Southern Breeze 2007 Summer Issue - (Page 50) “I FELT FROM THE VERY BEGINNING THAT THE RIDE WOULD BE A HIT AND BRING IN CYCLISTS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY.” The event, which has attained near cult status since its inception in 2000, is the brainchild of a seemingly ageless couple from the town of Broussard, Dick and Joan Williams, who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary this past January but have no trouble at all cycling 50 miles a day. “Dick and I used to operate a bike touring company called French Louisiana Bike Tours,” Joan explains. “And Cycle Zydeco follows the route we used for 15 years. We called it the Cajun Music and Food Tour. It was definitely our most popular one.” The couple originally proposed the idea for a Cajun Country cycling event to the New Orleans Sports Foundation. After that organization lost its funding, Acadiana’s tourism organization, the Lafayette Visitors and Convention Commission (LVCC), began sponsoring this event, which it continues to promote and administer. LVCC’s Special Events and Sales Marketing Coordinator, Simone Day, oversees Cycle Zydeco and has been thrilled with its success. “It was amazing to see registration fill up completely within less than 24 hours each of the past two years,” she says. The organizers haven’t been entirely caught off guard by Cycle Zydeco’s popularity. “I hear so many great experiences and stories from the riders,” Simone says. “It’s no surprise to me that so many of them return along with new friends and even strangers.” Joan 50 s o u t h e r n b re e z e . c o m agrees: “I felt from the very beginning that the ride would be a hit and bring in cyclists from around the country.” It’s the endearing, sometimes quirky, flourishes along the route that make this event special. Dick and Joan rank the Saturday morning jams at Fred’s Lounge—in the tiny town of Mamou—as one of the event’s highlights. This unassuming redbrick bar has been around since 1948 but now only throws open its doors on Saturday mornings, when revelers pile in to listen to live Cajun bands record a local radio show. There’s plenty of dancing and beer guzzling, even at this early hour. Another favorite stop is the tiny community of Port Barre, along the banks of Bayou Teche, where cyclists stop at Bourque’s Supermarket to munch on savory jalapeño cheese bread and freshly made boudin and cracklins. In fact, you’re never far from inspired, down-home cooking along the route. Dinner possibilities include the vaunted Cafe des Amis in Breaux Bridge, a longtime favorite for its contemporary Cajun fare and live music, and Steamboat Warehouse in Washington, which occupies a cavernous, cypressbeamed redbrick warehouse on Bayou Courtableau and serves rich Creole cuisine, including a knockout soft shell crab amandine. Cycle Zydeco participants also watch the famed Rendez-Vous des Cajuns variety show on Saturday evening, at the historic Liberty http://southernbreeze.com
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