Matt Tillson
The Duncan Banner
DUNCAN —
Appropriately named The Dehydrator, a large group of cyclists gathered at the Simmons Center Saturday morning to endure late July heat and a challenging race course for the 20th annual event.
More than 500 cyclists participated in the race and bike tour and event organizer Kent Collins said that he was pleased with the turnout this year.
“We are seeing a lot more people out of the Tulsa and northern Oklahoma region this year,” Collins said. “We are running almost over 100 more people that what we had last year.”
Collins noted that with the repeated growth in the event he thinks that future Dehydrators could host thousands of participants.
“I want this event to grow and to reach the thousands,” Collins said. “I believe that maybe in the next three years we may reach that.
“I believe that with the size of our town and the response that we get this could be one of the biggest events in the state.”
Even though the temperatures have been high lately, Collins didn’t believe that the heat hindered a lot riders this year.
“The people that do rides like this know what their getting themselves into,” Collins said. “We did have one rider who went into shock, but they were tended to.”
Glenn Fretz was one of the cyclists that was never bothered by the heat during his ride.
Fretz, a Desert Storm veteran, came into the ride Saturday as the first hand-cyclist to participate in The Dehydrator. He rode in the 25 mile tour and finished in 2:30.25.
“I had some trouble at the 10-mile marker because of a steep hill that I had to drop down to about three miles an hour on that,” Fretz said. “I had a lot of fun, though. The course was laid out well and it was not too hot out yet.”
This was Fretz’s first year of doing The Dehydrator, but he has been hand-cycling for three years.
“I have been cycling for three years and have gone to the National Wwheelchair Veterans Games twice,” Fretz said. “I started for aerobic activity and now go about 52 miles a week.
“I have two children and I wanted to be there for them and I want to watch them grow up.”
For some of the riders, like George Flores, The Dehydrator is a chance for family bonding.
Flores has been participating in The Dehydrator for over 12 years and brought out his son, Kristian, for his first race.
“I pulled him along last year in the chariot, but this is his first time to actually race in the event,” Flores said. “It is such a fun race and I love it. The only thing I have to complain about is coming across some of the farm dogs that run out to us riding by.”
Both Kristian and George rode in the 10 mile tour. Kristian said that he enjoyed his first experience.
“It was really cool and a fun thing to do,” Kristian said.
Collins said that he appreciated the support from the Simmons Center and the Duncan community for this year’s event.
“The support was better this year and was an excellent event for everyone to be a part of,” Collins said.
Check Monday’s edition of The Banner for full results from The Dehydrator.
— Matt Tillson is a reporter for the Duncan Banner. He can be reached at 580-255-5354 Ext. 143 or via e-mail at matt.tillson@duncanbanner.com.
