Riders enjoy ninth annual Tour De Lakes

By james costello
Sports Writer

The ninth annual Tour Des Lakes took place Saturday, giving riders the chance to tour Kosciusko County’s chain of lakes along four different routes.

The bike tour, which began and ended at the Syracuse Community Center, featured three route options — 25 kilometers, 50K or 100K — as well as a family-friendly, free route around Syracuse Lake. There were four sport and gear stops for riders to cool off and rehydrate along the way, as well as a roving SAG vehicle in case riders found themselves in any trouble along the way.

A total of nearly 250 riders showed up in all for the ninth iteration of the annual tour.

“We got pretty good feedback so far. Everybody is enjoying it. The weather held off, too,” said Syracuse Parks and Recreation Department Program Director Darin Lursen. “The community came together, and we get help from the library, from the trail committee.”

While plenty of community members turned out to take the tour around their county, the field included some out-of-towners, too. Peter Hru made the trip from South Bend to take his second Tour De Lakes, opting for the 50K route.

“It was wonderful. Beautiful, nice ride, good weather. Worth coming,” he said.

Ron Lopez, a Florida resident, showed up to take the 100K tour alongside Chicagoan Darek Wojnar.

“I liked it a lot. I’ve done quite a few tours,” Lopez said. “This is a real simple tour. It’s well-marked. I felt safe. People should do it.”

“It was very nice. I enjoyed it tremendously,” echoed Wojnar.

After the tour, riders had the opportunity to have a little beer or wine and some lunch, while Beez and the Rocker played music outside the community center, and Dynamic Spine offered free adjustments to those finishing their ride.

“Everybody that’s come back has been pretty excited about the route. They had a good time on it, which is what we’re going for,” said Lursen.