Fall Classic Mountain Bike Fest
PHOTOS BY MIKE HITELMAN & WORDS BY EVAN CHISMARK
Fall in Vermont is an unexpected amalgamation of beauty and frustration: on the one hand, here we sit in the middle of a Normal Rockwell painting, the Green Mountain skyline aglow in a prism of autumnal glory, and the air cool and crisp to the point of perfection. On the other hand, we wave goodbye to summer’s warmth, its clouds of mosquitoes, air so ripe with humidity that it’s wearable, and rain bombs that lay waste to our roads and trails. So…wait, perhaps I’ve overestimated the “frustration” part of this equation. Yeah, I recant that part about the frustration. Fall is just soup-to-nuts awesome.
Let’s then, celebrate this oh-so-fleeting season with a party, shall we? This Sunday, October 8th, the Stowe Trails Partnership (the artists formerly known as the Stowe Mountain Bike Club) in partnership with Mountain Bike Vermont, will be hosting the seventh annual Leaf Blower Fall Classic Mountain Bike Festival.
Here’s a little propaganda from years past to get you pumped…
The Leaf Blower is a day of revelry and community, of seasonal celebration and local libations. In a word, it’s the embodiment of Vermont mountain biking. The goal? Fill your singletrack cup until it runneth over, then gather to break bread and raise a mug to the dwindling daylight and emergence of a new season. (Sidenote: we’re also working with the Lamoille Community Food Share program to help raise some donations for those in need: bring as many non-perishable food items as your karma may dictate)
The group ride selection spans the entire spectrum of ages and ability levels with rides fit for endur-bros, weight weenies, newbs, groms and any other cliché rider demographic you might be able to pinpoint. Afterwards we gather for a fall-flavored cookout replete with home cooked victuals and all the calories you need to top off the tank after a full day in the saddle. Oh, and did we mention local beer? Because there’s that too. (and of course chocolate milk for the groms)
The details:
- Where: Town & Country Resort, 876 Mountain Road, Stowe, VT 05672
- When: Sunday October 8, 2017 from 8:30 to about 6 p.m.
- Event registration: right here. Day-of registration runs from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. The event is capped at 250 and tickets are going fast. Day-of registration is not guaranteed.
- Your registration gets you: a full day of group rides with aid-stations aplenty, a cookout and post-ride sudsy beverage, swag bag full of stuff like a pair of Darn Tough cycling socks, Clif Bars, stickers, and other one-off goodies.
- We’ll have vendors on site to keep you busy while you’re waiting for your ride to depart, including MTBVT (duh), Julbo, Clif Bar, Turtle Fur, Trapp Family Lodge, the Vermont Huts Association, and the Lamoille Community Food Share program (bring some canned goods!).
- Ride departure begins at 9:30 with rides leaving every half hour(ish) until noon. So if you’re down for a big ride, get fueled up and registered early.
- Caja Madera Taco Truck will be on hand from 8:30 to noon with breakfast burritos and other pre-ride fuel.
- Dinner / post-ride shenanigans start at 3 p.m.
Proceeds from this event go right back into trail maintenance and construction efforts, so feel damn good about that registration fee. We like to refer to the Leaf Blower as the “best day of the year.”
Join us this Sunday in Stowe to see for yourself….
