ROCKPORT — The Penobscot Bay YMCA, the Camden Snow Bowl, and Sidecountry Sports have teamed up with the Bicycle Coalition of Maine to continue the historic Maine Lobster Ride cycling event, scheduled for the weekend of July 20-21, 2019.

Registration is now live at www.mainelobsterride.com.

“Limited to 500 registrants, the event is filling quickly and all are urged to register soon,” said organizers, in a news release.

The ride itself will take place on Sunday, July 21, while a Family Fun Cycling Festival will be held on Saturday, July 20, at the Snow Bowl. Net proceeds from the ride weekend will support area youth programming at the YMCA and the Snow Bowl, as well as youth cycling advocacy through the Bicycle Coalition of Maine.

This annual event offers cyclists a picturesque road ride through Midcoast Maine, with its quaint villages, coastal towns, scenic country views, and ocean vistas. The Snow Bowl’s triple chairlift will be operating Saturday for rides to the summit of Ragged Mountain, with views of the surrounding hills and mountains, Penobscot Bay, and the islands.

The Maine Lobster Ride offers four ride-length options — 12 miles, 38 miles, 62 miles, and a 100-mile “century” — and all rides begin and end at the Snow Bowl.

The registration fee to ride is $75 per person.

Rest stops and support-and-gear wagons are provided along the routes.

Après-ride lunches at the end of the ride will be available for purchase from a variety of food trucks on the Snow Bowl fields.

Also on Saturday, with the generous support of Sidecountry Sports, Specialized Bicycles, and the Bicycle Coalition of Maine, kids can participate in a BCM bicycle safety rodeo. Attendees of all ages can enjoy guided and independent mountain bike trail rides, and demos of road, mountain, and electric bikes. For an additional fee, an evening VIP ride with the Specialized Bicycle brand representatives is available for purchase when registering online.

“Our race planning team remains thrilled with this year’s progress on the entire ride weekend and the amazing support of our community partners,” said Pen Bay YMCA CEO Melissa Bellew, in the release.  “Returning this event to local oversight and sharing it with Rockport, Camden, Rockland, and all Knox County is a powerful method to share what our Midcoast offers.”

For more information about the 2019 Maine Lobster Festival, and to register for one of the four rides, visit mainelobsterride.com. Event schedules, as well as route maps and other details, will be updated and posted on the website, via Facebook (@MaineLobsterRide), and on Instagram (#mainelobsterride).

Founded in 1913, the Penobscot Bay YMCA serves more than 6,600 members in the Midcoast. Located in Rockport, the Y operates the largest summer camp program in Knox County, serving more than 1,400 individual children in one or more weeks of day camps.

The Snow Bowl, operated by the Town of Camden Parks and Recreation, hosts many four-season youth programs and activities, as well as no-cost, donor-funded learn-to-ski programming for area fourth-graders. The management of both operations organizes the long-standing Camden Windjammer Festival and U.S. National Toboggan Championships — both free events for the public — while also overseeing maintenance of the town’s public parks, walkways, hiking trails, beaches, and facilities.

Established in 1992, The Bicycle Coalition of Maine’s mission is to make Maine safer for cycling. The BCM works to improve cycling and walking conditions throughout Maine, and provides statewide opportunities to teach bicycle and pedestrian safety to all ages. The BCM has been recognized as the country’s top state bicycle advocacy organization and has worked to establish and strengthen Maine’s bicycling laws.

Sidecountry Sports has operated a local bike shop in Rockland since 2012. Strongly invested in community, Sidecountry Sports believes in local event sponsorship and getting local kids riding bikes safely, creating lifelong fun, good health, and self-esteem.