Riding for a Reason is returning to Steelville for its 11th year to raise money for people battling cancer. The two-day fundraising event will take place rain or shine March 27-28 at Bass’ River Resort.

The weekend will kick off on Friday at noon with live music by Dustin Coleman and a UTV scavenger hunt race through Huzzah Valley Resort. Events will continue into that night with a concert headlined by rock/country artist Mark Perkins.

Saturday is the main event, with trails open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ATV and UTV riders will take on the trail system connecting Bass’ River Resort and Huzzah Valley Resort through a mix of national forest and private property with permission by local landowners. 

Several food trucks and vendors will be on site, including the R4R Command Center trailer selling official Riding for a Reason apparel. Drag races and barrel races are also scheduled throughout the day.

Multiple items will be auctioned off at the event. A raffle for a 2025 Kawasaki Ridge Limited HVAC Custom Wrap side-by-side will be livestreamed on Facebook at 6 p.m. The day will conclude with a 7 p.m. country concert by the Bobby Ford Band.

Riding for a Reason, Inc., is a nonprofit and all proceeds raised are donated to support people fighting cancer and to fund colon cancer research. 

The first annual trail ride took place in 2015, after the organization’s president and founder, JT Gunter, had a friend diagnosed with colorectal cancer. After realizing how many people in their community had been affected by cancer, Gunter and his friends decided to turn their trail rides into a fundraiser.

The first year drew 600 people and raised $17,000, which was donated to local families and organizations. Attendance doubled the following year and raised $60,000. In recent years, Riding for a Reason has drawn crowds of around 3,000 people and has given away over $1 million total.

If you know of an organization or a person in need of funds toward their fight with cancer, or are in need of it yourself, you can fill out the funding application on Riding for a Reason’s website at ridingforareason.net/applicant-form.

“Once we approve (the applications), we send them $1,000 for assistance, for anything that they can think of — whether it’s chemotherapy or smile therapy, whatever their heart needs money for,” Gunter said. “That’s what we’re there to help with.”