DOVER - The 37th Annual Amish Country Bike Tour is scheduled to return Sept. 9, starting and ending at Legislative Mall in downtown Dover. With routes of 16, 25, 50, 62 and 100 miles, there is an option for cyclists of all ages and abilities. A staggered start with set start times for each distance will be in place. 

This year’s tour starts with packet pick up and registration on Legislative Mall on Sept. 8, the evening prior to the ride, from 4 pm to 8 p.m. Day of registration and additional packet pickup will resume on Saturday before 6 a.m.

The Tour is a ride, not a race and has a new start time at 7 a.m. with the 100-mile riders and continues at intervals with the last group departing by 9:30 am. The ride includes pie, up to five fully stocked rest stops and concludes back on Leg Mall with an after-party. Lunch will be served from one of our five food trucks. Beverages are also included. Live music with Glass Onion, disc jokey, vendors and other activities will also be on site. In addition, Bike Delaware volunteers are offering for no additional charge Sunday morning “club rides” for registered riders who want to enjoy a full weekend of cycling, and to visit areas in Kent County not typically included during the Tour, such as the Monster Mile, Dover’s Air Mobility Command Museum and an extended visit at Harvest Ridge Winery.

Riders are encouraged to familiarize themselves with Delaware bicycle laws and to read all the materials provided prior to riding. Roads are not closed to traffic.

Rest stops for the Tour include the famous Amish Schoolhouse in Dover, where volunteers serve locally baked pie and cookies. Other stops include Emmanuel AME Church in Hartly, Harvest Ridge Winery near Marydel, Painted Stave Distillery in Smyrna, and the Felton Little League, where riders will have time for healthy snacks, and beverages.

The presenting sponsor of the 2023 Amish Country Bike Tour is AARP Delaware, and the tour is the primary fundraiser for non-profit Bike Delaware. Online registration is open, and more information can be found online: www.AmishCountryBikeTour.com.

Memorial to remind cyclists of tragic loss last year

A reminder of the tragedy that occurred in last year’s Amish Bike Tour – a “ghost bike” – will greet riders on the side of Apple Grove School Road, about five miles from the start of the tour.

That was the road where Larry Yarbray Sr. was killed in a collision with a pick-up truck while riding in the 2022 Tour.

There will be a marker noting the start and end of a mile designated as “A Mile of Silence” in memory of Mr. Yarbray.

The bike was placed in his honor by family, friends, volunteers, and his Major Taylor brothers and sisters following his loss.

Mr. Yarbray was the Dean of Students at Chester Community Charter School and men’s basketball coach at Delaware County Community College and was previously the head coach at his alma mater – Chester High School in Chester, Pennsylvania – where he led the school’s basketball team to two consecutive state championships and an undefeated (32-0) season in 2012.

People who knew Coach Yarbray, a loving husband and father of two, called him Reef or Buck. He was a soft-spoken, mild mannered, yet impactful individual who was an avid lover of all sports.

His family and friends want everyone to know that they continue to miss their beloved Larry Lamonte Yarbray, Sr. He will always remain in their hearts, daily thoughts, and conversations and will never be completely gone or forgotten.

Riders are invited to participate in the Mile of Silence and/or stop at the ghost bike to help make the memory of Coach Yarbray a blessing to future riders of the Tour.