Couples on Wheels (COWS), Wisconsin’s tandem bicycle club is proud to announce that the Club will host two upcoming events in the greater Wausau, WI region, as follows:

• May 15, 16,17, 2026, the COWS Spring Rally and Annual Meeting
• September 3, 4, 5, 6, 2027, the Midwest Tandem Rally (MTR).

Couples on Wheels is celebrating 37 years of riding tandem bikes together. COWS currently has over 100 tandem team members from throughout Wisconsin (and neighboring states). Stanley Frey, COWS Board member and long-time tandem rider with his wife Laurie, states “COWs welcomes and encourages those just starting their tandem journey as well as those who have ridden well together for years. We strive to make and strengthen connections between COWs in a fun atmosphere – even between those on the same bike!”

The COWS Spring Rally and Annual Meeting is hosted in a different city across Wisconsin each year. Approximately 40 tandem teams attend this event.

The Midwest Tandem Rally (MTR) is a four-day event held every year on Labor Day Weekend at different sites throughout the Midwest and is celebrating its 50th anniversary. MTR 2027 will be the first time that the Midwest Tandem Rally will be held in the greater Wausau area. This event is expected to draw approximately 200 tandem teams from throughout the Midwest and even from other states and countries.

The host hotel for both events will be the Holiday Inn & Suites, Rothschild, WI. Each day, the tandem cyclists will be offered two to four different route options (ranging from 20 – 75 miles per day) throughout Marathon County.

Note: the hotel block for Spring Rally 2026 is already availabile at our special group rate. More information here.

MTR 2027 will also offer nightly social activities, educational sessions, and a wide variety of vendors displaying bicycling-related products, clothing, supplies, and gifts.

The first MTR was in Kokomo, Indiana in 1976. Past MTRs have been held in various Midwest states and hosted by their state/regional tandem club including Indiana (HOOTs), Illinois (CATS), Michigan (MUTS), Ohio (GOATS), Iowa (PIGs), Minnesota (LOONs), etc. Past MTRs in Wisconsin hosted by COWS have included Kenosha (1977), Oshkosh (1986), Waukesha (1991), Appleton (1996 & 2007), Middleton (2012), Racine (2021).

The ride directors for both the COWS Spring Rally 2026 and Midwest Tandem Rally 2027 will be Patrick & Margaret Donnelly. For more information about the greater Wausau area, contact Visit Wausau. To contact the ride directors, email them here.