
The ultimate Knoxville festival—fearlessly combining our local obsessions with dogs, beer, bikes, and boats—returns for its second year Saturday, June 3. Visit Knoxville’s Bike Boat Brew & Bark festival gathers Knoxville’s various tribes in a celebration of all the above, uniting outdoor adventurists, dog lovers, craft beer enthusiasts, and those looking to discover a secret in Knoxville’s Urban Wilderness.
While the one-day event highlights the Knoxville Powerboat Classic race, bringing the visitors down to the waterfront, it also features a plethora of things to do that highlight Knoxville’s unique lifestyle.
Free events include a powerboat race, performances by Hoyt Fly Board and the Smoky Mountain Dock Dogs, an urban hike sponsored by TVA, and a pet photo contest sponsored by Young-Williams.
Sign-up events include craft brewery slow rides, an urban bike ride, a scavenger hunt, and a Riverwalk History Tour led by Knoxville’s own Jack Neely. Sign-up events can be registered for on Eventbrite prior to each tour, with the exception of the scavenger hunt, which can be registered here.
To learn more in person, visit the Visitors Center located at 301 South Gay St., and 950 Volunteer Landing Lane (information tent). The schedule below is subject to change due to weather.
If lightning occurs on Saturday, Powerboat Races, Dock Dog Demo, and Hoyt Flyboard will move to Sunday, June 4. Brewery Slow Rides, Guided Cherokee Farm Bike Ride, TVA Walk and Riverwalk with Jack Neely will take place rain or shine on Saturday, June 3, and will only cancel due to lightning.
EVENT SCHEDULE for Saturday, June 3
FREE EVENTS
10am-5pm Visit Knoxville Info Booth/Vol Landing Towers
10am-5pm Young-Williams Animal Center Pet Photo Contest
10am-5pm TVA Exhibit Booths at Vol Landing
10am-5pm Urban Hike guided by TVA Natural Resources
10am-12pm Knoxville Powerboat Classic Testing
10am-5pm Calhoun’s Patio Celebrates 20 years of Smoky Mountain Brewing
11am-2pm B97.5 Live Remote
12pm-1pm Hoyt Flyboard Performance
1pm-1:30pm Smoky Mountain Dog Docks Performance
1:30pm-2:30pm Powerboat Timed Laps and Qualifying Heats
2:30pm-3:30pm Hoyt Flyboard Performance
3:30pm-4:30pm Powerboard Finals
SIGN-UP EVENTS
10am Guided Bike Ride to Vol Landing from Cherokee Farm
10am Riverwalk tour with Jack Neely
12pm Brewery Slow Ride with Alliance Brewing Co.
1pm Brewery Slow Ride with Last Days of Autumn
1:30pm Brewery Slow Ride with Balter Beerworks
2pm Brewery Slow Ride with Saw Works Brewing Company
2:30pm Brewery Slow Ride with Schulz Brau Brewing Company
3pm Brewery Slow Ride with Hexagon Brewing Co.
3:30pm Brewery Slow Ride with Pretentious Beer Co.
HOW TO GET THERE
• For those traveling by boat, the event will be located at Tennessee River mile marker 648. Free docking will be available at the city docks, and will be monitored by TWRA. The Powerboat Racers need to enter at Ned McWherter, where they will race in front of Calhoun’s and down to Henley Street Bridge.
Due to the Knoxville Powerboat Classic, Calhoun’s docks will be closed to the public from 6 p.m. Friday, June 2 until 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 3. The boat ramp at Ned McWherter/Riverside Park boat ramp will also be closed to the public beginning at 12:00pm on Friday, June 2 until 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 3. Pleasure boats will not be able to proceed in the race area Saturday, June 3 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• For those traveling by bike, see the “Regional Bicycle Facilities Map” at ibikeknx.com for locations and information on bike lanes, greenways, signed bike routes, bike racks, bike shops, and repair stations (Fixit stations). To see Knoxville’s comprehensive guide of greenways and parks in the Get Out & Play Guide.
• For those traveling by bus, Knoxville Area Transit is a great way to reach your event. Take the city bus from all parts of Knoxville to the Knoxville Station. Volunteer Landing is only a ten minute walk from the Station. Or hop on the Blue Line Trolley* then a short walk down to Volunteer Landing. To learn more, visit katbus.com or call 865-637-3000. All KAT buses are equipped with easy-to-use bike racks, and trolleys are free and have free WiFi!
• For those traveling by car, all city parking garages are free on nights and weekends. Some recommended spots are the City County Building Garage, Dwight Kessel Garage, Market Square Garage, State Street Garage, or the Outdoor Knoxville lot.
To learn more about this great event, visit visitknoxville.com for more information and the schedule. Also, get this week’s issue of the Mercury for a handy print guide.

Smoky Mountain Dock Dogs
JoAnna Brooker is a student at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and a double major in Journalism and English. A Chattanooga native, she also writes for The Daily Beacon, UT's student-run newspaper, as a columnist and writer for arts and culture. You can reach JoAnna at jbrooke3@vols.utk.edu.
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