Category Archives: Fat Biking

Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, Observations, Pine Hill Partnership, Trail Safety, Trail Updates, Uncategorized

Trails are OPEN to all

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UPDATE: May 3: Steep hill on Droopy Muffin and Lichen Rock are now open. Exit Strategy and Voldemort are still closed.

UPDATE: April 13: Trails are open for pedestrians and bikes. Lichen Rock, steep hill on Droopy and Exit Strategy are closed. Power company is doing work on a the power-line up by the Crusher. Please be aware of large vehicles on the Pond Rd.

UPDATE: April 11th: Trails are open for pedestrians only. We finished the new boardwalk this past weekend. Bikes you’ll have to be patient a little bit longer. Thank you.

Update: April 1st.

Trails are now closed to all users. Trails are in the process of thaw/freeze cycles and are very susceptible to trail damage. All our volunteers would greatly appreciate it if folks could hold off on riding and walking.

The park is closed to pedestrians this year also. We are hoping to open soon for pedestrians but trails need to dry out more.

NEMBA has a really great explanation on why we need to give trails a break in the spring.

https://www.nemba.org/news/just-say-no-mud?fbclid=IwAR3wy353beE_NJK70Cgq3AmkB-hIGg0m0YCLRg_qdNqQQu1be5RAtkexvkM

Please stay tuned.

Education, Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, Observations, Pine Hill Partnership, Trail Safety, Trail Updates, Uncategorized

Park in March

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Our weather is all over the place. The warm weather towards the end of February definitely gave us some boiler plate ice that is now covered with a little bit of snow. Plus there is frozen bare ground that is covered in snow. Fat bike folks you will prefer studded tires but be wary as the snow is not sticking to the ice fully. That might change in the near future with warmer temps. We do not have enough snow to groom.

Pedestrians most likely will prefer some sort of ice gripper. Not necessary but depends if you like landing on your butt at unsuspecting times.

Speaking of warmer weather….long range weather report is showing a warm up then getting cooler again. However, as we approach the end of March the trails start the dreaded freeze/thaw cycle. What does that mean for Pine Hill Park???

When we feel it’s appropriate the park will close to all users. Bikes, pedestrians, everyone. The freeze/thaw cycle we are asking all users not to utilize the trails. The trails become muddy, ice is pushing up out of the ground and with foot traffic and bike traffic it destroys the trail tread. We are asking folks to be aware of our conditions. We will have a white board at the front entrance letting folks know if trails are open or closed. If you use social media it will be the easiest place to find if trails are open or closed. We understand folks want to get outside after a long winter but we are kindly asking not to use our trail system once the freeze/thaw cycles start.

Our trails are being used hard by many folks and trail degradation is happening faster than our core volunteers can maintain. Please consider making a donation to Pine Hill Partnership to help pay for a VYCC crew and a professional trail builder to come in and help repair some of our older trails.

Fat Biking, Meetings, Mountain Biking, Observations, Photos, Pine Hill Partnership, Programs, Uncategorized

22 Cold rolled

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We lucked out with weather getting cold for Sunday after a warm day on Saturday that saw trails really get soft. I think it’s safe to say everyone had a really great time. Thanks to #MTBVT, #PineHillPartnership,#Fiddleheadbeer

Trying to sand front entrance
Leonard and Claus
Fire pit at the overlook
Lauren
Andy
George
Nick
Jay
Jamie
Nate N groomer extraordinaire
Shane
Overlook pit stop
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Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Darlene
Cindi at Cold Rolled Rutland – February 13, 2022 – Pine Hill Park, Rutland, Vermont.
Fat Biking, Mountain Biking, Observations, Programs, Trail Updates, Uncategorized

It’s back

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Cold Roll Rutland is back in 2022! Save the date! Sunday, February 13th. Registration starts at 9AM. Rides start at 10, lunch at 12:30 and samples of Fiddlehead beer will be available to folks over the age of 21. Ticket’s can be purchased here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/copy-of-rutland-cold-2022-registration-239440291357

