Annual Fall Run Fundraiser Roars From Adams on Sunday
Mike Roberts of Custom City Cycle poses with a plaque from the Shriners' Philanthropic Society recognizing his efforts with the Fall Run fundraiser. |
ADAMS, Mass. — A swarm of motorcycles will once again rumble through the hills of Western Massachusetts during the 33rd annual Fall Run on Sunday.
Mike Roberts, owner of Custom City Cycle Shop and co-founder of the Fall Run, said the 60-mile motorcycle ride will return as usual. The convoy of bikes will leave Bowe Field at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 28, and make its way up to Charlemont, where the bikers will meet at Mohawk Park.
Robert said the ride, which originated in 1982, has remained popular to this day and people from all around come enjoy the trip through the Berkshire hills.
"For the last three weeks, people have been calling up asking me if we were having it," Roberts said. "A lot of people come from New Hampshire and New York. We get them from all over. There is a club from New Jersey we met years ago who come up every year, too."
The ride has been growing more and more every year with, at the most, 2,000 riders making their way up the mountain.
Roberts said proceeds from the Fall Run had gone to different charities until 1989, when the Fall Run got "married" to the Shriners Children's Hospital and that people donate whatever they can to support the hospital.
"We just want a donation instead of a set fee, and we have been rolling good with that," he said. "If you just want to go for a ride, throw five bucks in. We will take whatever people are willing to give because times are tough."
Last year, the Fall Run hit a milestone and received an award from the Shriners for raising more than a half-million dollars for the hospital through the years.
The group started from humble beginnings but quickly grew into something much bigger.
"It started with just a group of the guys that hung around in the shop. It was the last ride of the season and there was no charity or nothing like that, it was just a ride," Roberts said. "Along the way, it just got bigger and bigger, and it kind of self-propels itself now."
Roberts said the original ride had to be modified to accommodate the thousands of riders.
"We used to stop at smaller locations, and we ended up at the campgrounds in Savoy for a while, but it just got too big," he said. "The campgrounds weren’t big enough."
"We used to do 100-mile ride, but we had to stop for gas. That’s when we had 400 people, and it would take an hour and 10 minutes for us to fuel up. A gas stop now would take more than three hours."
Roberts said the biggest changes to this year's Fall Run lie in the trek's sister event Bike Night, which takes place the Saturday night before.
Normally the event takes place on Park Street but because of the ongoing streetscape construction, all of the motorcycles will be lined up near the Adams Visitors Center. Roberts said there will be food, vendors, games, raffles, live entertainment and contests.
Bike Night kicks off 5 and ends at 8.
Roberts said because of heavy construction throughout the region, road conditions might be rough at times. However, he said they will be coordinating with police officers throughout the ride so they can stop traffic and allow the bikers to utilize the whole road.
"Route 9 is under construction so we are going to have to go a little slower; it’s getting milled down and there are a few issues up there," he said. "We just ran it all out with a staff about 60 of us so we could figure out what the conditions were. We are a week too early because I think in a week, they would have the whole road finished."
Roberts said the event is huge and takes a lot of time to put together, and he "thanks God" for his staff that makes the organizing easier.
Despite all the work, Roberts said there is nothing like starting up the bikes early Sunday and driving along the curving roads.
"People wait for us to ride through their towns and they fill up the sides of the roads and wave at us," he said. "It is just like parade day. You get a good feeling after all the hard work is done."
People can sign up for the event at Custom City Cycles at 2 1/2 Pleasant St., on Bike Night or print out applications from the Custom City Cycles Web page.
Roberts asks people to try to sign up before the run so the bikes can roll out at 11 a.m. sharp.
Tags: fall run, fundraiser, motorcycles, shriners,