The Vermont Challenge LLC, in conjunction with Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing (VDTM), Otter Creek Brewing and FoxNews44, presents The Vermont Challenge. Our major host venue sponsors include: Stratton Mountain Resort, Okemo Mountain Resort, the Town of Killington, and the Manchester and The Mountains Regional Chamber of Commerce. In addition, The Vermont Challenge is supported by The Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, Addison County Chamber of Commerce, Brandon Area Chamber of Commerce, Killington Chamber of Commerce and Magic Mountain. We offer 3 ride choices from which to choose:     • The 4-day Grand Challenge     • The 3-day Weekend Challenge     • The 1-day Legendary "Gap" Century & Half Century The people of Vermont welcome you to tour Vermont's beautiful landscape, replete with rolling farmlands, bucolic villages, and quiet country roads. The Vermont Challenge will be a friendly experience drawing on the qualities of the people of Vermont. The Ride incorporates four major VT ski resorts and a signature town as our key hosts for meals and lodging. When: The Vermont Challenge runs from August 15-19, 2012 The Grand Challenge The Grand Challenge, our signature tour, begins at Stratton Mountain Resort on the evening of Wednesday, August 15th. The Grand Tour then continues to Manchester, Okemo Mountain Resort and The Town of Killington before returning to Stratton Mountain Resort on Sunday, August 19th. This route offers some of the best cycling roads you'll find in the U.S. In addition, you have the option of completing an amazing century on Saturday August 18th that crosses the Middlebury Gap, one of Vermont's six Legendary Gaps across the Green Mountains before finishing that day on the access road at The Town of Killington! The Weekend Challenge Short on time? Then choose our Weekend Challenge that begins Thursday evening, August 16th in Manchester and finishes back at Stratton Mountain Resort on Sunday August 19th. This route, like the Grand Tour, provides you with the option of completing an amazing century that crosses the Middlebury Gap, one of Vermont's six Legendary Gaps across the Green Mountains. We offer bus transportation back to Manchester on Sunday since you started there, or you have the option to ride down the ridge for a fast downhill finish! The One-Day Legendary Gap Century & Half Century Can't take a day off from work, but want to really challenge yourself? Then come ride our one-day Legendary Gap Century/Half Century which begins and ends at Okemo Mountain Resort on Saturday August 18th and crosses the legendary Brandon Gap before returning to Okemo Mountain Resort's Jackson Gore lodge for lunch and a party. If you enjoy the Challenge of the Grand Fondo's™ or the Harpoon B2B™ you'll love the Gap Century Challenge! Not ready to ride a full century? No problem, simply choose the Half Century option, which leaves Okemo Mountain Resort and heads for the beautiful picture post-card village of Woodstock before looping through gorgeous roads along the Black River as it returns to Okemo Mountain Resort to enjoy the festivities at the Jackson Gore Resort. You Have a Choice in Lodging Grand and Weekend Challenge, as well as the 1-day Gap Century riders will choose lodging at the resorts or participating local B&B's, Motels or Hotels. You make your reservations; your bags will be tagged and moved to your next lodging location for those participating on our multi-day tours. Meals Rest stops will be offering food and nourishment at roughly 20 - 25 mile intervals. Lunch will be provided upon completing your ride each day. The 4-day Grand Tour package includes a kick-off dinner at Stratton Mountain Resort on August 15th, and dinner at Okemo Mountain Resort on August 17th. Dinner is not included on August 16th or 17th in Manchester and The Town of Killington; riders are on their own to select from a variety of local restaurants! The 3-day Grand Weekend package includes dinner at Okemo Mountain Resort on August 17th. Entertainment Nightly Evening activities may include Vermont fare from the local farms, great restaurant fare, plus entertainment and a sponsor's village. Each day's rides end at our "Sponsors Village". The "Sponsors Village" will give you a chance to sample a wide variety of great products from Vermont and beyond. We're working to create a festival atmosphere at the end of each ride within our "Sponsor Village", so check our blog for new update on our additional sponsors. A Fun, but a Challenging Ride Experience Awaits You! The rides will be fun...but also challenging because, after all, Vermont is the Green "Mountain" state! Grand and Weekend Challenge riders may choose a mix of routes: Black, or Blue so you can customize your ride experience from 185 up to 275 miles of riding for the entire 4-day Grand Challenge or 150 to 225 for the 3-day Weekend Challenge. Short on time? Choose the 3-day Challenge or the one day century – whichever you choose, we offer a Challenge for you! So don't worry, if you're not up to the maximum challenge, we offer shorter routes each day that average 45 miles a day to experience the beauty that is Vermont! Please Note: The Vermont Challenge is Not Designed for Beginners. We strongly recommend that you possess above average bike handling skills and ride 30-40 miles on a fairly regular basis and can maintain average speeds above 12.5 mph. A Message from Megan Smith Commissioner, Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing (VDTM) We, the people of Vermont, welcome you to our beautiful state. Come ride The Vermont Challenge and enjoy our open vistas, rolling farmlands and our Green Mountains. Come savor our cuisine and our friendly people that are here to make sure your ride through our state is a memorable one. We know that once you bicycle on our open and quiet roads you'll be back year after year. Welcome to Vermont and The Vermont Challenge! A Message from the Founder – John Sohikian I've been an avid bicyclist for many years, logging in thousands of miles on the road annually along with my wife Donna. We've also been board members of the Sound Cyclists Bicycle Club in Fairfield County CT and advocates of developing bike trails through CT and the New England region. We have owned a home in Vermont for almost 20 years and we just love the landscape and the people of Vermont. The Vermont Challenge combines both our love of bicycling and Vermont to bring you the very best of both experiences. Vermont offers some of the best bicycling routes America has to offer. The routes that you'll travel include some of our favorite roads. We, the team at The Vermont Challenge, in conjunction with Stratton Mountain Resort, Okemo Mountain Resort and The Town of Killington along with the Manchester and The Mountains Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, Addison County Chamber of Commerce, Brandon Area Chamber of Commerce, and Killington Chamber of Commerce welcome you to experience Vermont on two wheels with us. Savor our fine cuisine, smell the wildflowers and green grass and laugh with the warm and friendly people. We trust if you join us this inaugural year, you'll return year after year! The Vermont Challenge is designed to be a challenging ride open to all intermediate and advanced cyclists. We encourage you to consider raising funds for the communities. Fund raising is definitely not required to ride with us, but we hope you consider raising a few hundred dollars for the people of Vermont and receive premium gifts as thanks for your effort. We, the staff of the Vermont Challenge, welcome you to Vermont!