Vermont Sports July, 2018 by AddisonPress

RAFTING LAKE CHAMPLAIN | RIDING SLATE VALLEY | SAILING TO HEAL

VERMONT

SPORTS

New Englandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Outdoor Magazine

JULY 2018

EXPLORE TRAILS

VT 's New & Future

GRAVEL

10 great RIDES

FAVORITE CENTURIES

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BE YOU AGAIN. THE RIGHT SPORTS MEDICINE PHYSICIAN CAN HELP. Our physicians provide comprehensive sports medicine care, no matter how complex the injury. Patients receive a course of treatment that’s ideally suited for them, built around the most advanced options available—whether operative, non-operative or a combination of both. So, if you live in the Burlington area, make an appointment with The University of Vermont Health Network’s sports medicine specialists at The UVM Medical Center. To make an appointment, call (802) 448-5445.

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5 The Start

SPORTS

Lost in Vermont

MATERIAL DUE DATE April 19, 2017

Sometimes getting lost is the best thing you can do.

INSERTION DATEOUTDOOR MAGAZINE NEW ENGLAND’S May 2017 through March/April 2018

6 Great Outdoors

The Great Gravel Rides

PUB(S) ON THE COVER: Vermont Sports MagEmily Johnson and BUILT AT 100% TRIM 10" x 12.75"

Vermont has great gravel rides and these 10 are not to miss.

Forrest Twombly riding near Hancock, VT. Photo by Brian Mohr/ EmberPhoto

10 News Briefs

Five favorite centuries, a new mountain bike park, ski areas change hands and more.

LIVE

8" x 10.75" PUBLISHER

Angelo Lynn - publisher@vtsports.com

BLEED

15 Trail Tales

.125" EDITOR/CO-PUBLISHER

Lisa Lynn - lisa.lynn@vtsports.com

Slate Valley Etches New Trails

COLOR

ASSISTANT EDITOR 4C

Abagael Giles abagael@vtsports.com QUESTIONS CALL

EDITORIAL INTERN 251.476.2507

There's a growing network of trails and gravel routes near Poultney.

DESIGN & PRODUCTION

Courtney Haupt

Rylee Ewald editor@vtsports.com

At Healing Winds, sailing on Lake Champlain takes on new power.

MEDICAL ADVISORY BOARD

Dr. Nathan Endres, Dr. David Lisle, Dr. James Slauterbeck —University of Vermont Robert Larner College of Medicine; Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation; Jamie Sheahan, M.S., R.D.

CONTRIBUTORS

Feature

A Vision for Velomont

Brian Mohr, Phyl Newbeck, Leath Tonino

Imagine riding from Killington to Morrisville mainly on singletrack bike trails. These groups want to make it happen.

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Featured Athlete

Flight School

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Calef Letorney swears paragliding is not just for adrenaline junkies.

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26 Gear

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Gravel Gear & More

Vermont Sports is independently owned and operated by Addison Press Inc., 58 Maple Street, Middlebury, Vt. 05753. It is published 9 times per year. Established in 1990. Vermont Sports subscriptions in the U.S.: one year $25. Canada: (US funds), please add $5 per year postage. Email lisar@addisonindependent.com

Calendar

Race & Event Guide

34 Endgame

Rediscovering Lake Champlain

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Feature

More Than a Boat Ride

Shawn Braley

Reflections from a 100-mile journey on a homemade raft. Suzanne Johnson wants to get those who need it most out on the lake. See her story on p. 17. Photo Whit Wales

ADVERTISERS! The deadline for the August issue of Vermont Sports is July 18. Contact ads@vtsports.com today to reserve your space!

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 3

AUGUST 11, 2018

RIDE OR RUN

to benefit the Vermont Foodbank

Celebrate at the P2P Festival with live music from the Adam Ezra Group, the Family Fun Zone, food trucks, and plenty of Harpoon beer!

MOUNT ASCUTNEY BROWNSVILLE, VERMONT REGISTER NOW AND HELP FIGHT HUNGER.

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THE START

LOST IN VERMONT

DON’T CURSE THOSE DIRT ROADS. EXPLORE THEM.

Riding the backroads of the Northeast Kingdom. Photo courtesy Rasputitsa.

here was one small sign at the

riding Vermont’s old roads and logging

four-way intersection and it was in

trails is becoming a thing. What the state’s

Spanish. I don’t speak Spanish. Nor

department of transportation might consider

does Angelo. I squinted at the map.

“I’m pretty sure we go right here,” I said.

penchant for getting lost, Vermont’s network

“I’m pretty sure we go straight,” he said.

of unimproved and dirt roads is gold that’s

After five minutes of arguing, we turned

waiting to be mined.

right, our skinny-tire road bikes whirred

over the smooth pavement for about a mile,

grueling dirt ride in the Northeast Kingdom

then over cobblestones of a medieval village

in, yes, April) are drawing upward of 900

and on a dirt road leading towards farmland.

riders (that’s more than most century rides

That’s when Angelo looked at me: “You sure

in the state) is testament to the growing

this is the right way?”

popularity of gravel rides. On page 8, we’ve

“I’m pretty sure it will turn back

listed just 10 of our favorites.

to pavement soon,” I said, somewhat

doubtfully. It did, but not for 10 miles, not

begin to learn new routes. Another is a

before the road narrowed to what we might

simple but brilliant idea that Slate Valley

call a double track, then a single track,

Trails in Poultney has pursued. Slate

buried deep in shoulder-high grasses and

Valley Trails is positioning itself as a riding

poppies, with not a road or a car in sight.

destination suitable for bikes of any tire

SUMMER ADVENTURES! Stop by for hooch before you go.

Brewery opens every day at 11:30AM for LUNCH + SUPPER

The fact that events such as Rasputitsa (a

Vt Sports Summer 2018 .qxp_Layout 1 6/21/18 11:02 AM Page 1

That was the best ride of the week.

width. The group has mapped out more than 16 dirt road rides in the area, as well as

Vermont mapped by a GPS or in a Gazetteer

mountain bike trails. What if every Vermont

knows this scene well. That moment when

Mountain Biking Association or road riding

your cell phone stops working, the road goes

group started to do that? As road bikes and

to Class IV, then basically becomes a trail

mountain bikes get closer to each other, why

and you’re faced with two options: pursue or

keep these groups separate?

backtrack.

fresh.dirt.

These rides and races are one way to

Anyone who has ever followed a route in

IT’S TIME FOR TAKE US WITHADVENTURES! YOU ON ALL YOUR SUMMER

a liability, for cyclists with 35 mm tires and a

While it’s easy to stick to your favorite

I’m a pursuer, by nature. These moments,

loops, as John Atkinson points out in "The

the times of getting completely lost on a back

Vision for Velomont," “People don’t just want

road, are one of the things I love the most

to ride circles, they want to go from point

about exploring by bike. These are the rides

A to point B.” Already, mountain bikers are

where I’ve come across pristine, hidden

exploring routes that link Vermont’s various

swimming holes and hill farms with views

mountain bike trail networks and setting

that make you suck in your breath. I’ve met

out to create a trail, Velomont, that would

old farmers who have been kind enough to

connect them.

drive miles out of their way to show me the

right road back and others who have offered

some of the most glorious June weather I can

a water refill.

remember. The fields were a brilliant green,

In Vermont, we are blessed with more

the roads were dry and quiet and bugs were

miles of dirt roads than paved ones. Yet, we

remarkably inactive. Gazing at a map and

hardly know half of them.

picking out a few thin lines that looked like

With the rise of the gravel bike

roads, I turned to Angelo. “Hey, next year, we

(essentially, a road bike with more relaxed

don’t have to go to Barcelona to get lost. We

geometry and fatter tires) and an explosion

can do it right here.”

