NOTES FOR RIDE DAY!:
Yes, this is a rain or shine event. If you like mud, you'll be in love! Don't worry, we'll have baby wipes for ya!
Check in starts @ 9am. As soon as you check in you can go ride!
We will do everything we can to be set up and ready before 9 but please don't come before 8:30!
Smaller vehicles are better, unless you can do a truck and carpool!
I'm not a super duper mountain bike rider - can I do the ride?
Yes! Both the short course and the intermediate course use the old roads (the intermediate about 50%), which are gravelly in spots, but easy to navigate. And the trails on the Stewart State Forest lands are typically wider and faster, which makes them a little easier to navigate, than many other trails. So come on out!I am a super duper mountain biker - should I do the ride?
Of course! These are great trails, with some technical sections that you'll have fun with. (For everyone's safety, we encourage saving your gonzo riding for a different day! ) SSF is often used for ATB races - so you know it's good! You can also help us put on a great ride by volunteering as a marshal -- and you ride for free. E-mail us if you're interested.What should I expect at the different ride levels?
Beginner/Family: Ride on old gravel roads, wide with gradual hills, good for kids and people who want an easy sightseeing ride through the forest. Marked green.
Intermediate: Ride on gravel roads and well worn single track including
moderate climbs and rocky areas. Marked yellow.
Advanced: A longer ride along the intermediate route with some more
difficult side routes along the way. It includes some tighter single track
with forest debris, mud, roots and rocks. Marked blue.
I'm coming to the ride solo but want to ride with other folks - can you help?
Sure, we can help connect riders of similar abilities who would like to ride the course together. Just because you're one person on one bike doesn't mean you can't be social! Look for signage at the start to join up with fellow riders.
I want to ride with my family, can my kids do the ride?
Yes! Choose the short course, which relies on old roads through the lands for most of the ride. These don't present the challenges of forest trails, and thus are great for kids who are comfortable on their bikes off-road, and their parents, of course!I'm supporting my favorite rider - can I come if I'm not riding?
Sure, you can come and enjoy the Forest, and take a mini-tour with our nature experts too. If you'd like lunch or ice cream, that will be $10 so we can cover our costs. Tour riders will have ID to indicate they are registered riders; only paid riders get lunch of course!What kind of bicycle do I need?
For the Stewart State Forest Bike Tour you'll need a mountain bike, aka ATB (all terrain bike).. unless you're doing the beginner/9-mile, for which a hybrid bike or cruiser is OK; BMX is fine for the short course too. Off-road riding (even on the old roads on the lands) is definitely not for skinny tires, so save your road bike for another day!What cool stuff can I win?
All pre-registered riders get into a prize drawing automatically! So pre-register now!At the event, for just a couple bucks, you can get prize chances for cool stuff collections, including Bontrager under-saddle bags, CamelBak "podium" water bottles and more. Grand prize is a cool $100 gift certificate toward a Thule car (or truck) rack, courtesy of Wheel and Heel of Wappingers Falls.
My bike needs a tune up - where should I go?
Visit one of our bike shop sponsors, they'll hook you up!Wheel n' Heel, Wappingers Falls
Dark Horse Cycles, Montgomery
Beacon Cycles, Beacon
Bryans Bikes, Cornwall
Scolaro's Bike Shop, Wallkill
Wheel and Heel will also be on-site the day of the ride for last minute mechanical needs, and to answer your questions about the latest cool gear out there.
What should I bring?
Bring your bike, your helmet, a water bottle/CamelBak & water, sunscreen (we've got our fingers crossed for sun!), a few bucks for the raffle, and anything else you like to have with you on a ride (it never hurts to have a tube/tools & mini-pump!). We'll have an en-route rest stop but you may want to bring a PowerBar or something depending on the distance you're doing.Also consider bringing/wearing insect repellent - ticks are a fact of life in this area of NY now. With the fun weather of late, you might want to bring layers to be ready for whatever Mother Nature throws at us. We can hold bags if need be at the start/finish.
There are lots of great photo ops, so bring a camera if you feel comfortable carrying it. (And if you get some shots you want to share, send 'em our way and we'll post 'em!)
If you haven't pre-registered, bring a check or cash for the entry fee. We probably won't have enough seating for everyone hanging out post-ride, so feel free to bring a camping chair for hanging out after the ride. (P.S. plan to enjoy the sounds of the Forest - leave your iPod at home!)
Where's the start?
The start is off Weed Road, in the Stewart State Forest. Park at the DEC entrance just off Rt. 207, in Rock Tavern (Town of New Windsor). Take I-84 Exit 5A south (747/Int’l Blvd., toward the airport), turn right onto Rt. 207 west; the Weed Road entrance is two miles ahead on the right. See the ride page for a small map. Please carpool if you can.If you want to make parking easier, and don't mind a little warm up ride, you can park at the Ridge Road entrance (on the north side of the Forest, off Rt 17K) and then ride Ridge Road down to Weed Road for the start (abt. 2.5 miles)
Transit-bike directions for those folks sans auto - would be Hoboken (or Penn to Secaucus) to Salisbury Mills or Grand Central/125th to Beacon. Salisbury Mills is closer, but the earliest train gets in at 10:41, a tad late. There are trains to Beacon arriving at 8:05 and 9:10am; a trip to Beacon requires a ride over the Newburgh Beacon Bridge bike path, then a quick jump south and then west on 17K through the city a bit, then onto 207. If we have enough interest, I'll look into shuttles, but right now you're on your own to get you and your bike from train to the start. I'll do mileage for the trips and post here...
What if the weather is perfect?
We ride!What if the weather is less than perfect?
We ride!Since SPARC is all-volunteer we really can't swing a rain date, so do your sunny dance early and often!
What are rules of the trail?
The lands will be open, as usual, to all users. So you may encounter horse riders, cyclists in pre-race training, walkers and their dogs, etc... . IMBA, the International Mountain Bike Association, says:- Ride Open Trails Only
- Leave No Trace
- Control Your Bicycle
- Always Yield Trail
- Never Scare Animals
- Plan Ahead
Note for mountain bikers doing the Dark Horse Gallop, part of the Hudson to Highlands (H2H) Series, on June 21, 2009.
We are working with our trailmaster and the race organizers to avoid rider conflict, as some racers will be in the Forest on June 20 pre-riding the course. If you are a racer, please avoid the Weed Road entrance Saturday morning if at all possible, and please be aware of those less-experienced riders also on the lands. Thanks!