Opening Day : Big Bicycle Extravaganza, Fireworks Will Get Things Rolling Next Weekend

A pedaling event and a fireworks show will officially launch the yearlong Orange County Centennial celebration July 31.

The Orange County Centennial Bike Tour & Festival will begin at 8:30 a.m. at Anaheim Stadium. Cyclists in the non-competitive event will have their choice of four routes of varying lengths--10, 25, 50 and 100 miles.

All routes begin and end at Anaheim Stadium, with the exception of the 100-mile route, which will begin at the stadium and end at The Marketplace in Irvine. Festival sites will be set up along the routes.

“The concept is to bring the whole county together,” said Bonnie MacDonald, the event’s director of community and public relations. “The routes will go through 20 of the county’s 27 cities. To get close to the beach that day, logistically, would have been tough because of the traffic, but we are happy that we do go through most of the cities.”

About 10,000 cyclists are expected to participate, she said. There is a $15 entry fee but no charge for participants 10 years or younger.

The streets that form the 10- and 25-mile routes will be closed to traffic, except emergency vehicles, MacDonald said.

“Each city is handling and monitoring (the traffic situation) to the degree they feel is necessary on that day,” she said. “Riders will be closer together at the beginning by the stadium and into Placentia, but the ‘window’ between riders will increase by the time they reach the 50- and 100-mile routes.”

Entry forms can be picked up at any county Bank of America branch or Carl’s Jr. restaurant, as well as at bike shops, county libraries and recreation departments.

“Friends and family are welcome to come to the stadium and cheer them (cyclists) on as they go on their way,” MacDonald said. “We also encourage non-participants to go out and enjoy one or more of the festival sites while the others are out riding.”

The festival sites include Taft Library in Orange, the County Courthouse in Santa Ana, Tri-City Park in Placentia, Central Park in La Palma, Buena Park Mall, Huntington Center in Huntington Beach, the Flakey Jake’s in Anaheim near the stadium, Westminster Mall and The Marketplace in Irvine.

Presenting sponsors of the bike tour are AT&T; and Bank of America. Other sponsors for the event are AST Research, Carl’s Jr., Chevrolet, Schwinn, K-Earth radio and the Orange County Register.

At 9 that night, a fireworks show will be presented at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley. Admission is free.

More than 50,000 people are expected to attend the show, the theme of which is “An American Family Celebration.” The fireworks will be presented by Grucci, which staged the fireworks shows at the Statue of Liberty centennial celebration and the Constitution bicentennial celebration in Philadelphia.

Beginning about 6 p.m., musicians, jugglers and magicians will stroll through the park, providing entertainment for those who come early with picnics.

The fireworks show is sponsored by The Times Orange County Edition and Wisk Laundry Detergent.

Free park-and-ride service will be provided from South Coast Plaza and Westminster Mall, beginning at 7 p.m. and continuing as needed. About 700 free parking spaces will be available at PACE Warehouse, 17099 Brookhurst St., Fountain Valley, and 10,000 parking spaces will be available at the park for $2.

Mile Square Park is bounded by Brookhurst and Euclid streets and Edinger and Warner avenues. For more information, call the Orange County Centennial FREELINE at (714) 859-4000.