The Highway 61 Challenge to make its way through Vicksburg

The Highway 61 Challenge is a 500-mile, four-day bike challenge that takes place from Memphis, TN to New Orleans, LA. The event started on March 24 this year and will land in Vicksburg around 5 p.m. Friday.

Riders will arrive in Vicksburg on Friday after taking a 109-mile trip to reach the city. The riders will stay overnight and continue a 156-mile cycle for the next segment of the journey and rest in Baton Rouge, LA.

The ride is divided into four stages:

1. The first stage began on March 24 in Memphis. The first leg of the journey was a 115 mile ride which led through Tunica and Cleveland Mississippi.
2. The second stage took riders from Cleveland 109-miles further south, which will have them arriving in our city, scheduled for around 5 p.m. Friday.
3. The third stage will take them from Historic Vicksburg, 156 more miles to Baton Rouge, LA.
4. The final stage of the journey will be a 120-mile ride along the Mississippi, which will come to a big finish in New Orleans.

Those wishing to welcome the cyclists would have the best chance of doing so at Riverstage Parking by Cottonwood. Cyclists are scheduled to arrive at that location in the late afternoon, around 5 p.m., where they will be greeted with music, food and drinks.

The event is to raise funds for the children’s hospital in New Orleans. The cyclists will depart back to Memphis by bus, at 8 a.m. March 29.