Press Release for: The 2nd Annual Cold Roll Rutland Fatbike Festival

[Rutland, VT, Jan 06, 2022] — The creative minds behind Überwintern and Winterbike are at it again! Mountain Bike Vermont has partnered with Pine Hill Partnership in Rutland, Vermont to offer a day of fatbike stoke on cold-rolled singletrack this Super Bowl Sunday! Join us Sunday February 13th, 2022, as fatbikers from around New England and New York gather in Rutland to lead a charge with Old Man Winter, replete with group rides, a vendor village, and hearty brews around warm fires.

The event will feature a vendor village, rides for all ages and abilities, and groomed packed powder trails for your fatbiking pleasure. Group rides will begin at 10am at the Giorgetti Athletic Complex at 2 Oak Street Extension (the Pine Hill Trailhead) where we’ll also convene for lunch at 12:30 pm. The remote aid station (aka party central) will be located at the overlook and will feature a bonfire and our favorite mid-ride refreshers. Lunch at Giorgetti will be catered by our friends at Ranch Camp (Stowe, VT).

“We’re beyond excited to bring the Cold Rolled back to Pine Hill – this trail network has some of the best fatbiking in the state, and the community rallies to maintain them all winter.” says event cofounder & Killington Valley local Nate Freund of MTBVT. “We’re stoked to bring the party to Rutland and introduce riders from around the northeast to these amazing trails!”

The $50 ticket price ($35 for the under 21 crowd) includes group rides, lunch (with both carnivorous and veggie options), a signed original Cold Roll Rutland artist print, as well as beverages. So air down those tires, break out the extra layers, and get ready to party MTBVT style.

SCHEDULE:

Vendor setup 8:00 to 9:00 Registration / Expo area opens 9:00 Group Rides

Advanced ride departs 9:45 Intermediate ride departs 10:00

Beginner ride departs 10:15

Remote Aid Station opens 11:00 to 2:00 Lunch 12:00 to 2:00

Event ends 3:00

Advanced Ride – This ride’s duration is up to 3ish hours. The pace is for avid riders that enjoy covering ground at a steady pace. You can expect up to 12ish miles of riding over variable terrain.

Intermediate – These rides are for most folks looking to have a good time, stop at the fire for a bit, and be guided around PHP. this ride will be three hours in duration with opportunities to bail out or put in a few extra miles.

Beginner ride – Beginner rides take folks on the easier terrain and no experience is necessary. This ride will bring participants to the remote aid station and back to base.

Interested in renting a fatbike for the event? Please reach out to your preferred local shop in advance as fatbikes are in short supply this season.

About Mountain Bike Vermont

Mountain Bike Vermont (MTBVT.com) is an online journal, events promoter, apparel company, and rolling party instigator. MTBVT’s dual initiative is documenting and promoting the Green Mountain State’s incomparable cycling community. Visit MTBVT.com for info on our annual event series, shop our online store, and peruse new and archived articles. #MTBVT Have questions? Want to become a vendor? Contact john@mtbvt.com

Education, Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, Trail Running, Trail Safety, Trail Updates, Trail Work, Uncategorized

Update on trails

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UPDATE April 8th: Trails are riding great. With the wind we have been having trees are falling down so reports are appreciated. pinehillpartnership@gmail.com. Trails that are still closed Exit Strategy, steep hill on Droopy, Lichen Rock. Voldemort should be open later today April 8th.

UPDATE April 5th: Opening up trails this afternoon except for our normal winter closures. Hopefully our 15 degree nights are done. Thank you for being patient.

UPDATE April 3rd: Trails are still going through freeze/thaw cycles with the cold weather that is back. We have frost poking up on the trail tread. Please NO BIKES.