We returned from our trip to Spain to

- Multi-year buildout with the experts from Sinuosity: Flowing TrailsTM - 6 miles of lift-served flow trails planned, pump tracks, and 15 miles of tech, xc, and enduro - DH-specific rentals and gear - Certified instructors with fundamental, kids, and women’s specific programming - World-class lodging, craft beers and farm to table fare ride with us @ mtbS6.com

—Lisa Lynn, Editor

of gravel grinder races around the state,

www.mtbS6.com

www.woodstockinn.com

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 5

GREAT OUTDOORS

The Vermont Overland is.. just that. Photo by Ryan Dunn

6 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

THE GREAT GRAVEL RIDES

WITH MORE MILES OF DIRT ROADS THAN PAVED ONES, VERMONT HAS BECOME GROUND ZERO FOR THE GRAVEL GRINDING REVOLUTION WITH NEW RIDES AND RACES POPPING UP THIS SUMMER.

n the beginning of the season there

of riding including Ned Overend, and

farm roads to sample local cheeses,

adds a different flavor to races. “It builds

was Rasputitsa. It was in April and

selling out with more than 500 riders in

apples and other produce or the Grafton

the whole tribe aspect. Gravel rides are

it was brutal.

2017.

Cheddar Grater, which, you guessed it,

not as competitive, and they allow you

The gravel grinder self-describes

also has cheese stops.

to build relationships with other people

as a “psychotic 40-mile, insane, drop-

extent, after D2R2, which started in 1992

along the way,” he says.

to-your-knees-and-cry sufferfest with

as a dirt loop ride from Deerfield, Mass.,

coach at Killington Mountain School,

In Vermont, gravel rides are also

an absurd section so difficult that

coursing up through the quiet roads of

saw what fellow KMS coach and friend

great ways to get away from the traffic

people won’t believe your stories, called

southern Vermont. It evolved into an

Peter Vollers had done with the Vermont

and tour the hills and hollows. While

Cyberia.”

organized randonee ride in 2005 and

Overland and started the RAS Ride, a

the state has 7,151 miles of paved roads

Rasputitsa, which started in 2013,

in 2017 drew close to 1,500 cyclists to

42-mile gravel ride over the dirt roads

and highways, there are 8,750 miles of

had close to 1,300 entrants this year and

ride seven, non-competitive routes that

and trails around Peru, Vermont as a

dirt roads (6,008 of which are gravel).

drew 992 people to complete 45-miles

range from a 12-mile family ride to a hilly

way to raise awareness of the rare genetic

The towns of Danville, Barnard, Bethel,

of muddy, gravel roads in the Northeast

180-kilometer challenge.

disease RASopathy that Bailey’s son,

Chester and Washington each boast

Kingdom.

Shane, was born with.

more than 80 miles of unpaved routes.

Both races were modeled, to a certain

Increasingly, gravel races and rides

Jack Bailey, the men’s head alpine

Then there is the Vermont Overland,

on dirt roads are popping up around

a cross-country adventure in August that

Vermont, and not just in the spring or fall.

came

“My inspiration for the RAS Ride Vermont

because of all the great dirt roads,” says

takes drop-bar gravel and cyclocross

They range from ride-it-if-you-can races

Overland race,” Bailey said. “Peter led the

Val Cyr. A cyclocross racer from Rhode

riders bushwhacking through a mixture

such as Peter Voller’s Vermont Overland

way in changing the way people ride on

Island and former member of University

of pave, what could barely be described

(which continues to mix national talent

dirt versus pavement.”

of Vermont’s cycling team, she’s raced in

as class IV roads and trails, with 6,000

in road racing, mountain biking and

“Jack has inspired me too,” notes

Rasputitsa, the Overland and, this past

feet of climbing over 45 miles. That race

cyclocross), to leisurely scenic rides such

Vollers, who now shares the proceeds of

June, the Irreverent Ride. “That was the

has grown as well, going from 248 riders

as the Tour de Farms, where you can

his race with area charities.

most fun and hardest I’ve ever done,” she

in 2014, to attracting some of the legends

pause along some of Addison County’s

says of Irreverent. The ride took her from

from

Peter

Vollers’

Gravel riding, Vollers will tell you,

“I basically moved back to Vermont

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 7

Killington Mountain School riders line up for the start of the RAS Adventure Ride Photo by Jack Bailey

Mad River Glen over Braintree Gap where,

rides growing. “People want to get off the

NPD group. While there’s no specific category

gravel routes, if you ride one of these 10 event

Cyr says, “I was basically walking my bike

road and explore the backcountry routes in

for “gravel grinders" the roadbike “other” and

you’ll find routes in new parts of the state.

up a forest trail with a 20-degree incline.

Vermont. More than half the bikes we are

“cyclocross” (categories which include multi-

Fortunately, they were handing out whiskey

seeing sold now are gravel bikes, not road

surface drop bar bikes) more than doubled,

Eds note: See our Gear column (p. 26) for

shots at the top.” The ride, which only about

rides.”

with $28.9 million in wholesale sales in the

a bike and items that will make your gravel

30 percent finish, took her 14 hours. She

first quarter of 2018, up from $10.1 million

ride even better. For more rides and event

loved it.

is a now a thing, you need only look at the

last year.

details, check the Calendar, page 27.

recent report on national bike sales from the

Cyr, who works at Ski Rack, sees gravel

If you had any doubt that gravel grinding

While there’s no single source for great

10 GREAT SUMMER GRAVEL GRINDERS

July 22: Glacier Grinder, Killington

Sept. 16: Tour de Farms, Vergennes

The fact that this race is put on by The Endurance

As much a moveable feast as a bike tour, the 30 mile

Society should be a hint that the 40 miles and 4,400

route takes you on quiet dirt roads to sample the harvest

vertical feet of climbing won’t be a walk in the park.

from as many as 30 of Addison County’s top farms. And

Grab your gravel bike, mountain bike or throw some

Endurancesociety.org

if you decide to shop along the way, a sag wagon/Farm Van will bring your purchases in a cooler back to the

wider tires on your road ride and get ready to ride some of the most beautiful routes in the state.

—L.L.

Aug 26: The Overland, Woodstock

start. Acornvt.org

The most gravelly (read: the terrain is going to be tough) June 30: RAS Adventure Ride, Wild Wings

of all gravel grinders, the Overland takes riders on 45

Sept. 23, West Hill Grinder, Putney

Forty-two miles and 4,000 vertical feet of climbing in

miles of “adventure” racing over the hills and through

Starting at High Meadows Farm, in Putney, VT.

either an open, junior or “guided” classic, no-drop ride.

the woods of central Vermont with eight pave sectors.

Adventurous from 20 to 46 miles take you across

Support4shane.com

Vermontoverland.com

gaps and wind through the scenic towns of Putney,

July 13: The Dirty Project (a.k.a. The Dirty Prouty),

Sept. 1: Redemption, Brownington

year, the ride raises money for the Windmill Hill Pinnacle

Hartford, VT

If you’re not familiar with the quiet roads in the

Association. Westhillshop.com

Limited to 120 riders and with a fundraising minimum

northeastern part of the state, the folks who brought you

of $100 to benefit the Norris Cotton Cancer Research

Rasputitsa give you another chance to discover them;

Oct. 13, Peacham Fall Fondo, Peacham

Center, this 102-mile ride was the dirt-road, Vermont

this time, in an unsupported race. Yes, it’s a race: and

When he’s not training in Nice to ride with his pro cycling

“badass” alternative to New Hampshire’s famed Prouty

you can ride 50 or 100 miles. Rasputitsagravel.com

team and riding the Giro d’Italia or Spain’s Vuelta, Ian

Dummerston, Brookline and Westminster. In its second

Boswell lives in Peacham. This year, you can ride

century ride. Thedirtyproject.com Sept. 9: Cabot Ride the Ridges, Cabot

with him as he’ll be riding the Peacham Fall Fondo,

July 21: Raid Lamoille, Craftsbury

There’s everything from 10K to 100k routes to ride as

covering 50 miles of backroads during peak foliage.

