Trust explain why.
Perhaps after a gravel ride in Raquette Lake, you spent a few hours touring Great Camp Sagamore with historian Connor Williams and learned how this Historic Great Camp became a place you could not only visit, but spend the night and dine in the same room that the Rockefeller's once did.
After eating a bite of pie after the Pat Stratton Ride, maybe it was the first time you found out how many incredible youth programs (think lots and lots of bike helmets) the Saranac Lake Kiwanis Club has funded over the event's 24-year history. This year alone, the ride raised a record $23,000 from registration and sponsorships.
As a mountain biker, perhaps you decided to attend Wilmington Mountain Bike Festival to see what the trail (and bonfire) hype was all about. Not only did it live up, but you had your mind blown when you found out that Barkeater Trails Alliance has now built and maintained over 135 miles of totally free mountain bike and ski trails, across six communities, in just over a decade.
Perhaps a quick rest on the front porch of the Penfield Homestead Museum during the Handlebarley led to a conversation with a volunteer board member about how - of all places - Ironville, New York, became the birthplace of modern electric age.
Maybe you snuck in at the last minute from the Bike the Barns waitlist, then had the time of your life rolling farm by bike to the sites, sounds and smells of the lush Lake Champlain Valley. Later, while hoisting a tasty beverage from Ausable Brewing Company, you found out that the Adirondack North Country Association has a program dedicated to funding local food systems that helped grow the crisp and delicious apple you munched at Northern Orchard Farm during the ride.
Perhaps you didn't ride with us at all in 2024, but did join ADK Unite in May. Our annual spring virtual event designed to get you Moving to Fight Hunger and raise money for 10 community food pantries. During the month, over 140 people moved 34,206 miles to set a new ADK Unite record. We also topped the 2023 fundraising total and raised $8,135 for 10 different community food pantries.
Every ounce of these experiences is a story. One we hope you experience with us again, or for the first time next year. Reason being, there is nothing we love more than sharing the joy of riding a bike in the Adirondacks with friends.
The 2025 event schedule will be announced in the November Gearzette, our FREE e-newsletter about all things bikes in the ADKs, sign up to be among the first to know. Then make plans to snag your spots when registration opens in mid January.
Together, we're going to crush this year's $53,000 fundraising total and do so much more good in 2025. Trust me, it feels awesome.
Learn More About Our Nonprofit Partners
- Adirondack Land Trust
- Adirondack North Country Association
- Adirondack Rail Trail Association
- Ausable Freshwater Center
- Barkeater Trails Alliance
- Great Camp Sagamore Public Trust
- Pendragon Theatre
- Penfield Homestead Museum
- Play ADK
- Saranac Lake Innovative Cycling Kids
- Saranac Lake Kiwanis Club
- Saranac Lake Youth Center
