For the 19th year in a row, Susie Rice will be wrangling volunteers and cyclists for the Scenic Tour of the Kootenai River, or STOKR.

Only this year, Rice will be watching from the sidelines. She isn’t worried.

“The best thing is that it is such a loyal group of volunteers,” she said. “It makes it easier to organize.”

The STOKR ride, a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity, attracts more than 400 riders ever year. It fills up in February and is a major tourism draw to south Lincoln County.

The ride starts at 8 a.m. Saturday with all 410 riders departing from Libby along Highway 2 to Troy. Riders will stop there, refuel and some will press on to the Yaak, others will pull a 180 and head back to Libby.

The more adventurous riders will take a tour of the Yaak, a total of 98 miles. The ones turning back will still ride 45 miles, a hearty ride for any cyclist.

Rice said one of the best things about the ride is its consistency. Some volunteers have been filling the same roles for 19 years, and they might as well be professional race organizers.

Another special facet is the fixed number of riders.

“Some people want us to open the gates and let it go up to 1,000 riders,” Rice said. “But it would lose its ambience. We use volunteers and make cookies and pies for the riders. We couldn’t do that if it were 1,000. The volunteer base is wonderful, but limited.”

The second part of the ride begins 9 a.m. Sunday, and riders will head up the Haul Road, go over the dam (with a watchful sheriff looking for any tomfoolery) and down Highway 37 back into Libby.

But Rice is quick to remind what the event is for.

“We raise enough money every two years to build a house,” she said. “We route riders by the house so they can be part of it.”