In its sixth year, this ride (it’s not a race) moves to

you tour through north central Vermont with a gourmet

Peachamfallfondo.com

Craftsbury where you can do either 50 or 25 miles, but

feast of Jasper Hill and Vermont Creamery cheeses,

still ends with beer from The Alchemist in Stowe and

Kingdom Creamery ice cream and wood fired pizza at

food from the Craftsbury General Store. Raidlamoille.com

the finish. Ridetheridges.net

8 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 9

NEWS BRIEFS SUICIDE SIX GOES DOWNHILL On July 13, Vermont will get yet another new downhill mountain bike park when Suicide Six Ski Area hosts a soft opening for its new Elemental Bike Park. Riders will have access to the first three miles of a planned larger bike park starting in July. “We’ll start out with blue, flowy trails,” said Suicide Six’s Nick Mahood, “with some jumps and small features.” The trails were built by Morrisville, Vt.based trail builder Sinuosity. Another three miles of more challenging trail with big descents and jump lines have been designed, along with two pump tracks, a strider park for kids and a skills development area. A season’s pass to The Elemental Bike Park and neighboring Mt. Peg cross country trails will cost $149 per adult and $99 per junior or senior citizen.

RE-ROUTING THE LONG TRAIL On May 25, the Green Mountain Club opened a newly relocated section of the Long Trail through Smuggler’s Notch. The mile-long section of new trail is Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant, with a wheelchair- and stroller-accessible boardwalk that starts at Barnes Camp Visitor Center on Route 108. Starting this summer, the Long Trail north and south of Smuggler’s Notch will be accessible via the Barnes Camp parking lot. The trail relocation shifts Long Trail traffic away from the steep, slippery and highly eroded section north of the Notch to Sterling Pond. The new trail will bring hikers along a hillside, taking

One of the best views of Smuggler's Notch, from the new boardwalk. Photo courtesy Green Mountain Club

a more gradual and sustainable route up Madonna Mountain. “The relocation will move the Long Trail closer to its original route through Smuggler’s Notch,” said Green Mountain Club Executive Director Mike Debonis. For those who loved the steep, exposed bedrock on the original trail that led past the Elephant’s Head to Sterling Pond, the Green Mountain Club will continue to maintain the route.

OKEMO IS FULLY EPIC On June 4, Vail Resorts announced that it will acquire Triple Peaks, the company that owns Ludlow’s Okemo Mountain Resort, New Hampshire’s Mount Sunapee Resort and Colorado’s Crested Butte Mountain Resort. The resorts will be included in the 20182019 Epic Pass upon the deal’s closing, which is slated to happen this summer. According to Bonnie MacPherson, Director of Public Relations for Okemo

Mountain Resort, Vail Resorts will honor 2018/2019 Okemo season passes but says: “if an Okemo season passholder wants to transition the Okemo Pass they purchased to an Epic Pass, Vail Resorts is planning to offer that opportunity after the sale has closed, and they will charge or refund money accordingly.” A full Epic Pass goes for $899 for the 2018-2019 season and includes unlimited skiing at Stowe Mountain Resort, along with 17 other resorts across North America.

SOLD: MAPLE VALLEY SKI AREA Dummerston’s Maple Valley Ski Area also has a new owner. After sitting closed and on the market for 18 years, the 375-acre property was purchased for $745,000 on May 23 by Connecticutbased Sugar Mountain Holdings. The company has declined so far to offer details about its plans for the former ski area.

500 MILES, 5 FAVORITE VERMONT CENTURIES It’s century season and from now until the end of September you can ride 100 miles in virtually any part of the state. And if you do want to discover new parts of Vermont, here are our five favorite ways to do so. 1) For a chance to ride across Green’s toughest gaps in (Lincoln, Appalachian, Middlebury and

Brandon),

sign

for

the

Vermont Gran Fondo (June 30). 2) The legendary Prouty ride starts in New Hampshire but has two options this year, a 100-mile Vermont ride (July 13) or the classic Prouty loop Thumbs up during the century portion of the Vermont Challenge, out of Stratton.

10 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

Photo courtesy VT Challenge.

(July 14) which goes from Hanover

The ski area operated during the winter from 1963 to 1999. The ski area’s website boasts that “most of the local population under the age of 30 learned to ski here.”

COLCHESTER CAUSEWAY IS BACK IN ACTION On June 5, Burlington-based nonprofit Local Motion announced it will resume operation of its bike ferry upon completion of scheduled renovations to the Colchester Causeway in early July. The causeway trail and bike ferry were closed starting May 18 due to damage from a May 5 wind storm. Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) will execute and pay for the repairs. According to VTrans Project Manager Joel Perrigo, the construction cost estimate as of press time was $350,000. Federal grants will cover 80 percent of the cost of repairs.

up the Connecticut River, through New Hampshire and then crosses the Connecticut River in Wells to head back south in Vermont. 3) Hands down, The Vermont Challenge (July 16-19) is the best way to tour the roads and villages of the southwestern part of the state. Try the three-day tour or just ride the century. 4) Starting in West Windsor, the VSECU Point to Point (Aug. 11) loops the hilly terrain of central Vermont, cruising through scenic villages such as Woodstock, Strafford and Barnard. 5) The Kelly Brush Ride (Sept. 8) rolls past Lake Champlain and farmland on a route that goes from Middlebury north to Charlotte. For details, see Calendar.

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TRAIL TALES

ETCHED IN SLATE VALLEY IN JUST THREE YEARS, A GROWING NETWORK OF SINGLETRACK MOUNTAIN BIKE TRAILS AND GRAVEL ROUTES HAS BEEN CARVED INTO THE HISTORIC LANDSCAPE NEAR POULTNEY. BY CONNOR W. DAVIS | PHOTOS BY CHUCK HEIFER

’m pedaling up a dirt road in Poultney,

a quiet town in southwestern Vermont

ways, one of which is an emphasized shift

The Slate Valley has evolved in many

perched along the New York border. The

towards outdoor recreation. Recently, a

air is just right: warm, but not too warm;

valiant effort has been made to reimagine the

humid, but not too humid. Farms wait

unique and attractive landscape.

around each bend in the road—scattered

On my May ride, I’m joined by Tim

with cows, sheep, goats, chickens and the

Johnson, one of the hardworking locals

occasional herd of deer. The sun flickers

behind this movement. Johnson is the

through tree branches like an old lantern as

president of Slate Valley Trails, a nonprofit

it lowers deeper and deeper into the distance.

founded in 2015 with three goals: “Build

community

Underneath my revolving tires I notice

among

local

individuals,

the bright brown dirt is, now and then,

organizations and businesses; support the

accompanied by an almost-black substance.

local economy by promoting the region as a

This substance also appears on the sides

place to visit, with improved access to trails;

of the road, and I roll past a pile of it every

and encourage the positive health benefits

minute or so, confused. In all my years as a

of being active outdoors.” This group has

Vermonter, I’ve never seen anything like it. Then I remember: I’m not just in any valley; I’m in the Slate Valley.

