Staff photos/Rhonda Silence Here we go! Donna Lunke of Grand Marais, followed by Don McKeever of Schroeder, and a number of other Cook County riders, finally got to join the five-mile parade of ATVs in the world-record breaking ATV parade in Silver Bay on Saturday, June 13.
All-terrain vehicle (ATV) enthusiasts from around the state, region, and nation gathered in Silver Bay, MN on Saturday, June 13 in an attempt to break the Guinness Book of World Record’s entry for “the world’s longest ATV parade.” The count has yet to be verified by Guinness Book officials, but organizers are confident that Saturday’s count of 1,632 will stand—topping the record set in 2006 by the Harlan County Ridge Runners in Evarts, Kentucky. Kentucky’s record was 1,138 fourwheelers.
The 2009 ATV parade by far exceeded the 2008 event, which saw 1,086 ATVs—56 machines short of the record. Many of the people who participated in 2008 came back to Silver Bay—with friends.
“When we saw how close it was last year, we had to come back and bring other people,” said Mary Kay Fleace of Hovland and Foley, MN. Fleace returned with several friends and relatives.
The ATV Association of MN (ATVAM), which sponsored the event, started lining up ATVs before 9:00 a.m., hoping to get everyone lined up to start the parade at 11:15 a.m. However, trucks and trailers kept pulling in to the Silver Bay AmericInn parking lot and there was a steady flow of four-wheelers arriving via the nearby ATV trails, so the start was delayed by about 15 minutes.
Photo by Nancy McReady AT Vs lined up, row-by-row in the field next to the Silver Bay AmericInn. Riders were excited about being part of breaking the world record for the longest AT V parade in Silver Bay on Saturday, June 13.
None of the people in the field seemed to mind. John and Di Griffin, who recently moved from Fairbanks, Alaska to Silver Bay, were among those waiting. John noted the rock n’ roll music wafting over the field; the people dancing; the families enjoying food from the state fair-like vendors and said, “This is better than Woodstock—and we’ll remember we were here!”
It was entertaining to see the interesting way that different ATVers and ATV clubs decorated themselves and their machines. Riders wore matching club t-shirts and some wore goofy hats. There were flags—US, Minnesota, Norwegian, and Swedish—large and small. There were balloons and signs declaring “Red River Riders” and “Pine Mountain Riders” and more. There were machines with mounted steer horns and moose horns.
Staff photos/Rhonda Silence Left: Cook County AT Vers visited while waiting in the field filled with AT Vs. (L-R) Vilnis Neilands, Betsy Perry, Charlie Tice, John McClure, all of Grand Marais.
The Cook County ATV Club was especially pleased to hear an announcement from the grandstand. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Enforcement/Recreational Vehicle Coordinator Leland Owens announced the recipient of the 2008 DNR ATV Volunteer Instructor of the Year Award— Dick Parker of Grand Marais. A loud cheer went up from the approximately 50 Cook County riders in attendance.
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Finally, at 11:30 a.m., ATVAM Parade Committee Chair Les Schermerhorn announced the start, predicting that the record had been broken. “We don’t have a final count for you yet,” she said. “But I think we not only broke the record, we shattered it!”
When the parade finally got underway, it took 90 minutes for all the machines to file out of the field. Machines slowly made the five-mile trek through the city, waving to Silver Bay residents who watched and waved from sidewalks and yards, catching beads and candy thrown by riders.
Above: Some of the approximately 50 AT Vers from Cook County gathered in the field next to the Silver Bay AmericInn after the world-record breaking AT V parade. Many riders are not pictured—they headed out to enjoy the beautiful Silver Bay area trails.
A helicopter from Northern Helicopter passed overhead filming the event.
After the parade, at the Re-Union Hall in Silver Bay, Schermerhorn announced that the record had been broken. When she announced that the preliminary count of ATVs was 1,632, there was a roar of approval in the Re-Union Hall.
Videotapes of the parade will be reviewed by the Guinness Book of World Records for final determination; however, Schermerhorn and others are confident that the record had been broken.
After the parade and throughout the weekend, many of the thousand-plus ATVers enjoyed the trails of the Moose Walk – Red Dot Trail System, maintained by the Silver Trail Riders.
Reached by phone, DNR Enforcement Supervisor Elaine Loeffler said from the DNR’s perspective, the event went really well, especially considering the large number of ATVers that took part. “There were a few things—some kids without helmets, or too many people on an ATV,” she said, which is something ATVAM and the DNR continue to work to ensure does not happen.
“But overall, it was a good group of people last year and a good group this year. There were no problems with anyone going off trail or into wetlands,” said Loeffler.
A tired Les Schermerhorn was one of the many ATVers loading up to go home after a day on the trails on Sunday, June 14. She expressed special thanks to the ATVAM board and parade committee and to Bill Ylatupa and Swede Larson of Silver Bay for all their work with ATVAM getting the parade organized and for all their hard work on the trails. “We made history,” she said. “And we had fun!”
Nancy McReady of the Ely Echo also contributed to this story.
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