Last Saturday, I was riding between Leola and New Holland in Lancaster County. On that five miles of PA Route 23 I saw more groups of Mennonite men than I have ever seen in more than 40years of living in Lancaster County. Every few hundred yards I saw another group of three to five guys in straw hats, suspenders and farm boots riding and talking.
On the way back I caught up to one group and asked why there were so many bikes on the New Holland Pike. They told me I was seeing people leaving Horse Progress Days at the end of the two-day trade show/event/festival.
In a huge field on South Groffdale Road, south of Leola, were tents and displays of manure spreaders, tillage equipment, sprayers, and then the haying equipment--all designed for horse-drawn (and mule-drawn) farming.
Over the two days ofthe event, 30,000 people came from all over the U.S.and Canada to see the latest in horse-powered farm equipment.
Along with the bicycles were several pairs of Amish men riding high-wheeled scooters along Route 23.
The next day I rode the same road and saw a few buggies, but no bicycles or scooters. I will have to wait until next year.
