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Governor's bike trip across S.C. to include stop at Santee State Park

Gov. Mark Sanford's plans for a bicycle trip across South Carolina -- including an overnight stay at Santee State Park -- just keep growing and growing.

Since he announced his intentions in his State of the State speech earlier this year, a name has been bestowed on the activity -- the Family Fitness Challenge -- and there are plans to make it an annual event.

On Wednesday, Sanford's office announced plans for a couple of two-mile Family Fun Routes that will accompany the main event. Walkers, joggers and even rollerbladers have been invited to join in.

Sanford's Web site -- www.scgovernor.com -- now features state health statistics and weekly health and fitness tips in addition to ride maps and details, including historical information about towns, cities and points of interest that the route will pass.

Schoolchildren from across the Upstate participating in the ZestQuest program will join the governor to kick off the ride at Croft State Park in Spartanburg County on May 1.

The main event will leave Croft at 9 a.m. and end at Reunion Park in Little Mountain at approximately 3 p.m.

One of the 2-mile Family Fun Routes will begin and end at Croft. The other will begin at Union Square Shopping Center in Union, which is also the first rest stop for the main event.

Other rest stops will be at Piggly Wiggly supermarket in Whitmire and Enoree Baptist Church in Enoree.

After a two-week interlude, the ride will resume May 15 at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia. Riders will follow S.C. 48, U.S. 601, S.C. 267 and S.C. 6 to Santee State Park.

On May 16, the riders will follow S.C. 6, S.C. 310 and U.S. 176, ending at Wannamaker Park in North Charleston.

Sanford explained the reasons for the ride.

"A big part of our quality of life in South Carolina goes back to how we look and feel as a state, and the fact is that too many of us eat the wrong things and don't get enough exercise, leading to our state being near the top of the list for a whole host of health problems due to unhealthy lifestyles.

"The Family Fitness Challenge is all about encouraging folks to be just a little bit more active, whether that means riding an entire 60 miles with us, or joining Jenny and the boys for a couple of miles on a Family Fun Route," Sanford said.

"Whether you come out and ride five blocks, 5 miles or 50 miles, I'd challenge all South Carolinians to come meet up with me, Jenny and the boys and take this first step toward a healthier state -- and if biking isn't your thing, we'd still love for folks to come out and walk, jog or even rollerblade a few blocks with us.

"A healthier South Carolina starts with making better choices on a day-to-day basis, and we hope that this bike ride will be a first step toward folks getting serious about better personal health."