The Courier-Journal (Louisville)
Mayor’s Hike, Bike & Paddle canceled
No Memorial Day event, but still on for Labor Day
The annual Mayor’s Hike, Bike & Paddle on Memorial Day is canceled this year, The Courier Journal has learned.
The bi-annual event is attended by thousands of people each year and is typically held on both Memorial Day and Labor Day. It is free to the public and offers people the opportunity to exercise in their communities — from paddling in Beargrass Creek to biking at Iroquois Park to hiking along the Ohio River.
“We have so many incredible events across our city during Memorial Day weekend that we want to support, not compete with, so we are going to focus all our resources this year into one Hike, Bike and Paddle event during Labor Day weekend and make it the biggest and best it’s ever been! We will unveil the specific plans during our Tuesday press conference,” said Mayor’s Office Communications Director Scottie Ellis.
In January, the Mayor’s Office announced Louisville Special Events would be dissolved. Rather than Special Events and external partners dividing the responsibilities for planning and executing Metro-sponsored events, the Metro government put out requests for proposals, or RFPs, for several annual events — including the Hike, Bike & Paddle.
“Outsourcing all special events duties will streamline the process and cut down on costs,” the Jan. 11 release reads. “Each member of the Mayor’s Special Events team has accepted a new position either within the Mayor’s Office or another Metro government department where they will continue to work with community partners on special events.”
On March 28, the J Wagner Group was awarded the contract to “organize and execute signature events, including but not limited to ‘Hike, Bike, and Paddle,’ ‘Light Up Louisville,’ ‘World Fest,’ and ‘Mayor’s Marathon’ [a new
proposed event].”
Just weeks after, on April 18, Deputy Mayor Pat Miller told legislative aide Scott Harrington, who is also a member of the Louisville Bicycle Club, the “Hike, Bike and Paddle will be on Labor Day only this year.”
Joey Wagner said while his company produces the events, it does not make decisions about scheduling or cancellations.
“From what I know, the mayor’s main focus is trying to grow the Labor Day one to the biggest ever because it’s the 20th anniversary, and obviously with Jack’s (Harlow) music festival going on the same weekend,” Wagner said.
“It actually is using the normal footprint of Hike, Bike & Paddle. I think he just made that decision to just do one because of the competing factors.”
The J Wagner Group will be putting on the Labor Day Hike, Bike & Paddle, Light Up Louisville, WorldFest and other events, Wagner said.
Harrington said Louisville Metro Council members were unaware of the cancelation until after the decision had been made. He said there might be a good reason for the cancelation, but he did not know what it was.
“As a cyclist, we are definitely going to miss this because it’s extremely popular throughout the entire community,” Harrington said.
A Louisville cyclist group called the Crazy Ridenfaden Cyclists is putting on a bike ride on Memorial Day “since the Mayor’s Hike, Bike, and Paddle was canceled,” according to a social media post.
In 2021, the paddling portion of the event’s Labor Day incarnation was canceled due to dangerous conditions when the Ohio River rose after Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast.
And in 2020, the event as a whole was scrapped amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Moving the event “virtual,” participants were asked to share photos of themselves exercising.
Reach reporter Eleanor McCrary at EMcCrary@courier-journal.com or at @ellie_mccrary on X, formerly known as Twitter. Reach reporter Josh Wood at jwood@courier-journal.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @JWoodJourno.