ATHENS, Ohio — The Athens AM Rotary Club's annual Quilt Barn Ride and Poker Run will raise funds for the Club's charity work and for Pelotonia, a grassroots bike tour based in Columbus, Ohio with one goal: to end cancer.  The Quilt Barn Ride begins at 8 a.m., July 18 starting at the Athens County Convention and Visitor's Bureau, 667 East State St., Athens, Ohio.  Poker Run prizes will be announced at 1 p.m.

A special route has been designed to provide cyclists with a scenic ride through Athens, County, with stops at local Quilt Barns.  The route will consist of a 30- mile loop, with an additional 20 miles of optional road available for the more experienced riders who want more of a challenge.  The Athens County Quilt Barns include paintings of traditional quilt patterns on local barns.  The Quilt Barns were created from an Appalachian Ohio art project, with funding from the Ohio Arts Council, which has planted the seeds for what is becoming a national movement.

How does the poker run work?  Once riders have registered, each will be given a map of the bike route including stops at five of Athens County Quilt Barns. At each barn riders will receive a card for their poker hand.  Places will be determined not by the times in which the route is completed, but by the best poker hands received.

Poker Run riders have the opportunity to win a variety of active lifestyle-based prizes including the grand prize:  The opportunity to ride with Lance Armstrong, seven-time Tour De France winner and cancer survivor, in the 100-mile-long Pelotonia Tour.  Armstrong and other cyclist will ride from Columbus, Ohio to Athens, Ohio on Saturday August 29.  The value of this prize is $1,500, all of which will go toward cancer research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center-James Center Hospital and Solove Research Institute. 

Other prizes include cabin and bed & breakfast overnights, kayak tours, horseback riding, rock climbing, golf, and canoeing trips.

Riders who do not wish to participate in the Poker Run part of the ride have the option to ride the route at a discounted fee.

Come and join in a fun opportunity to raise funds for Athens AM Rotary, and for Pelotonia, benefiting cancer research. 

For more information about registration and details for the 2009 Athens County Quilt Barn Ride and Poker Run, as well as further information about Pelotonia, please visit www.quiltbarnride.org, or email us at info@quiltbarnride.org.