AMERICANRIDER. COM MARCH 2026 | 39
30th Anniversary Kyle Petty
Charity Ride Across America
Story by ALLISON PARKER Photos courtesy KPCRAA
More than 30 years ago, a small group of friends swung legs over their bikes in North Carolina and rode to a race in Phoenix, Arizona, picking up more friends along the way. During that ride, third-generation NASCAR driver Kyle Petty had a thought.
“ It dawned on me while we were riding that night: How cool would it be if we rode motorcycles and just picked up people along the way and did it all for charity?”
And that’ s exactly what they did. In 1995, a group of about 35 riders rode from San Francisco to North Carolina, giving money to support causes along the way. They had so much fun that they did it again the next year, and then the next, and the next. Now the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America is planning its 30th anniversary ride based on that original route from 1995.
To learn more about this ride, its history, and its cause, I got in touch with Kyle Petty. Even though he and his team were busy planning the 30th anniversary ride, he was happy to take some time to chat with me. Petty is a down-to-earth guy, and although we’ ve never met, speaking to him felt like talking to an old friend.
Main: The KPCRAA group rides through Monument Valley in 2022. Right top and bottom: The original 1995 route took Kyle Petty and friends across the country.