An annual event that many motorbike enthusiasts look forward to is coming up on September 18.
The Toy Run, hosted by the Drayton Valley Lions Club, will be running again for its 23rd year. Vice president of the club, John Luchyk, says this year they are keeping the route a surprise to change things up for the riders.
“We don’t want anyone to have an unfair advantage,” says Luchyk. “They’ll find out when they register where they will be going.”
He says they don’t take any pre-registration for the event, so those who wish to participate will have to register on the day. There is no limit to the number of participants for the event.
“We had about 85 riders last year. It was one of the best years we ever had,” he says.
The Toy Run is a fundraiser the Lions Club hosts to help kickstart the donations for Santas Anonymous. At the run they accept donations of toys, food bank items, and money for the cause.
Like last year, riders can start registering for the event at 9:30 a.m. down at the Co-op. The poker run and barbecue will start at 11 a.m., and there will be prizes to follow. Luchyk says they are hoping to have everything wrapped up around 4 p.m. or 5 p.m.
If the weather on September 18 is extreme, they will have the event on September 19.
“We have had to do this in the past,” he says. “You always have to have a back up plan.”
He says they have many regulars that come back each year to participate in the event. This year, Blackjack’s Roadhouse in Nisku invited him down to set up a booth on Bike Night to help advertise the event.
“I spent the evening over there, handing out posters and reminders. A lot of them said, ‘Oh yeah! I’ve already got that in my calendar,’” Luchyk says.
He says that while last year there were a lot more regulations they had to follow with the Covid pandemic, he says this year he doesn’t think there will be as many. However, he says any regulations that do get passed down by Alberta Health Services will be followed at the time of the event.
“Last year it was different; we had to handle things different. I’m hoping this year we can get back to some sense of normalcy,” he says.
Luchyk says they are still looking for volunteers for the event. Anyone who is interested in helping out can contact Luchyk at 780-621-7570.