Pro trailbuilders and volunteers have created a mountain bike network of singletrack, flowing trails at Endless Brook (top) . At the top, stop for a rest and a view of Lake St. Catherine.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s,

worked tirelessly, and the results are, without a doubt, showing. “It’s really exciting,” says Johnson, a tall man touting a large, black beard with

ambitious Vermonters and immigrants from

wherever they could, typically crafting it into

continue to work in the slate industry, but

a giant smile tucked underneath. “When I

all over Europe took advantage of Poultney’s

roof shingles, and making a living in doing

like many trades, this one has diminished

think about cycling and outdoor activities in

rich slate deposits—mining the resource

so. A handful of Poultney-based groups

over the years.

general, I think about how we can get more

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 13

people engaged—particularly at the entry level. What I appreciate about this area is that we have those possibilities. We have Lake Catherine State Park, Green Mountain College, and fantastic topography fit for all levels of expertise.” The Slate Valley trails are all about diversity of terrain. On one end of the spectrum, the area’s endless backroads provide a wide array of scenic routes known as the Gravel Ride Network. Slate Valley Trails has mapped out many of these rides (16 so far) for the public to easily navigate. Some rides are more moderate, as short as 8 miles, while others tip over the 50-mile mark and are characterized by more rigorous hills and terrain. Folks newer to biking can rent gear from local shops and embark on relaxing cruises and die-hard riders can pedal across the entire Valley—therein discovering an underrated and less-traveled pocket of Vermont.

Meanwhile, there’s a growing network

of top-notch single-track trails catering to adrenaline-chasers. Built mostly by hand, these trails exist thanks to local volunteers as well as two Vermont-based trail builders: Hardy Avery’s Sustainable Trail Works and Brooke Scatchard’s Sinuousity. At the Endless Brook zone, riders of all abilities can enjoy 7 miles of well-groomed trails that weave through lush woods just outside of Lake Saint Catherine State Park (make sure to go take a dip in the lake after riding there).

Down the road at the Delaney Woods

zone, in the town of Wells, 3.5 miles of slightly more challenging trails await—full of playful terrain shaded by hardwoods. Looking ahead to 2019, Slate Valley Trails intends to build 10 more miles of multi-use

You can ride one of Slate Valley's 16 gravel riding routes that cover more than 155 rural miles (top) in the morning and then hit the flow trails at Delaney Woods in the afternoon (left).

trails in East Poultney: the next chapter in the organization’s ongoing story.

“The Slate Valley Trails show off the

backyard fun potential here, and all around Vermont,” says Ryan Carr, who works in the Adventure Programming Department at

ran through Poultney and exported a

Green Mountain College. He’s also on this

large portion of the area’s slate. In place of

early-May ride with us, full of enthusiasm

the old rails, this long and straight trail—

and optimism for this growing recreation

perhaps Slate Valley Trails’ most famed

destination. “Our trails mix well-built, fast

gem—snakes between tall, strong trees and

singletrack, remote byways and country

rolling meadows full of sun-kissed grass. It’s

road cruises that invite everybody to come

a perfect representation of the change that’s

out,” he says.

taken place in Poultney and the perfect end

to our ride.

The amount of progress seen since Slate

Valley Trails’ founding three years ago is not

We pedal down the trail for miles,

by coincidence. It’s been earned through

conclude back in town, and say our goodbyes.

a wild amount of hard work, both indoors

It’s dark now. The breeze cools down and disintegrates the warm, humid air. The moon

and outdoors. The group has cooperated extensively with state officials, private

page for updates on weekly group rides).

These are both extremely valued people in

is nearly full, and the stars are emanating

landowners, and the Vermont Mountain

“We’re all volunteers. It’s not a job,”

my eyes, because if you’re willing to put in

into the night sky one by one. My love for

Bike Association. It has put forth countless

says Johnson, whose day job is owning and

time, that is just so awesome.”

Vermont has always been strong, but as I

hours

and

operating Johnson and Sons Bikeworks,

At the end of our gravel ride Johnson,

pack up the car and travel home—listening

cleaning up trails, spreading the word locally

just down the road in Hampton, N.Y. “We

Carr and I veer onto the D&H Rail Trail,

to the crackling public radio, reflecting on

and regionally and hosting events. (Speaking

see some people putting in 10 hours a week,

named after the 1,581-mile Delaware and

the bike ride in the Slate Valley—that love

of events, make sure to check their Facebook

and some people putting 10 hours a summer.

Hudson Railway that, once upon a time,

manages to grow, yet again.

acquiring

grants,

building

14 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

VERMONT’S OUTDOOR ADVENTURE CENTER One of the forces behind Slate Valley Trails, Tim Johnson also rents bikes out of his shop, Johnson and Sons Bikeworks, in nearby Hampton, N.Y.

A WEEKEND IN SLATE VALLEY The valley that stretches west of the Green Mountains and northeast of the Taconics is where much of Vermont’s slate was mined. Now it’s a quieter part of the state, often overlooked by tourists but home to a growing network of more than 20 miles of multi-use trails. Plan to spend a long day or stay overnight. There are gravel roads, singletrack and rail trails to ride. Camp out at Lake St. Catherine State Park. Cast a line in the lake or venture across the border to explore Granville and some of New York state's quieter towns.

RIDE & RUN Since 2015, Slate Valley Trails has built and marked a series of singletrack and double track trails along with 10 more miles of mountain bike trails that are slated to be done by this fall. Much of that work will be completed by Sustainable Trailworks' Hardy Avery (who helped develop Stowe’s Cady Falls, the Trapp trails, Perry Hill and many others). The best singletrack riding is out of Endless Brook (7 miles of trails east of Lake St. Catherine State Park) and Delaney Woods in Wells where 3.5 miles of purpose-built trails spill out near Little Pond. There are also more than 155 miles of gravel riding and 16 mapped routes. Start with Birdseye Views, a 22.4-miler. To see maps of both the dirt and gravel routes, or to connect with one of the regular Thursday group rides, visit slatevalleytrails.com. On July 8, join the Slate Valley crew for a summer social. For a different kind of riding, try the D&H Rail Trail (for a map, visit Traillink. com) which runs from Castleton

College nearly 20 miles south to Rupert. At present, the D&H is in two sections: the northern one peters out just south of Poultney where it hits the New York border, but a connection is in the works. The southern section begins in Granville, N.Y. and runs to West Rupert.

specializing in light weight boats & boards RENTALS SALES TOURS WWW.UMIAK.COM

CAMP & STAY Make a weekend of it and camp out at Lake St. Catherine State Park, just away from the Endless Brook trails. The 117-acre park is right on the lake, one of the largest and prettiest in the area, and has 50 tent and RV sites and 11 lean-tos. You can rent canoes or kayaks there too. The Bentley House is a classic B&B in Poultney and just across the New York border, head to Granville, N.Y. for the Station House B&B (located in an old train station) or the historic Sheldon Mansion.

EAT & DRINK Tot’s Diner is a classic in Poultney and the place to go for a hearty breakfast before hitting the trail. Sissy’s Kitchen in Middletown Springs is another great place for breakfast, to stop in from your gravel ride for a sandwich or to pick up a take-out dinner (try Thai curried salmon with lentil salad). For a real treat, book one of the Saturday farmtable dinners at Dancing Ewe Farm in North Granville. Owners Luisa and Jody Somers make most of the meal, including their Tuscan-style cheeses, from what they harvest on the farm, and serve it at long tables. For a brew and a burger try Tap's Tavern in Poultney or head to Granville to sample Slate Town Brewing.

