Bike Knox Celebration will acknowledge multi-purpose trails in Knox County

Knox County Convention and Visitors Bureau is inviting the public to Bike Knox Celebration on Oct. 10.

The event will be held at the Ariel-Foundation Park and the Schnormeier Event Center. Bike Knox Celebration is a free community event to celebrate the milestone anniversaries of the multi-purpose trails in Knox County.

“The Kokosing Gap Trail is celebrating its 30th Anniversary in October, while the Heart of Ohio Trail and Mohican Valley Trail both celebrated 20 years last fall,” said Olivia Toth, marketing manager with the Knox County Convention and Visitors Bureau. “We are so excited to be celebrating these trails in such a special way. These trails not only connect our communities in Knox County but connect Knox County to the larger Ohio to Erie Trail, the scenic 326-mile trail that links the Ohio River to Lake Erie.”

The Kokosing Gap Trail is a paved, 14-mile recreational trail built on a former Pennsylvania Railroad line with endpoints in Mount Vernon and Danville,

Toth added that one of the highlights of the Kokosing Gap Trail was a new sculpture installation.

“There is a sculpture on Mount Vernon Avenue that reads 'I heart KGT,'” she said. “The heart  is made of reused and recycled bicycle wheels that (local metal fabricators) Custom Cutters just installed.”

Toth said the trails are utilized by runners and cyclists, along with anyone in the community that wants to take in the scenic views that trails provide.

Bike Knox Celebration will feature an afternoon of food trucks, giveaways, a bike obstacle course for children and bike-friendly vendors and those interested in attending can visit the groups Facebook page or by visiting www.visitknoxohio.org.

“This event was created to celebrate the people that had the vision to bring this trail to life,” said Kokosing Gap Trail President, Randy Cronk. “The Kokosing Gap Trail would not be what it is today without all the community support, loyal cyclists, trail users and the volunteers who help maintain it. We have trail users that travel from hundreds, and even thousands, of miles away just to enjoy our trails; we feel really proud to be celebrating our milestones together.”