For months officials with Perry County Tourism have been developing an event that will serve as a kick off for the tourism efforts in the county, and on September 21 those plans will culminate with an ATV trail ride that could very well set a world record, and a charity music show that will be headlined by the nationally known country duo Halfway to Hazard.
Perry County Tourism Chairperson Janet Smith said a lot of planning is going into next month’s kickoff. She said the event, which will coincide with the end of the annual Black Gold Festival in Perry County, will serve more than one purpose.
“It’s a threefold event,” she said. “It will be the kickoff for the five county trail system, the kickoff for adventure tourism in Perry County, and the Halfway to Hazard ATV charity event to benefit the Buckhorn Children’s Center.”
Different events are scheduled throughout the day, which will begin with registration for the ATV ride at 7:00 a.m. The ride will begin at the Buckhorn trailhead, just past Buckhorn High School, as guides will lead riders along the trail.
The days’ first major event will take place at approximately 9:30 that morning, as law enforcement personnel are expected to escort the riders for a parade that organizers hope can set a new world record for the longest ATV parade. Smith told the Herald that organizers have sent in the necessary paperwork to the Guinness Book of World Records and expect representatives from that publication to be on hand to witness the parade and certify the results if they do indeed set a new record. The current record was set by Harlan County with 1,164 units, Smith said.
At 5 p.m. that evening, officials from Perry, Breathitt, Clay, Leslie and Owsley Counties will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony officially opening the multi-county ATV trail system. Other activities scheduled for the day include hot air balloon rides, a cornhole tournament, and celebrity item drawings.
Perry County Tourism Coordinator John Epperson, who noted that officials have been working on a trail system in Perry County for three years, said he expects the opening next month to have a major effect on the local economy for these five counties.
“It’s going to bring in money to this area,” he said. “We’re going to have tourism dollars. People are going to be looking for places to stay. They’ll buy fuel here and groceries at our local stores and service stations.”
Epperson said the trail system, which will interconnect trails in those five counties from which the county judges will be present, will begin to reap long term benefits for those counties and increase awareness of what is in this region for neighboring counties and states. He said he also hopes it will increase ATV safety. He noted that vendors will be on site during the opening event demonstrating safe riding techniques, and officials will also be patrolling the trails. “We want everyone to have a place to ride, but encourage them to have a place to ride responsibly,” he said.
Abner brothers a force in tourism efforts
Situated just minutes from the village of Buckhorn, Crockettsville is a remote, sparsely populated area of Breathitt County where a farm is being transformed from a rolling piece of countryside to a potential boon to the local tourism industry.
The Abner family farm will play host to nationally known country stars next month, and that could be just the beginning.
So far, the Abners have been one of the leading private forces behind the tourism effort in Perry County. Last year, brothers Culley and Benny donated time and equipment for a PRIDE cleanup near Buckhorn. Along with the Gay family, the Abners have also donated some of the land that will be used for the multi-county trail system, and they are currently readying their farm for a day’s worth of music.
Beginning at noon on September 21, live bluegrass music will be performed on a newly constructed stage located at the farm. At 6 p.m. that evening country stars Halfway to Hazard, Jason Aldean and Dierks Bentley will join for a benefit concert that will raise funds to benefit the Buckhorn Children’s Center.
Culley Abner said the idea for the benefit concert was originally the idea of Halfway to Hazard members David Tolliver and Chad Warrix, and since then he has been more than happy to help accommodate them for their appearance.
Abner said his family’s role in the event began after meeting Warrix’s uncle, who makes deliveries to the Abners’ store in Buckhorn, and talking about the trail systems and what they hope to do with tourism in the county. Eventually, word got around to Warrix, and the event got its start from there.
The Abners have been constructing a stage, made completely of cedar taken from the land on which their farm sits, to accommodate the day’s performances, and plan to continue to ready their land for the upcoming event. Workers have put in five days worth of work on the stage so far, and last week Abner said he was waiting for the power company to connect the stage with electricity before they can continue construction, which he expects to take an additional five to six days to finish.
Next month’s kick off will be just the beginning, Abner hinted, noting that he thinks that weekly events that help to promote the trail system will pay major dividends for the region by way of bringing in extra dollars to the region.
Abner said he envisions the Crockettsville farm having uses beyond next month’s tourism kickoff and benefit concert, and the potential ranges from the weekly concert to even a festival where local vendors can bring products for sale to the public such as canned goods or crafts. “They can be sort of the guiders of their own destiny,” he said. “If they want to be involved in it in a big way and really go after it aggressively they can. Or if they choose to do it a weekend out the month we’ll be there for them if they choose to do that.”
The trail system and the farm venue could work as a joint venture, Abner said. As interest for local events will also bring in more interest for the ATV trail system, and those coming to ride those trails could have other activities to undertake while in the area. In turn, Abner continued, it could have an effect of drawing more people to the Buckhorn area than would either of the areas by themselves.
“Tying in music shows and the trail system together, that will give a competitive edge against any other trail system,” he said.
Abner said the September kick off is really the result of working together, and he thanked Halfway to Hazard along with tourism officials in Perry County and other officials who have offered help in the area. He praised Halfway to Hazard members Tolliver and Warrix for their willingness to put on a show that will help benefit the community.
“They’re taking time off of a very busy schedule to make time to do this at no gain to themselves other than the satisfaction of knowing they put on a show for people at a price they won’t find nowhere else,” he said.
As previously mentioned, proceeds from the event will go to the Buckhorn Children’s Center, which offers aid to disadvantaged children through treatment and foster care for youth in the region. The center and was founded in 1902.
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