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 15

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So Much More Than A

Boat Ride A LIFELONG SAILOR, SHELBURNEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S SUZANNE JOHNSON IS HELPING FAMILIES HEAL, ONE SAIL AT A TIME. BY ABAGAEL GILES

Healing Winds aims to deliver a day without cancer. In 2017, the non-profit took 432 people on free, three-hour private sails on Lake Champlain. Photo by Whit Wales

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 17

“I

had no idea what I was doing,” said Suzanne Johnson on a sunny day in June. The Shelburne

resident was sitting in the cockpit of the 39-foot O’Day sailboat, Gypsy Wind, reflecting back to four years ago, when she launched the nonprofit Healing Winds. As we spoke, volunteer captain Tom Peterson motored the vessel out of Burlington Harbor and onto the open lake for one of the nonprofit’s volunteer training sails. There was a gentle 5-knot breeze and a radiant view of the Adirondacks. Four

years

ago,

Johnson,

20-

year Vermont resident, was navigating treatment for breast cancer herself. She was a single mom with three kids. Before her diagnosis, she’d worked in real estate (she continued to do this while battling cancer), owned Tilley’s Café in Burlington, and even worked as a commercial sailing captain. A vibrant personality, Johnson (now 56) was used to skiing in the winter and being on the water in the summer. She found herself looking for a purpose while in recovery. “I had no hair at that point,” said the striking blonde. A therapist suggested she find a way to give back to other cancer patients through her talent for sailing. Johnson knew from her own experience that cancer wears on the people closest to the person diagnosed. Treatment and grief can drive families apart. She found that few if any nonprofits focus on helping the family of those affected by a cancer diagnosis. So she decided to start one. Within eight months, she had acquired a 28-foot O’Day called Jubilee as a gift from an acquaintance who was dying of cancer. She created an anonymous online nomination process, where anyone can nominate someone in their life who is dealing with a cancer diagnosis, whether a neighbor, a friend, a family member or themselves. She spent hours talking with nominees to schedule sails around their chemotherapy and treatment schedules.

Executive Director Suzanne Johnson (top) who started the nonprofit first earned her captain's license at age 22. Bottom left, the larger boat Healing Winds received as a donation in 2016. Bottom right: Nominee Nancy C. raises a glass on a sail. Photos by Whit Wales

“When you find yourself facing your own mortality with cancer and you are lucky enough to survive… you are also given the opportunity… to find ways to make a difference in people’s lives who are and were not as fortunate as you were,” Johnson said. And she launched Healing Winds.

oday, Healing Winds offers free threehour private sails to people dealing

with a cancer diagnosis and nine of their closest friends, family or caregivers. If we were on a live sail with a “nominee,” as volunteers and staff refer to their clients, the guest of honor would have been invited to take the helm once we passed outside

18 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

of Burlington’s breakwater. The nonprofit has been fueled by volunteers, donors and Johnson’s tenacity.

hoist and cleat the main sail.

that had taken a backseat to their illness.

Johnson found that being a cancer survivor

allowed

her

relate

Jose

Torres

and

his

wife

Lisa

and

participated in a sail with Healing Winds

And now it is expanding into a national

communicate with people who were in

on June 17, Father’s Day. Torres, who lives

charity with local chapters. What Johnson

the throes of treatment. That helped her

in Enfield, NH, was diagnosed with Stage

may have initially lacked in terms of

recover emotionally and physically from

4 gastric cancer in September 2017. He

nonprofit experience, she more than made

her own battle. “I’d call people in hospice

taught his three now-adult children to

up for in her knowledge of sailing, business

about their nomination, and they’d say,

sail. They joined him for his trip.

and her ability to network.

‘Thanks Suzanne, but I’m done. I’m tired

“Sailing is a great metaphor for life,”

coastal

of it being about me.’ And I’d say ‘Hey, I

said Torres. “We’re dealt the hand we’re

Connecticut, and her father, Frank Snyder

get it. But think of this as an opportunity

given. We use what Mother Nature offers

was a commodore of the New York Yacht

for you to say thank you to your caregivers

us, and we are at her mercy to get from

Club. Suzanne earned her commercial

and family and for them to make memories

point A to B.” His wife Lisa said she was

captain’s license at age 22. “I can’t

with you while you’re here,’” she said. She

grateful for the opportunity to relax as a

remember not being around big boats,” she

found normalcy was what patients craved,

family. “We have to think, could this be

said before jumping up to the mast to help

and an opportunity to rebuild relationships

the last Father’s Day? We have to make the

Johnson

grew

It also encouraged Johnson to think about how to expand to other states. When the nonprofit was recently offered a C&C (Cuthbertson & Cassian) 37-foot sailboat she decided that vessel would stay in Cape Ann, Mass., where Johnson has been in contact with several sailors interested in establishing a new Salem-based chapter of Healing Winds. “Our goal is to serve as many people as possible, while making sure that the branding is consistent,” says Johnson. She said she’s been contacted by sailing groups in 13 port cities across the country, including Chicago, San Francisco, New York and Baltimore, who have expressed interest in starting their own Healing Winds chapters. Donors have likewise popped up to offer boats. “Opening a new chapter on the ocean will open the gates for fundraising,” said Johnson. After the Boston area, she has her sights set on opening a chapter in the Southeast. “In Charleston or West Palm Beach you can sail 11 months out of the year. Here, it’s June through September, sometimes October.” The Torres family, with Lisa and Jose in the middle, after their Father's Day sail with Healing Winds.

Healing Winds is funded primarily

Photo by Abagael Giles

through donations. Johnson said the Healing Winds operates donated sailing vessels, which range in value from $35,000 to $50,000. Photo by

"Sailing is a great metaphor for life. We're dealt the hand we're given. We use what Mother Nature offers us, and we are at her mercy..."

Whit Wales

organization’s mission is easy to pitch. “People really want to get on board with this cause.” Locally, sailors have been eager to donate sails, labor and equipment. “I think that people want to give funds and see them stay in their community.” She’s been working with attorneys from Burlington-based law firm Downs Rachlin Martin to craft agreements that maintain a consistent brand, but allow each chapter to function as its own 501(c)(3) charity.

n the boat, Johnson is gregarious and warm. She leads with the effortless

confidence of someone who has been a ship’s captain for a long time. She spends a full day training each volunteer in how to be professional while connecting with

most of every day we have. It was like we

people who may have a terminal illness or

stopped the world for a minute to enjoy

an unknown amount of time to live. Lisa

each other.”

Torres said this diligence shows in the crew

Another participant, Karen Newman

members’ demeanors. “I was impressed,”

of South Burlington, said she was first

she said of the crew’s professionalism.

nominated to sail with Healing Winds

“We aim to deliver a day without

in 2016. She was battling Stage 4 cancer.

cancer,” said Johnson when we arrived

She’s a world-class triathlete accustomed

back at the dock. To do this effectively, she

to spending time outside. At the time,

says Healing Winds has to expand beyond

she couldn’t sit down. “Our lives are

Lake Champlain.

loud. When you’re in treatment, there are

Newman

machines whirring around you, ‘beep!’ It’s

says

she

supports

that

expansion. “To go from a hospital to a boat

time for your chemo! To have no noise but

so popular that they couldn’t accommodate

by her pitch, former NYYC commodore and

in a beautiful landscape, to have the wind

each other and the wind? That is freedom.”

all of the guests they wanted to. Johnson

America’s Cup racer Rives Potts offered to

in your hair and see the beauty around us…

Since 2014, Healing Winds has expanded

sought a bigger boat.

donate the O’Day 39-foot vessel Gypsy

to feel exhilarated again, people all over

its client base fourfold. During the first

In the spring of 2016, she took a trip to

Wind. The larger boat allowed the group to

the world need this. It is so much more

summer of operations, the nonprofit took

the New York Yacht Club, where she pitched

run 47 sails between June and October of

than a boat ride.”

