Giving Back: Twinfield Bike Rodeo

Four members of our local mountain bike club headed down to the local school this morning to help kids get on bikes. The morning started with parents dropping their kids off with bikes, helmets, and school supplies, and the bikes were organized by classroom. We set up a bike skills course and safety check station (helmets, brakes, air in the tires, chain oiled up - check!) and the kids came out one classroom at a time. Student volunteers were set up to support the younger cyclists throughout, with games of red light-green light, obstacles, traffic simulations, and a winding serpentine to practice bike handling skills. The kids had a blast, and so did we!

 Oh, and after the safety course, the kids cruised around on their bikes. Who went off-roading? The girls. No big deal, we're pretty awesome.

Happy Trails!
~Sarah 

Vermont's very own Green Mountain Enduro

With over 50 riders, music and food, perfect fall weather, and the phenomenal trail network at Shaw Outdoor Center (part of Norwich University) in Northfield, the Green Mountain Enduro was a great success, particularly for a first-year event. The field was comprised of pros, sport riders, and beginners. Racers competed in three timed stages, for which the climbs were casual and non-timed, and riders then put it all on the line for the descent. Riders had a great time and everyone had a smile on their face. 

Many thanks to Liz at the Shaw Outdoor Center, the many Norwich University volunteers, the Town of Northfield, and Onion River Sports for putting on a great event.

Follow these links for race results and more photos.  

VTMTB Fest Showcases the Best

When I think of Summer in Vermont, I can easily dream of the the Long Trail and the boundless hiking trails in the Green Mountains, or the swimming holes, the smell of green pastures and farms, and don't forget the cows. But last week, at the Vermont Mountain Bike Festival, it was all about mountain bikes and riding trails. We all came together in Waterbury for two spectacular days of riding, showcasing some of the best single track Vermont has to offer. More than a few folks showed up to try their hands at it.

Rider: Dwight Gies

It seems like yesterday that mountain bikers got their hands dirty, with the relatively recent onset of this mountain past-time. And look how far we have come in that short period of time! Blood, sweat, dirt, and thousands of hours of riders' own time have built some of the best trails in New England.  That's just what people from far and near got to experience at this year's fest. Every year it's clear: Things can and will only get better from here... Here are some pics of the fun times has at the 2012 VT Mountain Bike Festival:

World-class riding, right in Stowe, Vt.

A group tour in Stowe, Vt.

Chris Lee picks trail-side berries.

One of our newest trails to enjoy - its great!

A cold beer at the Trapps brewery.

Some bike derby to liven things up!

The end do great day at the VTMTB fest.

Definitely Don't Miss the Vermont Mountain Bike Festival

Want to know where all the sweet single track is in Vermont? Try the newest bikes? Eat great food and meet other mountain bikers? So do we! So we're going to be at the Vermont Mountain Bike Festival on July 16th & 17th - there's still time to sign up! Gear demos, guided rides, skills clinics, a BBQ, local food, great people, and a wickedly good time! And all in support of the great work of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association (VMBA) - like gaining access for mountain biking in Vermont's national forests.

Breaking the camels back; CHC

A job well done and it's always nice when its fun.  I spent the day with a great group of BC skiers on the Camel breaking trail for this Sunday's Camels Hump Challenge.  If you haven't done it yet, this will be a tremendous year as all snow has really filled in the trail.  You can register the day of for $125 that goes to the Alzheimer's association, a good cause. This tour allows one to see aspects of the forest in and around Camels Hump not  usually accessible or seen as it traverses around the summit.  A must do for any BC skier.

T.

Happy Brithday MRG.

It was a great day to get out and celebrate a great place to ski: Mad River Glen.  Parking may have been a little uchemm... mad.. but Sarah and I had a great time making some great turns at a true classic Vermont ski hill!  They even roll back lift ticket prices to 1949 at $ 3.50 - a true steal! 

Happy Birthday Mad River Glen.

Happy new year.

Life Cycles; be there.

Onion Ink.

                           
              Autumn Onion 5k , be there!!!  October 31, race starts at 10:00 in downtown Montpelier!!! and bring a costume!

Be there.

Kip takes the top!!

Kip took the win in the race to the top of Vermont in true Kip Roberts fashion on his unique single speed winning by over 20 seconds! We knew you had it in you!! It's too bad I broke my wrist I would have liked to be there with you!! Till next year!

Heres to Kip!!

cheers.

Saturdaynight single speed smackdown- Three penny shinnanigans.

No one ever knows where a Saturdy singlespeed smackdown night ride will lead you, just so happens we ended up at our favorite bar; the Three penny taproom.

Cheers

A beautiful day, a life celebrated.

http://type2fun.wordpress.com/2010/05/16/mount-montpelier/

A beautiful day to be had! I was supposed to ride in the Dave Blumenthal memorial ride. This was a ride Dave came up with that consisted of every imaginable hill in Montpelier, a 37 mile gut-wrenching ride that included 5,300 ft in elevation gain as a way to train for the great Tour Divide. Unfortunately I woke up with a sore wrist and decided to sleep in and see what the day was to bring. So Sarah, Odin and I decided to celebrate Dave's extraordinary life by still riding but touring Hinesburg State Forest, at a slower, less elevation-y, more dog-appropriate pace. This is a great trail system in the town forest of Hinesburg that has trails maintained by the Fellowship of the Wheel, a great organization that helps maintain and lobby for trail use in some great locations in Vermont. So we set out and rode a two hour loop that consisted of trails the likes of The Back Door and Dragon (we think, we're not entirely sure where we were at all times). Once you are up on the ridge, there are breezes, views, and changing forests, plus fun rocky sections of trail to challenge yourself on. Upon starting our descent from the ridge we met a nice family: Dad, Mom, dog, and three young sons. What a great thing to do as a family! Maybe that will be us one day...maybe with just one third the amount of kids, anyways. The trails were a blast, the day was gorgeous, and the after-ride grub was some of the best (fresh streaks on the grill, beans from a neighbor's garden, pilaf, and salad: mmmmm, yummy). In all, it's a day to be remembered, marking lives to be remembered.

Happy trails!

2010 Vermont Mountain Bike Festival

Here are some scenes from this year's Vermont Mountain Bike Festival: Also, we had an amazing sunset on the second night:
Unfortunately those bright colors do appear to signal that a massive storm is coming...on this second night we also sat under tents during the worst thunderstorm/hurricane I've experienced in a long time. The lightening was incredible, though! Um...the flooding and sideways rain was also incredible.

Despite the rainy evening, the festival was a great time. There were lots of demo bikes, some great vendors (including Nemo tents, Vermont Peanut Butter Co, and Mocean Mate), and lots of people who love riding. This was the third year of this event...looking forward to the 2011 festival!

ORS Specialized demo day.

One heck of a week! Happy 4th Everybody!

An overnight jaunt at Battell shelter below Mt Abe on the Longtrail, an epic day hike up to Jefferson in the the White mountains, the Montpelier parade, fireworks on top Mt. Madonna on the fourth then to cap it of Chrissy's birthday flotilla on the winooski river and dinner at the Alchemist! What a week it was! I don't think Sarah and I have ever had so much variety in one week and spent such quality time with good friends. It had been such a long time since we kayaked or paddled in a canoe. It was especially tough and interesting to have Odin in a kayak for the first time.
Thanks so much to everyone who accompanied us or invited us out. We are so fortunate to be in such a beautiful place with so many beautiful people.

Here's to you all and living the good life.