New England Rocks lots of pics
- Thread starter idbrian
- Start date
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Fasterbetterlooking>Todd
Guest
Hey ID BRian,
I'm a Jersey Transplant living up in western, MA for the last 10 years..You hit the nail on the head-MA has fantastic riding, I mean really great riding from Cape Cod to the Berkshires..on a biker-built single track to square mile basis it's damn near unrivaled in the states.
HP is a classic, as is Exeter (Fort Rock), but there's so much more-glad to see somebody checking out the Epic destnations in the sport that are within driving distance...don't let those Colorado 'dirt-roadies' on the Passion forum on mtbr.com bully you-with a little looking, you can find the real goods in New England. I get a kick out of a traveling Jersey Man discovering Harold Parker and Fort Rock.
Good stuff.
I'm a Jersey Transplant living up in western, MA for the last 10 years..You hit the nail on the head-MA has fantastic riding, I mean really great riding from Cape Cod to the Berkshires..on a biker-built single track to square mile basis it's damn near unrivaled in the states.
HP is a classic, as is Exeter (Fort Rock), but there's so much more-glad to see somebody checking out the Epic destnations in the sport that are within driving distance...don't let those Colorado 'dirt-roadies' on the Passion forum on mtbr.com bully you-with a little looking, you can find the real goods in New England. I get a kick out of a traveling Jersey Man discovering Harold Parker and Fort Rock.
Good stuff.
fasterthanliam
New Member
Sounds like a road trip . I wish that I knew someone with local trail knowledge. I just got back from the cape and did some riding. Got lost a few times but still had fun.😉
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Fasterbetterlooking>Todd
Guest
Hey man, not knowing where you are isn't the same as being lost-how many times do I have to tell ya that!😀 Only time I 'lost' you was the Nickerson Ride..
Oh, if anyone goes up to Cape Cod from NJ--bring your Mountain Bike-the riding there is surprisingly good.
elzoller
El Guac-Oh
did that 😉 ...it was pretty good.
yes, it is not getting lost, it is "orientationally challenged" 😀
fasterthanliam
New Member
don
Well-Known Member
'Nam is kinda of on the way to the Cape if you are going thru MA. I haven't been to that place in years but from what I've seen on Bustedspoke it's only gotten better and better and let me tell you it was sweeeeet back in the old days. http://bustedspoke.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=49270
Fasterbetterlooking>Todd - funny - I grew up in Western MA and now live in NJ. There are days when I miss it up there especially the riding and 4 wheelin' but I get to head up at least every few months. You are absolutely right - MA has a LOT of great riding spots for how small of a state it is.
AND you have VT, NH, and ME just to the north and CT and RI just south. Maybe it's because I grew up there but I think New England has the best setup if you dig bikes - not to mention winter and water sports.
Fasterbetterlooking>Todd - funny - I grew up in Western MA and now live in NJ. There are days when I miss it up there especially the riding and 4 wheelin' but I get to head up at least every few months. You are absolutely right - MA has a LOT of great riding spots for how small of a state it is.
AND you have VT, NH, and ME just to the north and CT and RI just south. Maybe it's because I grew up there but I think New England has the best setup if you dig bikes - not to mention winter and water sports.
don
Well-Known Member
Andover is a very nice area.
As far as riding, Harold Parker is right there and maybe 30 minutes to Lynn Woods which is probably one of the better known spots in the state. NH is really close too.
don
Well-Known Member
That would be a nice way of life - IIRC NH has lower taxes and the commute to Andover shouldn't be more than a half hour. There are a bunch of smaller/good spots in and around the north shore of MA. Not sure if you know about nemba: http://nemba.org/ridingzone/places-ma.html
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Fasterbetterlooking>Todd
Guest
Hey Don,
Well, when you're up this way again let me know, I'd be happy to explore places new and old with a visitor. Yep, New England (and western, MA specifically) rules. And the riding has absolutely exploded in the last 5 years-I've personally built and spear-headed the construction of nearly 20 miles of legitimate single track, and my organization has helped to oversee at least another 20 or so miles of biker built trails throughout the region-coupled with the already existing hundreds of miles of single track (much legit, and yes, quite a bit of guerrilla, too...good guerrilla stuff, however-really well-built and maintained), and that's just the Pioneer valley!-Honestly, even someone who grew up here might not recognize the place😉
What those guys have done over in Milford at Vietnam is just plain amazing! (especially for the jump, tranny and flow crowd!).
That being said, I learned to ride at Sourlands, Chimney Rock, Mahlon and the Fairy Forest-I'll always have a soft spot for NJ riding!
fasterthanliam
New Member
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Fasterbetterlooking>Todd
Guest
Yeah, I call it the Butt of Fasterthanliam😀!!!
The VT trip ought to be pretty damn good btw, GS.
fasterthanliam
New Member
Will be here very soon. I better start training.:getsome:
don
Well-Known Member
Damn - missed your post and have been offline for some days. I actually just got in from Western MA. I was back home in West Spfld and took my bike up. Was out on Sat for a 3 hour tour going right from my parents house into Bear Hole and went exploring. A lot of the stuff was quad/jeep trails but were still fun and I caught some singletrack here and there. I could actually spend a good 3 days in that zone looping things together. I saw another mtn biker and he said one guy has been cutting trail and that you could use jeep and quad trail comined with singletrack and ride to Mt Tom!
Next time I go up I'll PM you - would love to get some more of that rooty/twisty/rocky/hilly/tech stuff.
crankspanker
New Member
Next time you are back in the Springfield,Ma area, head North to the Holyoke Range State Park and you WILL be blown away w/ trail network there! I lived in Asutney, VT in '04-05 and made it imperative that I rode there at least twice a year. Look it up on mtbr.
don
Well-Known Member
Will do - just got a map off mtbr and it's not far at all from my parents house. Sounds like an amazing zone.
Actually, I realized I did a training ride up that mtn back in the old days for a BMX state final race. My bro lived in nearby Hadley and brought me all over town and up the road to lookout. All this on a single speed BMX bike (can't remeber if it was my 20" or 24"). I do remember the downhill being full tilt!
BTW, have you ever done the VASS 50 Miler? When I lived in eastern MA I did it a few times. Slept on the floor at an Ascutney Mtn lodge a few times for it. Good times.