The Loveland Bike Trail is a rail trail in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. It is a section of the

Little Miami Scenic Trail The Little Miami Scenic Trail is the fourth longest paved trail in the United States, running through five southwestern counties in the state of Ohio. The multi-use rail trail sees heavy recreational use by hikers and bicyclists, as well as the ...

within the

Loveland, Ohio Loveland is a city in Hamilton, Clermont, and Warren counties in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. Considered part of the Greater Cincinnati area, Loveland is located near exit 52 off Interstate 275, about northeast of the Cin ...

city limits in Clermont County. Like most of the longer trail, it was built along the

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

of the abandoned

Little Miami Railroad The Little Miami Railroad was a railway of southwestern Ohio, running from the eastern side of Cincinnati to Springfield, Ohio. By merging with the Columbus and Xenia Railroad in 1853, it created the first through-rail route from the important ma ...

, on the

Little Miami River The Little Miami River ( sjw, Cakimiyamithiipi) is a Class I tributary of the Ohio River that flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 26, 2011 through five counties ...

. Along with 15 other city parks, the trail corridor is maintained by City of Loveland Recreation Commission. The trail was opened in the 1980s and became part of the Little Miami Scenic Trail in 1984. More than 100,000 people accessed the Little Miami Scenic Trail via the Loveland trailhead in 2014. Each summer from 1997 to 2000 and from 2002 to 2004, the city held a cycling race, Tour de Loveland, named after the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

, that promoted the Loveland Bike Trail as the centerpiece of Historic Downtown Loveland. It featured a route for professional cyclists that included many Downtown streets, as well as separate races for younger cyclists. In June 1998, the

USA Cycling USA Cycling or USAC, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is the national governing body for bicycle racing in the United States. It covers the disciplines of road, track, mountain bike, cyclo-cross, and BMX across all ages and ability level ...

Elite National Championship

time trial In many racing sports, an athlete (or occasionally a team of athletes) will compete in a time trial against the clock to secure the fastest time. The format of a time trial can vary, but usually follow a format where each athlete or team sets off at ...

s and

criterium A criterium, or crit, is a bike race consisting of several laps around a closed circuit, the length of each lap or circuit ranging from about 400 m to 10,000 m. Overview Race length can be determined by a number of laps or total time, ...

were held in conjunction with the Tour de Loveland. On January 24, 2005, Loveland City Council voted to cancel the Tour, due to declining attendance and a lack of sponsors.

References

External links

Loveland Bike Trail
nbsp;– the Loveland Bike and Skate Rental's website with information on the trail Rail trails in Ohio Parks in Ohio Transportation in Clermont County, Ohio Loveland, Ohio Cycling in Cincinnati Tourist attractions in Cincinnati Protected areas of Clermont County, Ohio 1980s establishments in Ohio {{Cycling-stub