Pedlars Jamboree

Good morning all!

This past weekend Neal, Derek, Robert and I all participated in the music and bicycle Festival Peddler’s Jamboree time. Set down in Columbia and heading to Boonville this is a great way to experience the Katy Trail! Unfortunately this year we had so much flooding that we ended up starting in Rocheport Missouri which is usually the halfway point. We made the best of the new start and the detours to have a fun weekend!

We started Friday night by camping in Rocheport for the official preparty featuring the band Dirtfoot. There was food, drinks, fireworks, and a bonfire. Luckily the storms that came through Kansas City earlier in the evening hit us while we were enjoying the concert inside the barn. The campsite can out mostly unscathed except for our tent the Taj Mahal. Part of the tent collapsed in the wind and we ended up getting some water inside. Not a big deal and we slept just fine.

The next morning people from across the Midwest came to the farm to check in and get the ride started. The first stop was a quick two point three miles away down on the Katy Trail. They had to adjust the location of the food trucks and stage up the hill because the parking normally used was completely underwater. We met with some of our friends from Velo Garage and Tap House. We hung out for about two hours listening to music, visiting the food trucks, and enjoying some drinks. The trail was closed heading west so we climbed out of Rocheport via the highway. It was a good climb and the sun was already warm. The good news about climbing is you get to coast down where we rejoined the trail and moved along for about five miles until another highway detour. We ended in New Franklin for a stop and met up with Joel and Ashley from Epic Bike and Sport. Had more drinks, sat watching the riders go by, and Robert even taught Ashley how to throw a frisbee! It felt very much like a typical Ragbrai day. Then we stopped to listen to the bands, grabbed more food and drinks, and then headed back on the trail. Boonville is only about two miles from there and after getting off the Katy Trail and climbing the bridge into the city we arrived at camp! Some of us had setup our tents on Friday afternoon on the journey to Rocheport. This help us to get prime spots and not to worry about timing throughout the day. Here we relaxed after a shower with the amazing Pork Belly shower trucks and sat listening to more music. In Boonville they have a large stage with more bands, tons of food trucks, and multiple bars setup. We ended the evening with fireworks and the whole day was a blast!

Sunday morning we woke up having light rain overnight. It was overcast and cool which was a nice change from the previous warm and sunny day. We packed up our tents loaded our luggage onto the trucks to be taken back to Rocheport and met with some of our friends from Velo and other parts of KC. We decided to get breakfast at the local diner. Some of us even had pie for breakfast. Next stop was New Franklin again seeing as we reverse the route back to Rocheport. There they had music and beermosa, a nice take on mimosas and very refreshing! Once back on the trail we hit a good pace and rode back with Karen and Treadwell, it was a great group to ride with. The trail was still closed off and we had to detour back the way we came and climb the hills outside of Rocheport. We decided to enjoy some refreshments before climbing which was an excellent decision. After climbing the hills we ended back at the original party site, this time the area wasn’t as busy. There were some food trucks and music to come but just hung out right on the trail and in front of the Merriweather Cafe. Located right off the trail this is a cafe and local bike shop, great food and hope you all get to stop there at least once. Robert and I decided we didn’t want to climb the hills required to get back to our car so Robert hitched a ride with Stacy and Steve from Velo Garage. After grabbing our luggage we loaded up the bikes and set off back to Kansas City. Meanwhile Neal, Derek, and some other people from Velo made the climb and stopped at Les Bourgeois Winery for some refreshments. It seems like they had a great time!

Overall we had a great time and weather held out for us! We expected a rainy couple of days so the sunshine was a nice change. We are already looking forward to next year and hope that some of you all will join us!