Cranksgiving by Austin Ridge Riders

Cranksgiving is Austin Ridge Riders’ biggest event of the year — a full-day fundraising ride at Pace Bend Park on Lake Travis, presented by KOM Trails. The format is simple and relentlessly fun: lap the marked course as many times as you want, earn a raffle ticket for each lap, collect your prizes at the end. The 2026 edition ran 9 AM to 4 PM, which is enough time to stack some serious mileage if that’s your game — or just enough to enjoy the park and the scene at a more relaxed pace.

Proceeds go directly toward ARR’s trail building and maintenance work. The club is deeply embedded in Austin’s trail infrastructure — trail crew workdays, Violet Crown Trail advocacy, LCRA park partnerships — and Cranksgiving is a big part of how that work gets funded. It’s a way to give back to the trails while riding them, which is a pretty solid pitch.

Tickets are required and typically go on sale a month or two out. Pace Bend sits on the shores of Lake Travis and offers exposed riding, so bring sun protection and more water than you think you need. The raffle at the end of the day keeps energy high well into the afternoon.