Event Announcement!

The Birds of a Feather Music & Nature Festival is a daylong event, featuring bands, nature workshops, guided trail hikes, craft vendors, food trucks and so much more! Bands will play throughout the day and include national acts such as Sean Rowe, The Rustic Overtones, and Sam James. SMBA is thrilled to participate in this event. We will lead a series of group rides through Grafton Lake State Park. See below for more information about the rides.

Why Participate?

100% of the proceeds go to support the nearby Berkshire Bird Paradise, a bird sanctuary for disabled and injured birds. They strive to give them a safe haven to live thrive and rehabilitate as best they can. They are dedicated to educating people to recognize the beauty of Nature’s world, which surrounds our busy lives. We are all part of the web of life and all life is precious.

Restore Rensselaer County’s music festival tradition dating back to the days of the Fox Hollow Folk Festival (1966-1980). The intention is to make this an annual event that supports the local summer tourism economy.

If you’d like to learn more about the event, follow these recent links:

• BIRDS OF A FEATHER MUSIC & NATURE FESTIVAL – SAT SEP 9TH, 2017
• Sean Rowe to perform at ‘Birds of a Feather’ music fest at Grafton
• Eventbrite

For additional information about the festival, please email info@birdsofafeatherfestival.com.

About The Rides

SMBA will lead a series of group rides. The MTB rides will start at 10am from the Long Pond beach area. We will break into a few groups based on ability & pace.

• Ridin’ Rowdy – A 3+ hour group ride. Expect a fast pace and technical terrain. This ride will be similar to our other monthly Ridin’ Rowdy group rides.
• Advanced – A ~2 hour group ride which will feature technical terrain and an intermediate pace.
• Skills! – A ~2 hour group ride which will focus on learning good MTB techniques. This ride will cover less distance and will instead focus on “sessioning” small pieces of technical terrain to help newer riders hone their skills and gain confidence on the rough stuff.

Join us for our next Ridin’ Rowdy event at Beebe Hill on August 27, 2017. We will meet at the Fog Hill Parking Lot on Route 5 at 10:00 AM.  Be prepared to ride at 10:15 (ish).

The Beebe Hill trail network is a network of technical trails near Austerlitz, NY, maintained by the CCMBA. The route taken will depend on the group, trail, and weather conditions. If we have enough participants we will break into two groups (fast and faster). Both rides will ride similarly technical terrain. One group will breathe harder. You should ride more, so come out and ride rowdy with us on August 27th.

We will eat lunch after the ride.

Rowdy Details:

• Date: August 27, 2017
• Time: 10:00 AM
• Parking Location: Fog Hill Parking Lot (Route 5)
  • There is a smaller parking lot called the Osmer Parking lot across the Highway from Fog Hill. If Fog Hill is full, please park in this alternative lot, but meet us in the Fog Hill Parking Lot for the ride.
• Trail System: Beebe Hill

To RSVP, ask questions, or generally discuss anything MTB related, send an email to andy.choens@gmail.com.

Yesterday, a few of us hiked into Pittstown for an impromptu trail day instead of a weekly group ride. Over-all, the Pittstown trails handled the rain well and we made some improvements/repairs where we could.

In addition to the erosion wrought by nature, we found some pretty deep ruts. This has been a wet summer, but please don’t ride the trails when they are soft. We also recommend avoiding high-speed creek crossings. They are all washed out and that old line you had . . . is gone.

If mother nature cooperates, we will get back into the weekly group ride groove starting next Wednesday at 6:00.Until then – have fun!

Join us on July 30th for a 2+ hour group ride on the flow-tastic Elm Ridge trails in Windham, NY. We will meet at the Elm Ridge Parking Lot at 10:00 AM.  Expect to leave the parking lot at roughly 10:15.

The Elm Ridge trail network is a series of fast and often technical trails just outside of Windham, NY in the beautiful Catskill mountains. Exact route taken will depend on the group and trail / weather conditions. If we have enough participants we will have two groups (fast and faster). Both rides will ride similar technical terrain. These trails deserve to be ridden more, so come out and Ride Rowdy with SMBA on July 30th.

We will eat in town after the ride at a local deli. Bring your appetite! These sandwiches are HUGE.

Rowdy Details:

• Date: July 30, 2017
• Time: 10:00 AM
• Parking Location: Elm Ridge Parking Lot
• Trail System: Elm Ridge (Trail Forks Map)
• Facebook Announcement

To RSVP, ask questions, or generally discuss anything MTB related, send an email to andy.choens@gmail.com.