The first annual Cycle Greater Yellowstone began in West Yellowstone, Mont.
Aug. 18 with the registration of 700 cyclists for a 460-mile ride with a total
elevation gain of 18,386 feet. The week-long ride ended in Red Lodge, Mont.
Saturday, Aug. 26, with an optional climb up Beartooth Pass on Sunday.
This year’s route involved stops in Ennis, Livingston, Gardiner, Cooke City
and Cody, Wyo., and included a rest day for riders to explore Yellowstone
Park on Aug. 22.
“Words and even pictures can’t adequately convey the beauty or significance
of this truly remarkable place – it’s simply something that has to be
experienced,” said Greater Yellowstone Coalition Communications Director
Jeff Welsch. “Everyone who participates in Cycle Greater Yellowstone will be
playing a meaningful role in an incredibly important cause. In return, they’ll
get one of the best vacations they’ll ever have.”
The route will rotate through the ecosystem from year to year, and next
year’s ride will begin the third week of August in Jackson, Wyo.
Cycle Greater Yellowstone was created to provide a world-class, fully
supported cycling adventure to enjoy the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and
to raise awareness of the issues championed by the GYC, a nonprofit
organization dedicated to protecting and preserving that ecosystem.
