The bike ride that fills Three Oaks every last Sunday in September
The Apple Cider Century, a bike tour through the orchards and back roads around Three Oaks, has run since 1974; up to several thousand riders pick routes from 15 to 100 miles each September.
On the last Sunday in September, thousands of cyclists arrive in Three Oaks for the Apple Cider Century. The Three Oaks Spokes Bicycle Club formed in 1974 and still runs the event. The ride now draws up to 4,000 people in a year, according to its organizers.
The “century” in the name is the classic 100-mile distance, but riders can choose 15, 25, 37, 50, 62, 75, or 100 miles. The shorter routes are flatter, while the longer choices add rolling country roads. Rest stops provide water, fruit, snacks, and, fittingly, apple cider.
The same club maintains the Backroads Bikeway, a set of 20 self-guided paved-road tours that can be ridden outside the event weekend. It also operates the Three Oaks Bicycle Museum inside the Dewey Cannon Trading Company.
Come the morning of the ride, the trick is to stand on a country road a few miles out around sunrise. The light comes up gold over the apple trees, and a river of riders rolls past for what feels like an hour, the whole thing smelling faintly of cider and chain oil.
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Last reviewed against the listed sources: July 11, 2026.