Reply to Information about the 20th Anniversary Celebration

The link in the Events search leads to the following on the DNR website about the 20th Anniversary of the Katy Trail:

20th Anniversary Event

An event will be held on Saturday, May 8, 2010, in Rocheport to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the April 28, 1990, official opening of the trail. A ceremony will be held to recognize Pat Jones and other founders who helped make the trail a reality. The event will also feature a walk to the Ted Jones Memorial and a commemorative bike ride.

With just a couple of weeks away.....does anyone know where more specific details are published. Such as....What time is the ceremony...is it at the trailhead...the memorial...When is the walk and the bike ride?? How long is the bike ride? What is the fee to ride the ride???

I have it on my calendar that it goes from 2 to 6 pm.

Thanks Gary. Anyone else know more??

The kick-off event at Rocheport for the 20th anniversary celebration is scheduled from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. There will be an official ceremony at 2 p.m., after which there will be an unveiling of a special anniversary panel for the info depot, a cake cutting ceremony, a walk to the Jones Memorial and a bike ride to McBaine. The community of Rocheport is also hosting a Blues Festival and Cruising Classic Cars in conjunction with the event. The cars will be on display 12:00-4:00 p.m. along the streets of Rocheport and Central Street will be blocked off with live music beginning at 12 p.m. and going until 10:00 pm.

From Kansas City InfoZine yesterday:

The 20th anniversary of the nation's longest rail-trail conversion project will be celebrated May 8 at the Katy Trail State Park trailhead at Rocheport. The festivities will begin at 1 p.m. with the anniversary ceremony at 2 p.m.

Gov. Jay Nixon will be the keynote speaker for the event. A special honoree will be Pat Jones, who along with her late husband, Ted, gave the initial donation to make Katy Trail State Park possible. Other speakers will include Darwin Hindman, chairman of the Katy Trail Coalition; Norman Eaker, representing Edward Jones, the financial services firm that is the official sponsor of the 20th anniversary events; and Rep. Chris Kelly of Columbia. Bill Bryan, director of the Department of Natural Resources' Division of State Parks, will be the master of ceremonies.

The exhibit area opens at 1 p.m. with special displays from the communities along the 225-mile corridor of the trail from St. Charles to Clinton . Katy Trail merchandise will be on sale. A presentation on the history of Katy Trail State Park will be available in the Rocheport depot at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Following the ceremony at 2 p.m., participants are invited to walk to the Ted Jones Memorial on the trail. Darwin Hindman will lead a commemorative ride to Hindman Junction.

Music and refreshments will be available during the event. In conjunction with the ceremony, the community of Rocheport is planning musical entertainment and a car show.

Katy Trail State Park is built on the railbed of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, which ceased operations in 1986. The first section of Katy Trail was dedicated on April 28, 1990 at Rocheport. This summer, work will begin on extending the trail approximately 12 miles from St. Charles to Machens. Plans are also in progress to connect the Katy Trail at Windsor into Pleasant Hill using the Rock Island Railroad corridor.

Dawn and Trek, thanks for all of the info, it sounds like a fun and interesting time to be had. I hope to see some of you there, I'll be the guy on the bicycle.

The 20th celebration was quite an event! Several guys on bikes.....we figured they were all Darrell.....and his other brothers, Darrell.