750 cyclists reach Orleans, staying in Medina and heading east on Monday

Photos by Ginny Kropf: This is a small part of the lawn around Wise Middle School, which has come to be known as Tent City during the arrival of cyclists riding of cyclists in the annual eight-day Cycle the Erie Canal Tour, sponsored by Parks and Trails New York. Six hundred and fifty cyclists are camped in Medina for the night.

MEDINA – There are 750 cyclists from 40 states and Canada spending tonight in Medina during the first let of the 400-mile, eight-day Cycle the Erie Canal ride along the Erie Canal from Buffalo to Albany.

This is the 25th anniversary of the ride, which is a fundraiser for Parks and Trails New York, said Erica Schneider with Parks and Trails New York.

Schneider is riding with the cyclists to talk to them and the public about the mission of Parks and Trails New York.

“The ride is a fundraiser for Parks and Trails New York to aid our mission to promote and expands public parks,” Schneider said. “It’s really a party on wheels for eight days. All the communities give us such a big welcome.”

Those welcoming activities along the ride include live music, food trucks, artisan vendors, a massage therapist in Medina and Clyde, wine and cheese tasting in Seneca Falls and post cards in Brockport for riders to write notes back home.

April Amodei, director of Parks and Trails New York, said she loved coming to Medina.

“You are always so good to us,” she said. “I love the sweet cherries every year.”

(Left) Erica Schneider, on staff with Parks and Trails New York, is riding with the cyclists on Cycle the Erie Canal this year to talk to folks along the way and let the cyclists and public know about the work her organization does. The ride is a fundraiser for Parks and Trails New York. (Right) Sev Gonnella of Marcellus, left, and Debbie Curtis of Clarence oversee a truck filled with supplies for the cyclists. They drive the truck one day and ride their cycles the next.

Guin Panek from Ledge Rock Farms provides sweet cherries for the cyclists every year, said Jim Hancock, chair of the Medina Tourism Committee which chairs the event in Medina.

Hancock also shared a story about a rider who flew here from California and purchased a bicycle in Buffalo. When she gets to Albany, she plans to sell it and then fly back home.

Two new participants in the event this year are Sev Gonnella of Marcellus and Debbie Curtis of Clarence. They are volunteering to drive a supply truck one day, then they ride their cycles the alternating day.

Gonnella said he decided to volunteer for the ride because some of his friends told him it is a wonderful time with wonderful people and a great organization.

“I wasn’t with them 30 minutes when that all proved to be true,” he said.

Curtis is taking part partly to prepare for a bicycle trip she is taking alone cross country next year to raise funds for mental illness.

(Left) Dave Waldburger of Connecticut looks at a map on which cyclists are writing their names on the states they come from. Cyclists participating this year come from 40 states and Canada. (Right) Len and Patty Policelli of Nazareth, Pa. relax by their tent after arriving in Tent City on Sunday afternoon. Len made the ride in 2012, but this is Patty’s first time.

The cyclists began their journey Sunday morning in Buffalo, riding the Shoreline Trail north along the shores of the Niagara River to Tonawanda, where they encountered the western entrance of the Erie Canal. From there, the followed the trail through Amherst into Pendleton, arriving in Lockport around lunchtime.

The locks were pretty impressive to Patty Policelli, who is riding with her husband Len from Nazareth, Pa.

“This is a real adventure,” Patty said. “Most of the work is done for you. All you have to do is ride. The neatest thing was riding along the canal and seeing the locks and bridges.”

Continuing east, cyclists passed through Gasport and Middleport, arriving in Medina early afternoon and throughout the rest of the day. After setting up camp, where volunteers unloaded gear, the cyclists had the option to relax, have an on-site massage or take a shuttle downtown to view different sites, such as the Sandstone Hall of Fame, Visitors Center, Medina Historical Society Museum, Erie Canal Basin and a concert in State Street Park.

North Star Cruises was also available to give a one-hour canal cruise.

The Author’s Note book store had canal history books available in the school auditorium, where Jonathan Duda gave a presentation on “Who we Are and What we Do” from 6 to 6:30 p.m. , followed by Craig Williams talked about “Mapping the Erie Canal” in time and space from 7 to 8 p.m.

A buffet dinner was served by Zambistro from 5 to 7 p.m.

Also on site were vendors, including Della’s Chocolates and Case-Nic Cookies, and live music from 7 to 9 p.m. by Pocket Change.

“We are so thankful to share such a meaningful experience with all our riders, not to mention the amazing towns along the way who really go above and beyond, year after year,  to roll out the red carpet for our riders,” said Paul Steely White, executive director of Parks and Trails New York, in a press release. “With more of the Erie Canalway Trail completed year after year, and an even greater sense of celebration and joy from the towns and cyclists, Cycle the Erie Canal truly just keeps getting better and better.”

Cyclists will depart Monday morning enroute to their Monday night campsite in Fairport. They will be greeted in Albion in the morning and Holley is an official rest stop.

The cyclists will spend subsequent nights camping in Seneca Falls, Syracuse, Rome, Canajoharie and Schenectady.