UPDATE March 29th: Trails are slowly drying out. With all the rain on Sunday(28th) things got pretty soggy again but it did drive the frost out of the ground. Snow is in the forecast for later in the week so we have to wait until after that event to melt. We will be monitoring trails regularly to see when we can open for bikes. We need a bunch of windy days to dry the park out. PLEASE BE PATIENT!

We are in the middle of freeze/thaw cycles when the trails are super fragile. We would appreciate folks staying off the trails at this time. Hikers if you would stay on the Pond Rd that would be greatly appreciated too. Thank you.

Cross Country Skiing, Fat Biking, Snowshoeing, Trail Running, Trail Updates

Winter grooming under way

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UPDATE 3/12/2021: Please no bikes until the park dries out in April. We are in a very trail tread fragile time of year with freeze/thaw cycles. If winter really shows back up again and everything is frozen solid you will want studded fat tires. Thank you for respecting all our hard volunteer work efforts into making Pine Hill Park such a cool place to play.

UPDATE 3/8/2021: We are done grooming for the year. With warm weather this week and wanting trails to unthaw for spring it is best to leave them alone. It has been a great winter for fat bikes, skis and hiking in the park. Not often we see snow that stays for a long period of time in Rutland.

As we approach spring with freeze/thaw cycles we are asking folks not to use the trails. It does a lot of damage to the trail tread when they are in that fragile state. When trails get rutted up water runs down that rut when it rains or when the frost is coming out of the ground. The water running down the rut then washes away all our hard earned soil we have moved by hand. We appreciate your cooperation. Thank you.

UPDATE 2/25/21: Nate N tried to groom today-Thursday 2/25. Snowdog kept falling off the track he had set earlier in the week. So instead of plugging long he headed back to the barn. Studs and ice cleats are highly recommended. Please do not ride/hike on the trails later Saturday or Sunday when temps get warm and turn everything to mush. Thanks!!!!

UPDATE 2/20/21: Nate N groomed more late this afternoon. Everything is in great shape. Check it out before the 45 degree weather shows up on Wednesday.

UPDATE 2/20/21: Nate N did groom some on Friday 2/19. He is planning on hitting more trails today to make them a little easier to walk and ride. Bikers and hikers if you are sinking in more than an inch please stick to the Pond Rd. When the bike tracks and foot prints freeze solid it’s not a lot of fun to walk or ride on. We can do some grooming but getting frozen tracks out of the trail tread isn’t something Snowdog can do unless we have fresh snow to smooth stuff out. So think about long term for trail use and what you would like it to be-smooth or rutted? Please 4″ or wider tires please. Thank you!

UPDATE 2/19/21: Nate N is planning on grooming later today(Friday 2/19) to try and get some of the foot and snowshoe prints out of the trail tread. The idea is with a little bit of snow and warmer temps he can smooth some of it out. Hearing the report on riding fat bikes in the park is not a lot of fun right now with all the frozen foot prints.

UPDATE 2/13/21: Nate N has been able to groom the last two days with the metal drag sled. Everything packed down really well and should be great walking, running and fat biking until next snow. Please leave a donation in Tinman or join Pine Hill Partnership to help offset the cost of running Snowdog. www.pinehillpartnership.org Thanks.

UPDATE 2/4/21: Nate N has done a bunch of grooming the last two days. It still might be a touch soft but should set up nicely. Hopefully we won’t get too much rain on 2/5. Here is a grooming map on what has been done.

UPDATE 1/19/21: Nate N did some grooming today. It’s still a little soft but we have a good track set. What is groomed: Escalator, Svelte, Sisyphus, Watkins, Shimmer, Overlook, Jigsaw Milk Run, Salamander, part of Droopy, Pond Rd. Plus a width swath on the ballfield.

UPDATE 1/16/21: It’s a soft and slushy weekend. We would appreciate folks to stay off the single track trails so they don’t form slushy ruts that freeze. Thank you.

