Co-Race Trackers Ryan King and Shawn Daugherty (top right) eat the inaugural donuts in the 2021 Tour de Donut on Saturday morning, kicking off the start of the race.
Sam Wildow | Miami Valley Today
Cyclists start the race during the 2021 Tour de Donut on Saturday morning.
Sam Wildow | Miami Valley Today
By Sam Wildow
TROY — Overcast skies on Saturday morning provided cover for cyclists during the 2021 Tour de Donut as they kicked off the bicycle race that mixes donuts and cycling on a loop through the local area.
Co-Race Tracker Ryan King said they were “really happy” about the turnout at the 2021 Tour de Donut, which included over 1,800 cyclists.
“That’s a little down from 2019, but all things considered, we’re pretty happy,” King said.
“We’re really excited,” Co-Race Tracker Shawn Daugherty said about the 2021 Tour de Donut.
King said the cyclists were prepared for the heat, but they were glad for the cloud coverage.
“We’re really happy that it’s a nice, overcast day,” King said.
The Tour de Donut is a unique bicycle event in which participants’ ability to eat donuts is just as important as their ability to ride their bicycle. During this timed bicycle event, riders visited donut stops along the course. For each donut the rider ate (and kept down), five minutes were deducted from their ride time. The Glazer, a special donut stop, also returned by popular demand. Each donut eaten at that stop was worth a 10-minute deduction in ride time.
The 2021 event included the same four distances with which returning cyclists were familiar. The Donut Hole, a 10-mile ride on the bike path, was offered for beginners or young riders who wanted to participate but did not feel comfortable on the road with other riders due to car traffic. This route had one donut stop. The Donut Mini also returned with one donut stop. The Full will offered two donut stops, and, for the experienced cyclist, the Double D Challenge had three donut stops.
“The Troy Community really makes this thing happen,” King said. “We’re really appreciative. Businesses, the city of Troy themselves, they’re a huge part of this, they really are. As a new race tracker taking over, I was amazed at how involved they are.”
“I thought the event went really well,” Miami County Visitors and Convention Bureau Executive Director Leiann Stewart said on Monday. Stewart said registration was down among the riders, but it was an expected decrease with the ongoing pandemic.
“The people downtown enjoying the events and entertainment was fantastic,” Stewart said. “We heard great things about the bands and the activities.”
Stewart also heard good feedback from the riders, saying she heard from riders as they crossed the finish line in downtown Troy.
“I think the riders had a really good experience out on the route,” Stewart said.
