Cyclists test their legs — and stomachs — at annual Tour de Donut
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Staunton event in 20th year
STAUNTON - Bicycling can be a great way to spend a warm, sunny summer day, but throw in dozens upon dozens of doughnuts and you have the Tour de Donut.
The Tour de Donut, a spoof of the Tour de France bicycle race, celebrated its 20th annual race from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at Staunton City Park.
Prizes were awarded to those who finished with the fastest time, the fastest adjusted time (depending on number of doghnuts eaten) and for most doughnuts eaten.
For every donut eaten, five minutes is taken off a cyclist's time. Pit stop volunteers were scrambling to mark those who had eaten doughnuts so cyclists could hop back on their bikes and pedal away.
Almost 1,000 cyclists participated in the tour, many from the St. Louis area.
Many participants were trying to eat as many doughnuts as possible, while others were skittish about eating too many and biking along the hilly trail.
Eduardo Nieuwenhuyzen of St. Louis said he wasn't concerned about the race or the doughnuts.
"I just like wearing tight clothes," Nieuwenhuyzen said, joking about his spandex outfit.
Mike Tillman of Godfrey said his goal was "to finish and not barf."
"This event is very well-organized and all the volunteers have been great," Tillman said.
Staunton residents lined the streets to show support for the cyclists - handing out water and giving encouragement and loud cheers. One little boy had a lemonade stand set out for the racers.
The tour started in Staunton and progressed to Prairietown for the first stop. The first few droves of cyclists rode past the doughnut stop because they were concerned about making good time. But many stayed and chowed down on the doughy baked goods.
The second stop was at American Legion Post No. 564 in Worden. Hundreds of cyclists stopped there to refresh and refuel before finishing the last 14-mile leg of the race back to Staunton. The race was a total of 32 miles, mimicking the Tour de France.
American Legion Post member David Vers said the post has set up the stop for cyclists since 1988, when the tour first began.
"It is a great thing, and the people really seem to have a good time," Vers said. "It's a healthy activity, even with the doughnuts, because the biking burns off those calories anyway."
Steve Striker of Edwardsville planned to eat at least 24 doughnuts. He was working on 20 doughnuts when he reached the Worden pit stop.
"I don't think I'll make my goal. It's tough to hold it back now," Striker said as he was shoving five doughnuts into his mouth.
First-time participant Blake Stevens of Edwardsville said the ride was fun.
"I got to see some guy puke after eating 25 doughnuts, so that was interesting," Stevens said.
Bill Schmaltz of St. Louis joked about the cyclists from Illinois lagging behind the rest. He said his goal is to eat seven doughnuts and finish the race under one hour and 35 minutes.
"This is fun, in a gluttonous kind of way," Schmaltz said.
At noon, the cyclists were invited to join Staunton residents at their third annual Rib Cook-Off and Block Party in the park.
Jerry and Stephanie Kapp of Edwardsville decided to make it a family event and brought their daughter Laura along for the race.
"There is a really good mixture of people here, with all races of bikes," Jerry Kapp said. "The support from the locals was really great, we had a lot of fun and a lot of laughs out there, too."
Kapp said he almost skipped the race because of the smell of barbecue floating through the air, but he went ahead and completed the tour first.
Tour prizes were first-, second- and third-place medals in each category, two new Trek Bikes and a golden helmet was awarded to the participant who traveled farthest to compete in the race. Cash prizes were given to the men and women who ate the most doughnuts, and attendance prizes were given to all who participated.
Tour de Donut is presented by Boeing Employees Bicycle Club and is held each year in Staunton. For information, visit http://www.bikereg.com/.
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