Ride Bikes.
Drink Bourbon.
| LEXINGTON, KY |
Sept 27th - 29th, 2024
The Ride
The Burn — part bike tour, part bourbon festival — is a three-day, fully-supported bicycle tour of the bourbon distilleries and Thoroughbred horse farms of Kentucky. Explore quiet country roads and quaint communities en route to distilleries nestled amongst the rolling bluegrass hills. Daily distance options range from 20 - 100 miles and stop at numerous distilleries throughout the event. Back at Bourbon Base Camp, located at the Kentucky Horse Park Campground, sip local bourbon from the same distilleries you biked to that day — plus more — and enjoy live entertainment with friends, old and new. Registration is open to riders 21+.
Format
The Bourbon Burn is a three-day bicycle tour, with loops departing from the Bourbon Base Camp each morning. Riders can choose between short, medium, or long options each day, plus a century ride option! The best part of a loop ride? You won't have to pack up your tent or check out of your hotel room all weekend!
In addition to a 3-day registration, we also offer a 2-day registration option for Friday & Saturday, for those who are not able to attend the full experience.
2023 Bourbon Burn Distillery Map
*2024 routes are still aging and may not visit all distilleries seen below.
Who organizes this ride?
The Bourbon Burn organizers bring this event to you as lifelong Kentuckians, combining experience in international bike touring logistics, with a great local knowledge of Kentucky geography. We have all worked independently within the bourbon industry at some point in recent years — from rolling barrels to leading tours, and even developing unique bourbon profiles. With this combined experience, in addition to our past Burn success, we promise to provide a fantastic bicycle tour you will be talking about for years to come.
Here at the Burn, our team is extremely excited for what is ahead as we plan for the tth annual Bourbon Burn which will be held on Sept 27th-29th 2024! With all 50 states represented over the last four years (plus Canada & Europe!), we look forward to increasing participation from around the country and offering our participants a top-notch, multi-day experience here in the land of bourbon and horses.
From left to right: Mollie Hanrahan; Co-Founder & Co-Director, Nic Christiansen; Base Camp Manager, Tara Render; Volunteer & Support Stop Manager, Austin Render; Co-Founder & Co-Director.
WHY?
The idea behind this event started nearly a decade ago, when Burn co-founders Mollie Hanrahan and Austin Render embarked on a 2.5 month long, self-supported bike tour through Patagonia. They started in the town of Bariloche, Argentina and criss-crossed their way between desolate Chilean and Argentine towns until they reached their end point of Ushuaia, Argentina — the southern most town in the world. At some point during that 2,300-mile long trip, they looked at each other and decided that their home state of Kentucky needed a kickass event that really celebrated the culture and heritage of the Bluegrass. After a near death experience, one unfortunate kiwi, and miles of unexpected gravel, they decided that since their friendship survived this adventure — they were the ones who could make it happen. And so, the Bourbon Burn was born!
