LVFR - New York Edition

Yes boys and girls...or anyone else who is left still reading this little blog...LV Freeriders has officially moved to the Great State of New York.

Beacon, NY to be exact. It was a sad day when I had to pack up my bike and move away from the great trails in the Lehigh Valley. Fortunately, I moved a little town called Beacon, NY which has an equally amazing trail network and some ridiculously fun trail systems within a 20-30 minute drive of what I now call home base.

I hooked up with the riders at the local shop, Beacon Cycles, and they were plenty stoked to show off some of the great trails they've built here over past few years.  I must say, I was impressed. There is definitely some serious vertical here with the Hudson Highlands Mountain Range being literally right out my front door. There is definitley no lack of Freeriders here in Beacon as I learned the first time I made the 40 minute ascent up Mt. Beacon and encountered a group of riders trudging DH Rigs up the jeep trail that leads to the trail head at the top of Mt. Beacon. Yes...that's right. You have to ride straight up the mountain, 35-45 minutes depending on your fitness level and how much you drank the night before, to simply get to the trail head.

There are also some serious riders in the neighborhood and I've had the pleasure to ride with "Downhill" Jay Memmelaar and "Big" Ryan Gardner both of whom placed second in the Pro and Category 1 divisions, respectively, at the first round of the Gravity East Series last weekend at Massanutten. Needless to say, these guys can rip. No doubt in part to the awesome training they're afforded by the trails here.

Don't worry though PA Freeriders, I still have love for PA and have all the guys (and girls) stoked on the Vertical Earth Series this summer at Blue Mtn.

Look for the Beacon Bombers Team at the races this summer and know that if you come up to ride in NY....there are trails to rip and riders to show you the way.