EASLEY — A moment of doubt crossed the minds of Easley’s bicycle committee when they realized last week that their first annual biking event they had so carefully planned for April 25 coincided with another large and established bike ride in Greenville, but breathing soon became easier when the group decided to continue down that chosen route.

“Let’s do it anyway,” committee member and Easley Councilman Chris Mann said.

While about 5,000 riders participated in last’s years Wheels for Meals bike ride, committee members decided that the Easley event could attract riders from neighboring counties who were either looking for a new and different route or who didn’t want to make the early morning drive to the Furman University campus.

The upcoming bike rides, along with a 10K or 5K run/walk, is planned to correspond with the Easley Downtown Business Association’s Spring Fling Festival, Mann said during the committee’s Thursday night meeting.

“It would be hard to change it now,” he said.

According to Sid Collins, CEO of the Pickens County YMCA, the city’s first bike ride will feature a metric century ride of 62 miles, taking riders out of Easley to S.C. 11 where they turn back toward Six Mile and then through downtown Liberty. The three to four hour journey will end where it began – in Easley, he said.

“It’s going to be a great ride through a scenic area,” he said.

In addition to the larger ride, the event will also host a 31-mile half metric ride, along with a family ride of ten miles, Collins said.

The 10K run of 6.2 miles and the 5K walk or run event of 3.1 miles will loop through Easley, he said.

A munchkin derby, for children eight years old and under, will be an open event, lasting from 10 a.m. until Noon.

With the varying distances for the bike ride, along with the metric century ride encompassing much of Pickens County, the group is looking for people offering their time to be stationed at designated locations throughout the course, offering assistance and water to the riders, Collins said.

“We really need volunteers for this,” he said.

The group hopes the bicycle ride will not only entice a group of people to Easley’s Spring Fling who would otherwise not attend, but also show families a healthier form of family fun, Collins said.

Brochures for the bicycle ride has already been printed and distributed, and the event is advertised in various publications, including GO Magazine, he said.

In other business, Mann told the committee that the group had at that time 34 responses from companies looking to take on the compiling of a master plan in making Easley a bicycle-friendly city.

The deadline for those wanting the job of writing the master plan is set for March 2, with committee reviews of the applications scheduled for March 5, Mann said.

The group is hoping to bring a select list of proposals before the March 9 meeting of Easley City Council, he said.