Our Roads Are Calling
We are excited to announce our plans for 2023, which includes two very different, small group tours.
The Shires: July 13-16
Northeast Kingdom, Averill Lake: August 18-21
Overview
The Shires
The Shires tour takes place in the southwest corner of Vermont in the Green Mountains and is like our traditional Vermont Challenges we have done in the past. This year's Shires tour will take place over 3 days led by experienced ride leaders allowing riders to enjoy our corner of Vermont. A 100 mile fondo option on Saturday is designed for those seeking to challenge themselves. The tour includes all lunches and dinners. Limited to 40 riders.
Northeast Kingdom
Introduced in 2022, this new tour is in northeastern Vermont, which sits on the Canadian border and just west of the New Hampshire state line. The lodging (shared rooms and bath) for this tour is a large home right on Averill Lake in the most beautiful part of rural Vermont. Our host is our very own Barrack Evans of Battenkill Bikes. You'll enjoy an all-inclusive 3 days of relaxed touring, which includes all breakfasts and dinners. Enjoy afternoons right on the lake for swimming, kayaking, exploring or simply kicking back with a good book. Rides will take us in and out of Canada, so a Passport (passeports requis) is a MUST. Limited to 20 riders.
Profiles of the Tours
The Tours of the Vermont Challenge in 2023 offer ride leader lead routes unlike the one's on our route-arrowed, leaderless tours. These tours are designed to specifically meets the needs of those wishing to see and enjoy Vermont – all from the saddle of their bikes.
Setting Expectations
Each days' rides will be led by seasoned ride leaders who will lead you through the hills and valleys of Vermont on the Shires Tour and Vermont, New Hampshire and Québec for the Northeast Kingdom Tour. These routes are designed for riders who ride a fairly regular basis and have ridden 30 or more miles on multiple days.
The Shires Tour
- 3 consecutive days of riding: Friday, Saturday and Sunday
- Limit total registrations to 40 riders
- Route lengths/pace – two lengths to choose from: Mid 30s and mid 50's lengths daily, broken into two average paces
- A 100-mile Fondo option on Saturday for those seeking to challenge themselves
- Each rider will receive a Vermont Challenge jersey and pint beer glass
- We will offer all group lunches and dinners
- Tour offer support/refueling vehicle
- Will provide a list of all services on all routes. These files should be uploaded to your phone or navigation device
- We'll stop at key locations like Country Stores etc.
Shires Tour Pricing
3-day tour July 13-16 – $649 through February 19
From February 20 until tour fills – $699
Includes all lunches and dinners
Excludes lodging*
The 2023 Jersey
This year's jersey is an all new design that features elements of both The Shires and the Northeast Kingdom Tours.
The front side design elements, with it's pine trees, rolling hills and valleys, and covered bridge, all represents the Shires Tour held in July and where all rides are ridden in the Green Mountains Region of Vermont.
The back side features evergreens, moose and rolling hills that are typical elements associated with the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont and the Great North Woods of New Hampshire. More specifically it includes the motto Je me souviens (I remember) and a fleur-de-lis pattern to represent Québec, Canada where a number of our rides are ridden.
To see a large image of the jersey, click here or on the image itself.
Jerseys are gender specific. The style is Standard Fit with typically falls between the tight fitting slim/peleton style and the loose fitting relax style. Standard Fit provides a close to the body fit without compressing. Sizes run from XXS – 4XL. When booking, please specify gender and size. Please check Garneau's fit chart for sizing by clicking here.
The Northeast Kingdom Tour
- 3 consecutive days of riding: Saturday, Sunday and Monday
- Includes 3 nights of shared lodging
- Includes 3 meals per day
- Limit total registrations to 20 riders
- Route lengths/pace – two lengths to choose from: Mid 30s and mid 50s lengths daily, broken into two average paces
- Riders MUST have a passport (passeports requis) as we'll be riding in and out of Québec, Canada
- Each rider will receive a Vermont Challenge jersey and pint beer glass
- Tour offer support/refueling vehicle
- Will provide a list of all services on all routes. These files should be uploaded to your phone or navigation device
- We'll stop at key locations like Country Stores/Dépanneur etc.
The Rides
We will break up into 2-4 groups per day riding shorter or longer lengths at different paces. Two of the days we will ride in and out of Canada. One of those days we'll drive to a starting point in Canada so we can ride further into Sherbrooke, Hatley and Magog, Québec, Canada.
Snare Camp Room Assignments
Our rental home right on Averill Lake was built in the 1929. It's a rustic, basic summer lake home with grand lake views and a massive stone fireplace. Rooms and bathrooms will be shared based on tour attendees, and room assignments will be selected accordingly. Many of the rooms offer sinks. If you have any questions, please contact us at info@vtchallenge.com.
Garneau Factory Outlet
After lunch in Newport will we stop at the Louis Garneau outlet, our sponsor for our Jersey. There you will receive an additional discount coupon so you can save on their already reduced pricing. You'll grab great cycling gear at the fraction of their original prices.
Northeast Kingdom Tour Pricing
3-day tour August 18-21 – Includes breakfast, lunch and dinner each day
10 – Premium second floor rooms with shared baths. $899
4 – Standard first floor rooms with shared baths. $799
4 – Separate cabin for four with full bath. $799
4 – Shared third floor bunk room. No bath on that level. Baths on lower floors. $599
In keeping with the bucolic areas, we will find ourselves touring in Northern Vermont and New Hampshire and Quebec, Canada, lodging accommodations will be what you should expect of a rural home built in the 1920s.
