The 43rd Bike Ride Across Nebraska (BRAN) will have hundreds of bike riders coming through the area the next couple of days as a part of a journey from Oshkosh to Fremont. Gothenburg, Callaway, and Broken Bow are all a part of this year’s route.
BRAN riders have the option of choosing a 3-day, 4-day, or 7-day riding experience. Throughout the tour, tent camping space is available in addition to hot showers and other amenities offered by the organizations and the communities that serve as stopping points.
This year’s ride began this past Sunday in Oshkosh, ending in Sutherland. Today (Monday) riders will depart Sutherland, passing through Hershey and North Platte on their way to Gothenburg. Tomorrow’s leg will bring the riders into Custer County, through Callaway, and into Broken Bow throughout the morning hours and early afternoon.
Custer Economic Development Corporation Director Scotti Ross and Broken Bow Chamber of Commerce Director Stephanie Grafel said that the group (with numbers in the hundreds) is all about supporting the communities that the ride goes through and stops in.
“There are people coming in not just from around Nebraska but from other states as well. For us, we want to show them how welcoming and how beautiful our area is. It’s nice that they’re here for a day, but the idea of them coming back and staying with us and really immersing themselves and experiencing what we have, that’s the ultimate goal,” said Grafel.
The two said that once the riders arrive in Broken Bow, they will have busses available to them (donated for use by Broken Bow Schools) to visit various points throughout town Tuesday afternoon and evening. “Home camp”, so to speak, will be the Custer County Fairgrounds.
The top messages, according to Ross and Grafel? Making the guests with BRAN feel welcome and making sure that they are safe.
“We’ll have signage up reminding everybody to watch for them, that when you pop over a hill there might be a group of bikers there,” said Ross, “or as they’re crossing from Callaway Road to Memorial, crossing highway 2 there. As we know, that’s a dangerous intersection on a normal day. So let’s just slow down and be cautious.”
Early in the morning Wednesday, riders will take off on Highway 70 on a journey that will take them through Westerville, Arcadia, Loup City, Rockville, Howard City, and Dannebrog on their way to St. Paul.
As a thanks for their efforts as host towns, BRAN awards scholarships to a student in every host town and a second scholarship to the Best Home Town each year.
To learn more about BRAN and this year’s route, click here.
To hear our full conversation with Scotti Ross and Stephanie Grafel, click play below:
