Five Hills Bikes

Ladies Ride June 8

Good news ladies! Meghan has agreed to be the ride ‘leader’ on June 8, when I am otherwise committed. The ride will be meeting in Stowe, behind iRide for a 6pm departure.

Great turnout on all the rides so far! Even last night, a day in which it rained for most of the day, we had a lady committed to getting out and we really enjoyed a beautiful evening in Stowe riding up to Maple Run and coming back via Tamarack.

Don’t forget that Thursday night is the shop ride on Perry Hill – all are welcome. The pace is a bit faster, but it’s still a social ride and it’s a ton of fun!

Ladies Rides

Off to a good start – the 2nd Ladies Mountain Bike Ride is tonight, 6pm. Stowe Town Loops. As a reminder – here’s the info and schedule.

Thursday night is the main shop ride – Waterbury trails. Leave from Five Hills Bikes/Bike29 at 6pm. Ride is about 2 hours, social pace, mostly Perry Hill trails. All are welcome. Call 244-7330 or email georgew (at) bike29.com for questions.

Tuesday night is the Ladies Night Rides. These move around depending on the week. The ladies rides are open to ladies with at least some mountain biking experience, they are not beginner rides (sorry, the terrain is just too challenging in Stowe and Waterbury). It’s a great environment to challenge yourself and work on some skills with a supportive group of ladies or make new friends that enjoy mountain biking as much as you do.

Waterbury rides meet at Five Hills Bikes, leave at 6pm

Stowe rides meet at Town Loops trailhead behind iRide, leave at 6pm

• May 11 – Waterbury
• May 18 – Stowe Town Loops
• May 25 – Waterbury
• June 1 – Stowe – Godstreet, Tamarack, etc
• June 8 – Waterbury No Ride Stowe Town Loops!
• June 15 – Stowe – The Wall
• June 22 – no ride
• June 29 – Waterbury Waterworks (meet at Hope Davey Park)
• July 6 – Stowe – Sterling Valley

The rest of the summer, tbd once I get my travel schedule. Hope to have a nice crew again this year, last year we had a lot of fun. Any questions? Email me mandy (at) bike29.com.

Flower Power and VT Singlespeed Supreme Championship

It’s almost that time again, time to kick off the mountain bike racing season at Catamount Outdoor Center in Williston with the Flower Power Mountain Bike Race. Once again, this race is also the VT State Singlespeed Supreme Championships. Singlespeeders will do three laps (got that everyone, no mixups this year, okay?) and we’re trying to put together some cool prizes for those that are willing to redline it in the name of Flower Power.

2009 VSSSSC Wms Champ

This race is always a good time. Catamount sets a fun course, spectators cheer everyone on, and folks are out to have a good time. Lots of friendly people and no attitudes. Even if racing isn’t normally your thing, you should come out and see what you’ve got at Catamount. It’s a lap format, so you can choose the distance that makes the most sense for you.

Register online at Bike Reg and we’ll see you on Saturday, May 15 at 10:00 am.

VSSSSC 2009

Summer 2010 Shop Rides

It’s that time again and we’re happy to announce the beginning of shop ride season.

Thursday night is the main shop ride – Waterbury trails. Leave from Five Hills Bikes/Bike29 at 6pm. Ride is about 2 hours, social pace, mostly Perry Hill trails. All are welcome. Call 244-7330 or email georgew (at) bike29.com for questions.

Tuesday night is the Ladies Night Rides. These move around depending on the week. The ladies rides are open to ladies with at least some mountain biking experience, they are not beginner rides (sorry, the terrain is just too challenging in Stowe and Waterbury). It’s a great environment to challenge yourself and work on some skills with a supportive group of ladies or make new friends that enjoy mountain biking as much as you do.

Waterbury rides meet at Five Hills Bikes, leave at 6pm

Stowe rides meet at Town Loops trailhead behind iRide, leave at 6pm

• May 11 – Waterbury
• May 18 – Stowe Town Loops
• May 25 – Waterbury
• June 1 – Stowe – Godstreet, Tamarack, etc
• June 8 – Waterbury
• June 15 – Stowe Town Loops
• June 22 – no ride
• June 29 – Waterbury Waterworks (meet at Hope Davey Park)
• July 6 – Stowe – Sterling Valley

The rest of the summer, tbd once I get my travel schedule. Hope to have a nice crew again this year, last year we had a lot of fun. Any questions? Email me mandy (at) bike29.com.

Early Closing – Saturday, April 24

On Saturday, April 24 Five Hills Bikes will be closing at 12:00 noon EST. We’re headed down to NY State for Singlespeed-apalooza and we’re going to need a little bit more time.

