The Riding for a Reason 6th Annual Spring Charity Event at Bass’ River Resort

As the winter weather fades away, we get our spring fever to ride and we get out and play. As most of you can relate, we were pretty antsy to get out and take our first ride trip of the year, and what could be better than a spring ride? How about riding for a good cause! We took a trip down to Steelville, Missouri for Riding for a Reason’s 6th Annual Spring Charity Event at Bass’ River Resort on March 26th and 27th.

There was no shortage of fun at R4R’s Spring Charity Event, thousands of UTV enthusiasts packed Bass’ River Resort and the surrounding supporting resorts (Huzzah Valley Resort & Ozark Outdoors Resort) for a weekend full of camping, riding, and one heck of a party. The two-day event boasted a ton of activities including UTV barrel racing, drag races, a Show and Shine, a fitness challenge with the United States Air Force, and, of course, fantastic trail riding.

A large vendor area at Bass’ River Resort kept the crowd busy; there we found great food, UTVs on display from local dealerships, as well as shops and aftermarket companies with stuff for purchase. We also found the Kyle Ride charity group vending and showing support, title sponsor the United States Air Force handing out a ton of free swag, and the Riding for a Reason Booth where you can pick up your R4R gear.

One vendor booth that stood out was a favorite brand of ours, Off-Road Vixens Clothing Co!  Many attendees loved the opportunity to purchase the latest trends in off-road apparel for ladies. Need some? No worries, you can get Off-Road Vixens Clothing Co. apparel at SideBySideStuff.com.

Each day and evening live music takes over the main stage. Many attendees, including myself, had a great time watching some great bands perform. It was nice to finally see a good show after the many performance cancellations over the last year.

The new Can-Am Commander was spotted on display there as well! A great looking machine for sure, it was cool to check it out. We can’t wait to see what aftermarket Can-Am Commander accessories come out for this bad boy.

Each evening some great raffle prizes were given out. The United States Air Force gave out a ton of good stuff, they even had some veterans only raffles. It’s always great to give back to our veterans!  The big raffle of the weekend was put on by the R4R crew, they gave away a Polaris Ranger and a Can-Am Defender! I had my fingers crossed but I’m not that lucky! A couple of fortunate winners got to take home a new machine decked out with a Riding for a Reason theme! 

Riding for a Reason also put on a silent auction and dinner which helped raise a ton of money. “Riding for a good cause”, what are we talking about? If you haven’t heard of Riding for a Reason here’s the scoop: For many years each spring, a group of friends would get together and ride UTVs and ATVs as trail riding was a passion they shared. In 2015 things would change for the group as they learned that a dear friend and riding partner was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. They would soon discover that many of them knew someone who had dealt with a diagnosis or had a close call. In turn, they decided to use their annual ride as a way to help spread awareness and to help others, this was the beginning of Riding for a Reason.

Riding for a Reason, Inc. is a non-profit organization with one simple mission: “To increase awareness of Colorectal Cancer prevention and raise money for individuals and organizations in need.”  We had the opportunity to attend their first fall ride back in September, boy did we have fun. What a great group of individuals and who can argue with riding and raising money for charity?

2021 marks their 6th year for the annual event at Bass’ River Resort, and what a great place to hold it. Bass’ has been in support of R4R since the beginning, and although their trail system is private, they graciously open the trail once a year to event attendees. The near 25-mile trail system is a mix of private property and national forest with direct connection to the Huzzah Valley Resort, all approved for riding on the event weekend. You’ll find the trail clean and well-kept with a variety of mud pits, hillside loops, hill climbs, and obstacles ranging in difficulty for all types of riders.

Bass’ River Resort is…, you guessed it, a river resort. They have great accommodations including several cabins, full hook-up RV sites, a nice bath/shower house, and a great pro shop. We are already making plans for a float trip after our visit. If you want a cabin for next year’s ride, you better act fast when the dates are released. We hear they sell out quickly.

All in all, the 2021 Riding for a Reason Spring Charity Event was a huge success! A ton of money was raised to help families and individuals battling cancer, BIG THANKS to everyone who came out and supported this event! Want to support R4R? March is National Colon Cancer Awareness Month, so plan on joining us next March for the 2022 Riding for a Reason Spring Charity Event!

Learn more about Riding for a Reason, Inc. at – https://www.ridingforareason.net/