110 people sailing. By 2016, the sails were

her idea to expand Healing Winds. Inspired

2017, taking out 432 people.

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 19

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20 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

Probably the most beautiful 26 miles, 385 yards you will ever run!

”This event is made possible, in part, through Warren County occupancy tax money regranted by the towns of Horicon and Chester”

A VISION FOR VELOMONT

IMAGINE RIDING FROM KILLINGTON TO MORRISVILLE, LARGELY ON SINGLETRACK THROUGH FORESTS AND MEADOWS. THE VELOMONT TRAIL COULD BE ALL THAT, AND MORE . BY LISA LYNN | PHOTOS BY BRIAN MOHR/EMBERPHOTO

Emily Johnson and Forrest Twombly riding near Hancock, VT.

ne hot day in September 2015,

ride. He stayed with them for five days.

Dave Lauzon, Ryan Thibault and

The group wove north out of Pittsfield

a couple of friends started their

on the Contest Trail (the first sanctioned

day on Killington Peak. They had no body

mountain bike trail in the Green Mountain

armor, no full-suspension downhill rigs.

National Forest), linking sections of

Still, they screamed down the mountain,

logging roads. From Rochester, the next

knobby tires kicking out dirt. At the base,

stop was Blueberry Lake.

"One of the best things about Velomont would be to link towns and trails."

they high-fived, got a bite to eat and a beer.

As Thibault and Lauzon wrote in

Then they set out on the real ride they’d

a chronicle of their ride published on

planned: a 150-mile trek north, largely on

Bikepacker.com: “our goal was to deviate

singletrack, bikepacking along the way.

course at every opportunity in order to

Camping at huts, staying with friends and

ride the best singletrack each network

checking into an inn, they took their time.

offered;

They stopped at swimming holes and hit

Mountain Trails), Rochester, Blueberry

up as much singletrack as they could along

Lake, Mad River Valley, Fayston, Perry

In August, 2015, Calvin Decker, a

the way.

Hill, Trapps, Stowe Town Loop, Sterling

former patroller at Killington, rode the VT

Valley, Mud City and Cadys Falls were all

from the Massachusetts border to Quebec

on our hit list.”

in a blistering 37 hours. As he wrote in a

From Killington, they rode a few miles of pavement then cut into an

Killington,

Pittsfield

(Green

The “XVT” is not an easy way to travel. It takes research to even find the route, and often some bushwhacking to ride it.

THE MOUNTAIN BIKERS’ LONG TRAIL The

XVT

Vermont

Bikepackers

Route, was originally pieced together by bikepackers Dave Blumenthal and Dave Tremblay with help from Tom Stuessy, executive

director

the

Vermont

Mountain Biking Association. As more and more riders have tackled the route, variations have evolved— spurs running up the western part of the state, an eastern route through the Northeast Kingdom,

the

“Super8”

route.

The

unsanctioned routes, which occasionally cross private land, have been kept quiet, in the way stashes of winter powder are kept quiet and shared with trusted friends. Now, thanks to work being done by

overgrown trail leading steeply up and

The riders were roughly following

story for Vermont Sports “300 more miles

over a mountain to the Green Mountain

what’s known as the XVT route, a loosely

of dirt roads, muddy paths and singletrack

the

Trails in Pittsfield. There, they camped at

mapped trail that runs the length of the

and 33,000 vertical feet of climbing.”

Trails Alliance (RASTA), VMBA and the

Shrek’s Cabin, a stone cabin in a clearing

state, linking logging roads, sections of the

Earlier that summer, George Lapierre

Green Mountain National Forest, plans

at the trail’s summit. The next day, GMT

Catamount and other trails and singletrack

had ridden it in 54 hours. On a rigid

are underway for an all-access public trail

trailmeister Matt Baatz hopped along for

and minimizing pavement. Five leisurely

singlespeed.

that would officially link up the singletrack

what he thought would be a section of the

days later, they ended in Morrisville.

Rochester/Randolph

networks

between

Area

Killington

Sports

and

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 21

Morrisville—more in the spirit of the tour

there are more than 80 miles of connector

Lauzon and Thibault did than the hardcore

trails to build,” he says. The cost estimates

backpacking routes of the XVT.

to build out the connectors is in the range of 5 to 7 million dollars.

Like the Long Trail for hikers, the VAST trail for snowmobilers and the Catamount

McCusker is careful not to disclose the

Trail for skiers, the “Velomont” trail, as

route until it has been approved by the state,

it has been dubbed, could be, eventually,

private landowners and the U.S. Forest

an end-to-end trail for mountain bikers,

Service. But on the Vermont Mountain

horseback riders or randonèe skiers.

Biking

Association

website

completed

As RASTA’s Angus McCusker and Zac

sections of trails are mapped and six of the

Freeman, two of the trails early proponents

Vermont Mountain Biking Association’s

write on the RASTA website: “We have the

chapters have been working on connecting

opportunity to repeat history, this time with

their networks. “Our goal is to have 70

mountain bikes, building awesome state-

percent of the Velomont trail be singletrack,”

long singletrack linking some of the best

says Stuessy. VMBA membership now

trail systems in New England.”

comes with an add-on to support building

Thompson

Vermont

Velomont.

Huts

Association gets excited when he talks about Velomont and the possibilities for huts along

BUILDING CONNECTIONS

Pittsfield's Green Mountain Trails, above. Below, the Robinson Integrated Resource Project map includes mountain bike trails near Hancock and Chittenden Brook, home to Vermont Huts' first hut.

the way. “Imagine a year-round hut-to-hut route that you could ski or mountain bike,” he says. Out west, Colorado’s San Juan hut

to happen this summer.

system and network of mountain bike trails,

Thompson is considering other huts in

is a model.

places such as South Pond, in Chittenden,

Stuessy and McCusker are cautious when they talk about Velomont, careful not to

locations so they could work for mountain

get too excited or to raise expectations. But

biking, as well as backcountry skiing,” he

both are leaders of organizations that have

says.

a track record of getting things done. In the

Already, Vermont Huts is aiming to

and Sterling Valley, north of Stowe. He's also

But the Velomont Trail, McCusker

past six years, VMBA chapters have added

position the first of its huts in the Chittenden

working with private landowners who might

cautions, is still in dream stage. “We’re

more than 80 miles of trails around the

Brook campground and it will open this

be interested in hosting huts in Dowsville

working with the U.S. Forest Service,

state, building a network of over 830 miles,

summer, pending approval of the Green

and Huntington, near trails in the Camel's

with landowners, and with existing trail

largely thanks to the work of volunteers

Hump State Forest. “We’ve intentionally

networks,” said McCusker recently. “It’s a

who’ve spent weekends sawing logs and

been looking to site huts at altitudes and

long way off—maybe 10 or 20 years—and

pounding at dirt and roots with pick axes.

Mountain Nation Forest Service’s Robinson Integrated Resource Plan, which is expected

co ck !