Get your bikes in and out before noon, and then enjoy the beautiful day outside. We’ll be open again normal hours, starting at 10:00 am, on Monday.

Thanks much and enjoy the weekend.

More Gravel Grinder Recap Here

View a collection of photos from the Gravel Grinder here.

Read a ride report here.

2010 Gravel Grinder in Review

It was cold, grey and threatening to rain, snow or maybe a little bit of both. But over 130 riders were tough enough to join us on Sunday for the 3rd annual Gravel Grinder Spring Classic Dirt Road Ride.

Photo: Richard Mahoney

There were riders as young as 12 and many with a lot more experience. The riders climbed up Perry Hill, Loomis Hill, Gregg Hill, Dewey Hill and Stowe Hollow for a total of over 3,000′ feet of climbing in under 30 miles. Riders rode the Waterbury Community Trail back into the village where good hot food was waiting.

Thanks to everyone that helped us with this years event: Meeghan Jones, Richard Mahoney, Nat Fish, all the ride ‘guides’, Pilgrim Partnership for allowing us to use the site, Factotum Designs for the awesome shirts, Frida’s Taqueria for the excellent post-ride food.

We netted over $2,000 for the Waterbury trails, this money will go a long way in supplying the tools and materials to keep the trails in pristine condition. Thank you to everyone for coming out and hope to see you next year.

Gravel Grinder on Tap

Last update before the big event. We’ve got a sold out ride with folks of all ages joining us from 5 different states. The weather is looking…well, let me put it this way. Dust shouldn’t be a problem on the dirt roads this weekend. Welcome to April in Vermont, a mercurial month. You can never really know what the weather will be, until you’re in it. That being said, prepare for a chilly and damp ride. There may be some rain. It might be somewhat windy. We may be providing a little ‘warmer upper’ at the aid station to keep your spirits up. Be prepared – to have fun regardless.

Check-in before the ride, either at Five Hills Bikes (2 N Main Street, Waterbury VT 05676) from 3-5 on Saturday, or 8-8:45 am at Pilgrim Park 5 on Sunday morning. There is a mandatory riders meeting at 8:45 and riders will start promptly at 9am.

The route has changed from prior years and we will not be offering the bonus loop this year. For the former you may curse me, but for the latter you will thank me — so it evens out. We anticipate that the fastest riders will finish in a little over 2 hours. The more human among us may take up to 3.5 hours to finish. There will be tasty food at the end of the ride thanks to Frida’s Taqueria.

We’re looking forward to another fun ride – feel free to email or phone with any questions you might have about the ride.

Gravel Grinder Update

Less than one week to go until the Grinder. Good news for you heel-draggers, there are still a few spots left. But not many so register now! I’ve got to order the (super cool as always) shirts on Tuesday, so if you don’t get me your size by then you can’t be assured of scoring a shirt that fits.

Cobb Hill - not on the route for 2010

We have finalized the course for this year, and it’s a bit different than the prior years. I’m sorry to say that we’re not including the Cobb Hill loop this year, I rode it this past weekend and it’s a muddy, running-water nightmare. I like you guys too much to send you up and over that mess. As for the main loop, we’ve reconfigured it and added some mileage. I think you’ll like it. You can see it on a map and all the fun details, (over 28 miles, more than 3100′ of climbing…) on the Bike29 blog.

We’re reversed some of the climbing/descending and for a big finish we’re taking you along the Waterbury Community path. It’s a great ride

See you next weekend!

• Saturday, April 17: 3-5 PM at Five Hills Bikes, 2 North Main Street, Waterbury, Vermont
• Sunday, April 18: 8-8:45 AM at Pilgrim Park 5, Waterbury, Vermont
• Riders meeting at 8:45 AM and 9AM ride start!

Gravel Grinder – One Month Away

There’s only one month until the Gravel Grinder, and the weather this week has turned all thoughts to spring and riding. Registrations are strong and this event will sell out again this year, so secure your place and support the Waterbury trails.

For anyone wanting a warm up, we’re going to start have some shop rides, weather permitting. This weekend looks to be fantastic, so we’re planning two rides, both leaving from the shop:

• Sunday 10am – mostly flat, moderate pace, 3-4 hour ride
• Sunday 2pm – pre-ride the Gravel Grinder course, hills, dirt roads, 2-3 hours

Email georgew (at) bike29.com or mandy (at) bike29.com for more info.

Check out the Gravel Grinder page for the most up to date info about the event.

Click here to register!