UPDATE 1/13/2021: Park is riding super currently. We are asking 4″ or wider tires please. Please leave a donation in Tinman that will go toward our cool trail system. Thank you.

UPDATE 12/25/20: Christmas morning it is 55 degrees and raining out. We are very much hoping not to lose all our snow today. Once things freeze back up again and we get some snow Nate will continue to groom.

Nate N has started to groom in the park. We had so much snow last week that it was really hard for Snowdog to get through it. Waiting now for snow to compact and get some moisture in it so it will pack down. The plan is to try and get the trails highlighted in red groomed before the rain shows up on Christmas Eve. We’re hoping to get a solid base down and that it won’t all melt!

Snowshoers and skiers you could help us out by following these highlighted trails. It will make it easier for Snowdog .

Thank you.

Education, Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, Observations, Trail Safety, Trail Updates, Uncategorized, Video, Volunteering

Why we leave leaves

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Why we do not remove leaves there are several reasons. One we move all hard earned dirt by hand in 5 gallon buckets and leaf blowers blow all that dirt off the trail tread. Second the ground up leaves will actually help hold our dirt on the trails and protects the trail tread. Plus freeze/thaw cycles the leaves help hold our trail tread in place and not get sucked up on boots or tires.

We are not blessed like other local trail systems that have an abundance of dirt. Pine Hill Park is not one of those areas.

We know leaves are slippery especially when wet but with the traffic the park is seeing currently the leaves will get ground up quickly.

Thank you for understanding.

Here is a great video on why we leave leaves.

Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, PHP in the News, Pine Hill Partnership, Trail Updates, Trail Work, Volunteering

WE’RE DIGGING IN !

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Update October 28, 2020: We received a check from IMBA/Shimano for $2300. to help pay for the VYCC crew we had in the park the end of July. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this fund.

We have been selected as one of 10 recipients of the IMBA Dig In Grant program. With the support of Shimano, IMBA is doing a grant to pay for trail building at Pine Hill Park. Read the announcement from IMBA here.

This program will help us raise money needed for the VT Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC) to come in at the end of July and help finish off a couple of trails in the park that volunteers have been working on. (map below)

Thanks to COVID-19, large volunteer groups are not happening in 2020. VYCC will be a big help, but we will have to pay for their services.

Our newest trail, Milk Run, was started in 2018 with the help of volunteers. At the end of July we are having VYCC come in and hope to use their time to get all the organic material off so that we can open the trail up to the top of Upper Halfpipe. This is about 1500′ of organic top layer to be removed.

DONATE

Why remove organic in Pine Hill Park? We have found for long term sustainability, our trails hold up better by removing it early. Early on in our learning process of building trails we would do a ‘rake and ride’. Those trails now have been rebuilt at least once if not twice.

If you’d like to help us with this effort, please consider making a donation here. As always, thank you for your support!

Education, Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, Observations, Pine Hill Partnership, Trail Updates, Trail Work, Uncategorized, Volunteering

Trail build out

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We are reaching our limits of trails in Pine Hill Park. We currently have 17 miles. With Milk Run, Bone Spur and Maximum Capacity all adding about another mile and a half we will have reached our limit for density of trails inside Pine Hill Park.

This is a rough map of where Milk Run is completed in 2018, 2019. 2020 we hope to break open the rest of Milk Run with a VT Youth Conservation Corp crew in July. They are a paid crew so we are trying to raise money to cover this expense.

Bone Spur will be a pretty bony section off Milk Run.

Maximum Capacity will branch off Milk Run and head towards Intersection 20. This will be a fun trail utilizing trail contours.

If you are able to donate money to help defray the cost of a VYCC crew it would be greatly appreciated. We are applying for multiple grants-we have been turned by a couple and are patiently waiting to hear on other applications. https://pinehillpartnership.org/donate-2/

Fat Biking, Hikes, Mountain Biking, Trail Running, Trail Updates

Park is now open for bikes

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UPDATE MAY 2nd: We are open for bikes if you are driving less than 10 miles.