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22 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

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NAD 83 UTM 18N DBurbank, Apr 2017

Cooling off in the Tweed River, near Pittsfield, after a trail ride. "People love the idea of riding from point A to point B, to a destination," says John Atkinson, the executive director of Mad River Riders. ‘The chapters are amazing,” says Stuessy.

and link towns," says

eventually connect to the Contest Trail,

“They are the ones who are doing the work,

two, in the state land there. Just south, the Waterbury Area Trail

all these loops

Atkinson. People want to ride point A to point

the GMNF’s first mountain bike trail,

raising the money and getting things built.”

Alliance has been building out trails in both

B, to a destination, not just in loop circles."

which parallels Route 100.

For now, the groups are focusing on

the Little River and Perry Hill networks.

creating Velomont as a way to connect the

“One of our missions is to join them with

Killington, is where the proposed Velomont

From

Blueberry

Lake,

south

A PLAN IN THE WORKS.

trail networks that branch off Route 100,

a connector trail and also to connect the

trail gets even more interesting. “RASTA

It’s easy to get carried away looking at the

from Killington in the south to Morrisville,

town of Waterbury to Little River,” says

has proposed trails on the west side of

maps, envisioning what could be. Those

in the north.

president Dana Allen. Since WATA formed

Granville Gulch,” Atkinson says. But from

working on the concept are careful to say

If you browse over the maps on VMBA's

in 2015, it has grown from 178 members

there south to Pittsfield are a series of

the trail will have many iterations as it gets

website, networks of spaghetti-like lines

to over 600. "If anyone has any questions

existing and proposed trails that RASTA

planned out and may take a decade or two

of trail networks start to appear. It’s not

about the economic impact that trails can

has been working on, in tandem with the

build. But groups are working to make it

hard to see what one can imagine as the

have, just look at the growth numbers of

Green Mountain National Forest. “We’re

happen and already raising funds to build

Velomont emerge.

chapters in our state," says Allen.

actually pretty close to getting trails linked

the trails.

There, just east of Morristown, are

From Waterbury, trails would need

through here,” says Holly Knox, District

Last summer, the town of Killington

the Cady Falls trails, a short ride up a

to be built out to connect via the newly-

Recreation Program Manager for the

received nearly $100,000 from grants

dirt road puts you on the singletrack of

annexed Dowsville Headwaters section of

Green Mountain National Forest.

from the state’s Department of Forests

Sterling Valley, trails maintained by the

Camel’s Hump Forest, then to Phen Basin.

RASTA worked closely with Knox to

Stowe Trails Partnership (formerly Stowe

Already, this summer the Mad River

make the Brandon Gap ski glades happen,

Forest Service and donations from the

Mountain Bike Club). From there, head

Riders finished a trail that extends the

the first officially sanctioned backcountry

Killington Mountain Bike Club to help

down a bit of pavement (or cut through

existing Evolution trail two miles to the

ski glades on national forest land. “If you

build out trails in the Kent Pond area, a

some trails that are currently on private

top of Tucker Hill. "We want to make it

take a look at the management plan for the

step toward connecting Killington Resort

land). You might connect to the Trapp

possible to ride from Sugarbush’s base

Robinson Integrated Resource Project,

with the town. The ultimate goal: connect

Family Lodge Trails (trail pass required),

area and trails, all the way into the town

you can see just where we have trails and

Woodstock's and Killington Mountain

then blast down Trapp Hill Road to

of Waitsfield," says MRR’s John Atkinson,

what we could extend,” says Knox, her eyes

Resort's trails to Kent Pond and on to the

Cottonbrook Road.

adding that Sugarbush Resort has signed on

lighting up as she talks.

Pittsfield Green Mountain Trails. And, as

Parks

and

Recreation

and

the

U.S.

Though Stowe Trails has been busy this

as a two-year sponsor for the MRRs. This

And yes, there it is, on the map, the

winter clearing and re-opening the Cady

spring, Atkinson’s group also completed a

Tunnel Brook trail leading west out of

Hill trails that were devastated by last fall’s

new trail, Amenta’s Way at the Blueberry

Hancock to the Saw Mill Trail, connecting

For now, those who want to ride

tornado-like storm, the organization has

Lake Trails. Atkinson also envisions a trail

to the dirt roads near Bingo Brook, off

between these areas have to do the research

plans to continue to improve the connector

from Warren up to Warren Falls, which

Brandon Gap. Then head across Route

that Thibault, Lauzon and Decker have

logging trails between Cottonbrook Road

could also then connect to Stetson Hollow.

73 to Chittenden Brook, where Vermont

done. But one day, not too far off, Velomont

in Stowe and Little River State Park and

"One of the best things about the

Huts’ new hut is positioned, or go east

may be as popular as the Long Trail.

Thompson envisions a hut, or maybe even

Velomont trail is it gives a chance to connect

along Route 73 past the old CCC camp and

another group proposed in June, perhaps to Rutland's Pine Hill Park, too.

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 23

FEATURED ATHLETE

FLIGHT SCHOOL Name: Calef Letorney Age: 34 Lives in: Westford Family: Parents, Mark and Andrea; brother, Graham; dog, Homer Newton; kitten, Special Agent Lunchbox Primary sports: Paragliding, whitewater kayaking, skiing Occupation: Vice-president at Rovers North; Paragliding instructor, Paraglide New England

alef Letorney made a name for himself as a freestyle kayaker, but these days he’s traded the water for the sky. He owns Paraglide New England, located in Westford in northwestern Chittenden County, where he's one of three flight instructors. While most people might think paragliding qualifies as an adrenaline sport, Letorney begs to differ, referring to it as “chess in the sky.”

How did you get into whitewater kayaking, your first sport? I grew up in Westford. I got into kayaking because I saw a picture of a whitewater kayaker in a magazine. I was so intrigued! So, when I saw a whitewater kayaking summer camp at Clearwater Sports in Waitsfield, I had to go. After a few years on Clearwater trips, I went on an Adventure Quest summer camp trip to Canada. Westford didn’t have a high school so I decided to go to The Academy at Adventure Quest, which was in Brownsville, Vt. Then how did you become a national champion? At Adventure Quest, every semester we would travel to locations like Canada, Ecuador, New Zealand, Chile and Nepal. We lived in tents for months at a time and took turns cooking and cleaning. I started with the slalom kayaking group and the next year switched to freestyle kayaking, known as “rodeo.” Kayaking over 200 days a year, I got good quickly. I made the U.S. team three times, was National Champion twice and went to the World Championships in 2001. I was in Boulder in 2005 when I learned that you could hike to launch and soar for hours on a wing made of nylon and

24 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

A former national champion kayaker, Calef Letorney is aiming to break the 90-kilometer record for a paragliding flight in Vermont.

dental floss. Within a few days I had found an instructor and started taking lessons. How long until you got good? At the training hill you learn to launch and land, but then it takes years to learn what to do in between; how to soar with the birds. I moved back to Vermont in January of 2007. At that time, I was already an advanced pilot and so I was able to fly the established Vermont Hang Gliding Association sites at West

Rutland and Burke. Later we started flying Sugarbush and a few other sites including Mont Yamaska in Quebec. In 2010 I got my USHPA Tandem License at Morningside Park, in New Hampshire. That same year, I started teaching pilots who had graduated from a training hill how to fly the bigger, more complicated Vermont mountain sites, such as Burke. I wanted to fly with other people skilled enough to launch from a mountain site in the middle of the day, hook a thermal which is a column of rising air, climb