Rooms and bathrooms will be shared and based on tour attendees, room assignments will be selected accordingly. If you have any questions, please contact us at info@vtchallenge.com.
The 2023 Jersey
This year's jersey is an all new design that features elements of both The Shires and the Northeast Kingdom Tours.
The front side design elements, with it's pine trees, rolling hills and valleys, and covered bridge, all represents the Shires Tour held in July and where all rides are ridden in the Green Mountains Region of Vermont.
The back side features evergreens, moose and rolling hills that are typical elements associated with the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont and the Great North Woods of New Hampshire. More specifically it includes the motto Je me souviens (I remember) and a fleur-de-lis pattern to represent Québec, Canada where a number of our rides are ridden.
To see a large image of the jersey, click here or on the image itself.
Jerseys are gender specific. The style is Standard Fit with typically falls between the tight fitting slim/peleton style and the loose fitting relax style. Standard Fit provides a close to the body fit without compressing. Sizes run from XXS – 4XL. When booking, please specify gender and size. Please check Garneau's fit chart for sizing by clicking here.
What the Press is Saying
Take some time to read what the press has said about the Vermont Challenge.
Vermont SKI+RIDE, Vermont's Mountain Sports & Life named the Vermont Challenge one of its "8 Rides of Your Life." Read about it here:
The way up and the way down are not, just not, one and the same.
That's all I can think as I push/pull/cajole the wheels into one more rotation, then another. I stand, putting my full weight on the pedals. Think positive, I coach myself. I'm grateful .. grunt.. for the cool green tunnel of hardwoods shading the road. Grateful ..groan..for the packet of maple syrup from the last aid station, liquid energy. I'm grateful for the six guys who let me draft for the last 10 miles. Grateful for the swimming hole ahead that's going to be deliciously cool.
Then, the trees open up. There is light. The road crests at the gap. Below, a toy landscape of farms with red barns spreads out. Patches of green fields are dotted with miniature black and white cows. A white spire rises through trees in the distance. I pause to take a swig of water, shift into my largest gear and then let go, screaming down the other side, taking the S turns like a ski racer on a GS course.
By far the best way to see Vermont, I'm convinced, is on a century ride or organized group ride. In the past few years, a host of new rides have sprung up with events such as the Vermont Challenge, Farm to Fork Fondo, and the Vermont Gran Fondo, making the national Top 10 lists. Others, like the Tour De Kingdom, are lesser-known gems that will show you roads you never knew existed.
Yes, you pay an entry fee but you get a sag wagon, in case you have a mechanical issue. And then there are the aid stations. Since this is Vermont, instead of GU and Budweiser, there might be PB&J sandwiches on slabs of homemade bread (Vermont Challenge) or woodfired pizza with farm-fresh toppings (Farm to Fork Fondo). After parties? In Vermont, you don't bring the beer to the party, you take the party to the beer. Three rides start and finish at Harpoon Brewery, Long Trail Brewery and Woodchuck Hard Cider this year.
There is an organized ride somewhere in the state nearly every week, here is one of our favorite loops, in August.
Heading out from Stratton on Day 3 of the Vermont Challenge. Photo by Hubert Schriebl
The Vermont Challenge: Stratton to Okemo and back, Aug. 17-20
If you took the best aspects of a multi-day guided bike tour (sag wagons, lunch stops, dinners sharing stories of the day over a craft brew) and combined it with four days of the semi-competitive (read: bragging rights only) fun of a century ride, you'd get the Vermont Challenge.
Stratton skier John Sohikian dreamed up the Vermont Challenge as way to showcase some of the best riding routes in southern Vemont. The four-day event heads along the valley between Manchester to Dorset, before climbing into the mountains around Stratton and sending riders on a 107-mile fondo toward Okemo.
Of course, you don't have to do all four days of rides. You can sign up for shorter routes each day (starting at 23 miles). You can stop where you want (last year's favorite rest stop was at Wilcox Dairy, which makes a killer salted caramel ice cream). You can join in the group kickoff dinners at the Taconic Hotel in Manchester or eat on your own. You can do just the Valley Days (Day 1-2) or just the Mountain Days (Day 3-4). In 2016, the fifth running of the Challenge the ride raised $9,200 for local charities and $10,000 the year before. vtchallenge.com
The Shires Lodging
As part of the planning of The Shires Tours of the Vermont Challenge, budget concerns were factor into our new format for pricing. The Vermont Challenge lets its Shire riders choose for themselves where they wish to lodge so they can control their own budgets. So there are no lodging fees added into that tour package price. The following are some suggested lodging.
Manchester: Palmer House
5383 Main St, Manchester Center, VT 05255 802-362-3600
Our exclusive Lodging Partner in Manchester is the Palmer House Resort, Ascend Hotel Collection. The Palmer House Resort is centrally located with access to all Vermont Challenge starting points and provides breathtaking mountain views, oversized yet cozy overnight accommodations, unique year-round amenities and an exclusive rate discount with complimentary breakfast to all Vermont Challenge riders. To book with Palmer House, click here.
Our exclusive Lodging Partner in Manchester is the Palmer House Resort, Ascend Hotel Collection. The Palmer House Resort is centrally located with access to all Vermont Challenge starting points and provides breathtaking mountain views, oversized yet cozy overnight accommodations, unique year-round amenities and an exclusive rate discount with complimentary breakfast to all Vermont Challenge riders. To book with Palmer House, click here.
