Riders Turn Out For Tour De Hunter Mill Despite Threat of Rain

VIENNA, VA — Raindrops did not dampen the Second Annual Tour de Hunter Mill bike ride on Saturday morning, with about 140 people having signed up to participate.

"It's an opportunity for people to see parts of the Hunter Mill District from a bicycle perspective, and also to really to identify where we have places in the district that maybe need a little more attention from a bicycle safety perspective," said Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn.

Unlike last year's ride, which started at the Reston Community Center-Hunters Woods, bicyclists gathered on the Town Green in the Town of Vienna for the 8:30 a.m. start.

While Reston and Vienna are connected by the W&OD Trail, the aim of the ride was to get people off of that trail and into the neighborhoods wherever possible, according to Alcorn.

Riders had a choice of two routes on Saturday, a family-friendly 5-mile ride and a more challenging 18-mile ride, which included an swing through Reston Town Center.

Jeff Anderson, a member of the Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling's Board of Directors, was taking part in his second Tour de Hunter Mill. As someone who advocates for bike riding and rides five or six days a week, he'd planned to ride the 18-mile route on Saturday.

"We're going up to Meadowlark Gardens, and then all the way out to the Government Center, and then back on the W&OD," he said.

Vienna Mayor Linda Colbert was happy to have this year's event start on the Town Green.

"It's a community bringing the community together," she said, adding that some people feels after participating in group events like this. "And for me, I'm not the greatest bike rider, so I'm going to do the family ride. I feel comfortable going 5 miles, but then my neighbor, he's all about it, and he's doing the 18. So, there's something for everybody."