
By KEN CARPENTER
Great Bend Post
Some of the bicyclists you see pedaling through Great Bend this summer may be from Germany, Australia or anywhere in the world. That’s because Great Bend is now a stop on the Trans-America Bicycle Trail that stretches between Astoria, Oregon and Yorktown, Virginia.
The Adventure Cycling Association which developed the trail contacted Donna Krug, the District Director of the Cottonwood Extension District, about bringing the trail down K-96 through Great Bend. The previous route had passed west and south of the city. Krug explains why they were interested in Great Bend.
“There aren’t a lot of services when you go west of Great Bend,” Krug noted. “They needed a bike shop, they needed food, they needed lodging, and so they considered rerouting. That just happened in 2019.”
Members of the Central Baptist Church and the Be Well Barton County Task Force have stepped in to help accommodate the cyclists. They are developing a campground in the parking lot and lawn behind the church at Lakin and Harrison streets. Central Baptist’s Interim Pastor Charlotte Maxwell describes some of the things her church members and the task force have done to make the cyclists feel welcome.
"They have set up a bicycle repair area, so they’ve got all of the tools that a bicyclist might need to repair their bicycles,” Maxwell said. “They also have a charging station to charge their cell phones and plenty of shaded areas and picnic tables to have pup tents, et cetera.”
Maxwell says she has been letting cyclists sleep in the church’s fellowship hall when the weather is exceptionally hot. Cyclists know they can come to the church because it has been placed on Adventure Cycling’s map. It will soon be highlighted on a Google map.
Plans are underway to add signage and a kiosk that will help the cyclists learn more about our community.