The Simon Kenton Pathfinders are highlighting the Marty and Liz Knapp family this year because the Knapps make the September ride a family affair. Liz volunteers her time, not only at the tee shirt booth, selling tees the day of the ride, but also the day before, folding and counting the tee shirts to make sure the pre-orders are organized and ready for the riders on Sunday.
For several years now, Marty and Liz’s three sons have come for the bike ride. Son Greg and his wife Carol from Dearborn, Michigan, son Ed, grandson Joe, Amy Hoeper, and son Dave, his wife Lynn, and friend Mary Beth Donica, all from Cincinnati, converge on Urbana Saturday night before the ride. Some stay with the Knapps; some stay at the Scioto Inn. Some years the grandchildren attend the ride. Last year, Elizabetha, a foreign exchange student from Italy staying with Dave and Lynn, made the trip from Cincinnati for the ride.
Different members of the family choose different routes on the ride. Last year, Ed and Joe did the 15-mile route on the Simon Kenton Trail; the others did the 30-mile route (the metric half century). The Knapps don’t participate in other rides, but they are a big biking family. Grandsons Leland and Sutton use biking to stay in shape for basketball and baseball, and Ed has often biked to work. Liz commented that one of the great things about a ride like our SKP ride is that it brings together different age groups.
Marty mentioned that the family gets together for Thanksgiving, Christmas, a summer vacation/reunion in Michigan, and the Simon Kenton Ride in September. In addition to biking, brothers Greg, Dave and Ed participate in 24 Hours of Lemons (pronounced La mans), an auto race, in which the cost of the car may not exceed $500, and the specifications may not exceed the original specifications of the car. He also mentioned there is some precedence for bike riding in the Knapp family; Dave and family friend Dick Puglia used to meet on the square back in the ’80s to ride 40 or 50 miles out into the country.
The Pathfinders invite you to make the SKP Bike Ride a special event in your family, too. Registrations are available online at simonkentonpathfinders.org and at the Depot Coffeehouse on Miami Street. The ride includes three different routes: a century (60 miles), a half-century (30 miles) and a 15-mile route along the Simon Kenton Trail. A continental breakfast and lunch are provided. SAG (support and gear) stations are located along the routes to assist riders. Tee shirts may be pre-ordered along with registration, or ordered the day of the ride. You may even register the day of the ride after 8 a.m. All proceeds go toward trail maintenance and the northern extension. We hope to see you on Sept. 13.
