Castle Rock’s Pedal the Moon adds E.T. screening, family ride

Castle Rock’s Pedal the Moon returns July 11 with a new payoff at the finish line: a screening of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial at Festival Park after the evening ride. The annual event runs from 6:30 to 10 p.m. and keeps its familiar twilight route along East Plum Creek Trail, but this year’s lineup gives families a stronger reason to plan around it as a full summer outing instead of just a bike ride.

Riders can leave from Castle View High School at 7 p.m. or from Douglas County High School at about 7:15 p.m. The route is about six miles and mostly flat, which keeps it accessible for a wide range of ages and fitness levels. The town still requires helmets, along with a front headlamp and a blinking rear light, a reminder that the event is built around an evening ride beneath the darkening sky.

The social side is a big part of the draw. A decorating station with glow-in-the-dark supplies will be set up at the intersection of East Plum Creek and Hangman’s Gulch trails, giving riders a place to stop before heading to Festival Park. The Boy Scouts will serve the hot dog dinner, and each registration includes a T-shirt, hot dog meal, chips, a drink and a Moon Pie. People who register by June 25 are guaranteed their T-shirt size.

Prices are set at $20 for general admission, $18 for seniors 65 and up, and $16 for children under 12. That pricing, along with the flat route and movie ending, makes the event one of Castle Rock’s more straightforward family summer outings for residents who want something local without the scale or crowds of a regional festival.

Pedal the Moon has been part of Castle Rock’s summer calendar since 2010, and the town has built the event around the trail network that links school campuses, neighborhoods and downtown spaces. East Plum Creek Trail is a 10-foot-wide paved multiuse trail that runs 8.6 miles between Castle View High School and the Montaine neighborhood, with Douglas County planning future extensions farther south. This year’s E.T. screening turns that trail connection into an even more complete evening, ending a neighborhood bike ride with a movie under the stars.