Photo courtesy C. Letorney

to 500 feet below cloud base (the legal limit) and then fly for four to five hours. Since paraglider pilots of that skill level didn’t really reside in Vermont, I figured I needed to teach them myself. How did you end up starting a paragliding school? I started teaching ski buddies and hangglider pilots. I was building a crew of solid flying buddies and it was working. A few years ago, I founded the Vultures, which we describe as a “fake flying club

that does real flying.” Fake because we don’t have dues or control launch sites; it’s just a group of 60 pilots sharing our flying plans. Then I met my business partners, Paul Somerset and Ryan Dunn, and the idea of a full-fledged paragliding school came together. How did they get involved? One day Paul called me up—he was a friend of a friend. After moving to Vermont to recuperate from a wingsuit BASE jumping accident, he missed acrobatic paragliding. So he bought a boat and a winch with 6,500 feet of line with the goal of towing people on Lake Champlain, so they could get up to 4,500 feet in the air. It was paraglider Christmas for me. I tapped into the Vultures and in no time, we were having a ball towing the lake. It didn’t take long before we realized we had created a liability nightmare and the only solutions were to stop towing or form a corporation, so we could buy commercial liability insurance. Founding a flight school just made sense since I was already doing the solo and tandem instruction and leading guided trips to Mexico. Paul had been an USHPA Certified Advanced Instructor since the early 1990s. I knew the two of us couldn’t do it alone so I convinced Ryan Dunn to join the venture. Ryan had sold his business a handful of years earlier, and quickly became addicted to paragliding. Where do you teach in Vermont? We teach at West Rutland, Burke and Mont Yamaska, in southern Quebec. Novices start in calm conditions in the morning and evening and as their skills progress they work up to soaring in the middle of the day when the thermals are stronger. My favorite site is Burke as quite often it yields thermals up to 6,500 feet and it’s a straight shot down I-91 following the Connecticut River Valley. It’s a great cross-country route. Sugarbush is the biggest and most impressive mountain we fly, but it needs light easterly or northeasterly winds, which are rare. With all the complications, is teaching paragliding still fun? Definitely! I could not think of a better excuse to be out flying. It never went over well with friends or family when I declined to attend BBQs, graduation parties, family reunions or whatever to go flying. 'Sorry, I have to work. I’m teaching paragliding' is so much

more acceptable. Plus, I really enjoy instructing novice and intermediates in mountain soaring. How do you teach from the air? On days we are soaring in the mountains, I launch with the students and coach them over the radio while we fly together. I’m like Mother Goose guiding them on an adventure as we spend hours circling in thermals to gain altitude. We glide until we find the next thermal and repeat over and over until we sink out and land. That’s nice work if you can get it. And it just tickles me that some of my students are now surpassing me. One went to India this spring and flew 100 miles in the Himalayas. I haven’t done a 100-mile flight yet. What’s the longest flight you have done in Vermont? I’ve flown for 4 hours and 45 minutes and covered about 72 kilometers gliding from Burke to south of Haverhill, N.H. A year earlier that would have been a state record, but there are some super good pilots from the Boston area that keep coming up and breaking the record. The current state record is 90K and that won’t last long. I’m confident that with the right day I could do 100K easy. We had a day this spring, with 10,000foot cloud base and a bit of wind... but I was sitting in my office doing my real job. Maybe someday the stars will align. Either way the chase is incredible. How does paragliding compare with whitewater kayaking? Flying the world’s slowest aircraft through a torrent of air in the mountains is a good bit like kayaking in river currents, but the goals and intensities of the sports are very different. Paragliding is a slow, meditative chess game in the sky, played in a relaxed, reclined position. On a paraglider, we can’t flap and there’s no motor, so we can only extend our flight time by surfing rising air currents. This takes knowledge, skill, intuition, and patience. Altitude is fuel in the tank, so we get as high as possible. Since it’s the ground that hurts, our constant search for altitude is also a continuous effort to increase safety margins. That’s a good bit different from whitewater kayaking, where the name of the game is to paddle down the most challenging rapids possible on the ragged edge of control. —Phyl Newbeck

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AUGUST 10-12

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 25

GEAR

GRAVEL GEAR & MORE

SOME ESSENTIALS FOR GRINDING THE GRAVEL, OR JUST HAVING FUN THIS SUMMER.

Trek Checkpoint

Garmin Edge 1030

Lymeez

EVOC Hip Pack Race 3L

MADE FOR DIRT ROADS

FANNY PACKS ARE BACK

We just spent seven days riding the bike that up until now, was deemed Trek’s all-terrain, drop-bar, go anywhere bike: the Domane. Sure, it’s a great ride but what’s getting us excited is the prospect of a true gravel bike: the new Checkpoint. Trek’s Checkpoint has the drop bars of a road bike and uses 650b tires but can accommodate a chubby, 700x45 go-anywhere tire. The higher-end Checkpoint also features the IsoSpeed decoupler. It’s on the seat tube only and not adjustable, like on the Domane, but it still allows the seat tube to decouple from the top tube, to provide a smoother ride. All models come with disc brakes, four cage mounts for water bottles and extra mounts for racks, gear and accessories—a bonus if you are planning to backpack or commute. The Checkpoint ranges in models and price from the standard aluminum-framed, carbon-fork ALR 4 to the spiffed out carbon SL6 ($3,799) with a Shimano Ultegra drive train.

The problem with hydration backpacks is that if you’re bent over the handlebars, they tend to raise your center of gravity and weigh on your back. For gravel riders and mountain bikers, fanny packs are making a comeback. The EVOC Hip Pack Race 3L ($95) is a nice trim one that would also be great for a quick hike. It can hold a water bottle as well as a small 1.5-liter hydration bladder. Most important, it has good ventilation thanks to a lumbar vent, and padding and elastic sides that let it hug your body. The pack itself can carry a phone, your basic toolkit and (if you stuff it in) a light windbreaker...or a few energy bars. And with two zippered pockets, you won’t have to hunt for your keys.

26 VTSPORTS.COM | JULY 2018

THE ULTRA COMPUTER In a state where cell service is often limited and signage, well, nonexistent, if you truly want to explore (and have the cash to spend) consider this: the

Garmin Edge 1030 ($779). The latest and greatest in Garmin’s line of cycling/ touring computers, it can track and map both on and off-road routes, features an altimeter and can send messages to others in your group with a Garmin. It has turn-by-turn navigation and can even suggest up to three routes if you tell it a distance and starting direction. Trendline routing can also suggest popular routes in your area. Like the Garmin 820, it has built-in incident detection (in other words, if you crash and don’t respond, it will call an emergency number). It also connects to Strava Live so you can compete against friends (or yourself) and you can even upload your Training Peaks workout and it will act like a coach. The Best Bike Split app also lets you see how changes in power, weight and time can affect your goal race time. The plus side: 20 hours of battery life (versus 15 for the smaller models) and a big screen. The one downside, at 123 grams it’s not light

and the screen is bigger than an iPhone 8. Oh yes, and cost. If that’s a factor (which for most of us, is a resounding yes!), the Garmin Edge 820 does most of the basics for about half the price ($349).

LYME GAITERS As of 2017, Vermont had the highest incidence of Lyme disease per capita in the country. This year, things are not looking better. While doctors are recommending wearing long socks and pants, Lymeez ($30), as geeky as they may sound, may offer a better solution. The wrap-around gaiters are made of an untreated 3D mesh, which in limited lab tests were shown to slow down the tick’s rate of progress up a leg. The gaiters come in a permethrin-treated 12-inch version or a shorter, 8 inch version ($20). While you may not want to be seen hiking in these, they might not be a bad idea next time you’re mowing the lawn. —L.L.

VERMONT

SPORTS

RUNNING & HIKING

JULY 2018 | VTSPORTS.COM 27

BIKING

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