Please keep your social distance from others, step off the trail for others to pass. Studies are now show hiking, riding spacing should be 15′ or more as droplets be suspended for quite sometime.

We have not changed the heading on TrailHUB because as soon as we do an email blast will go out to over 14,000 followers. We do not need that information to get blasted out there.

We are all volunteers that work in the park. Please leave a donation in Tinman or make a donation via our webpage or snail mail. We are trying to raise money to bring a VYCC crew in to help replace our large volunteer groups this year that won’t be working in the park due to COVID-19 restrictions. https://pinehillpartnership.org/volunteer/

DOGS MUST BE LEASHED at all times. Animal control officer is patrolling the park.

UPDATE APRIL 24th: Trails are in good shape to ride. Carriage Trail is wet out past the powerline heading to Proctor. The big outer loop on Redfield trails is wet too. We would prefer folks not to ride those trails.

Please remember to keep your social distance from others, step way off to the sides of the trails . Studies are now show hiking, riding spacing should be 15′ or more as droplets be suspended for quite sometime.

DOGS MUST BE LEASHED please!

We will not be posting this on social media or updating TrailHUB. TrailHUB will still show closed to the right of your screen and it will stay that way for a little while.

UPDATE APRIL 10th: Trails are in good shape. It is currently snowing and it is slowly sticking to the ground so not sure what conditions will be like first thing Saturday 4/11. Please remember to keep your social distance from others, step way off to the sides of the trails . Studies are now show hiking, riding spacing should be 15′ or more as droplets be suspended for quite sometime. DOGS MUST BE LEASHED please! Please read March 27th update on why TrailHUB is not updated. Thank you.

UPDATE APRIL 4th: Trails are in good shape. We are asking folks to respect the social distancing and encourage all users to keep 6′ apart. DOGS MUST BE LEASHED at all times. Please leave a donation in Tinman for future trail work. Thank you.

UPDATE MARCH 27th: Trails are officially open for bikes. We will not be posting this on social media or updating TrailHUB. TrailHUB will still show closed to the right of your screen and it will stay that way for a little while. If the park is super wet we’re asking folks to be smart about riding. Remember your social distancing too. There are a lot of pedestrians in the park so please be courteous. Please have your dog leashed at all times. Thank you for your patience.

UPDATE MARCH 25th: Trails are drying out nicely until we picked up 4″ of snow late Monday. As of late Wednesday there is still some snow on the ground so trails are soft. We need to have the snow melt completely then a few more days to dry everything out before we open to bikes. Please be patient.

When the trails do open it will be a quiet opening. TrailHUB will still show closed. If we change from closed to open an alert will go out to about 24,000 people. Needless to say we do not need to broadcast this to 24,000 people that park trails are open.

Exit Strategy, Lichen Rock and the steep hill on Droopy will be closed until they really dry out late spring.

We are currently hoping to hold our community work day Saturday, April 25th, 9AM at the front entrance.

At this point in time we are not sure about our volunteer groups coming this summer. We know Exit Strategy needs some TLC but as of now we’re not sure how it will be repaired at this point in time.

We are still hoping VYCC will be in this fall but we need to raise $15,000 for a two week crew. If you have not renewed your membership please do and we will take contributions of any amount which are tax deductible. We are applying for grants to help offset this cost but we could use your help.

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Well, folks it’s that time of year with the freeze/thaw cycles. We’re asking folks not to ride any type of bike with the the weather cycles we are currently experiencing. The trails are not freezing at night.

Someone decided to ride one of those warm 50+ degree days and basically destroyed part of Escalator. Our volunteers do not need extra work by repairing the ruts left by this one person who thought the sign at the front entrance did not apply to them.

We know folks are jonesing to ride but please be patient and not create more work for the volunteers who already have enough to do this year.