Thursday, January 16,
At Millstone Trails
44 Brook St. Websterville, Barre, VT
Gather between 5:00pm and 5:15pm with wheels ready to roll at 5:30 sharp.
Helmets and other things required (read more below).
The year is 2187. The world is 98 percent covered in sand. Kind of like an opposite of Waterworld kind of thing. The only thing left in the cities of the world are trash and wind. A man rumuages through the remnants of an old before-fore-times building. He pulls a small drawer completely out of a desk and tips it upside down. A notebook flips and flops to the floor, a fine mist of soot and sand rises around the book and swirls in the air. It lands open, on the page a note:
It seems that I haven't seen the sun in a fortnight. While the moon is bright, the light offers no sustinence, and I know that it can't last long. The bitter cold seems ever unquenched drinking the warmth from my bones. There is a pirate's flag rising in the distance, and it is not rebellious, it is only the marker of a theif coming to take our joy.
He picks up the notebook, and slips his fingers through the pages. The book readily opens to where a photograph has been wedged into the book:
The scribbles next to the photo are hard to make out, hand written by pencil a hundred or more years ago:
Thursday, January 16,
We will ride Millstone Trails under the waining gibbous of the moon.
Gather at 44 Brook St. Websterville, Barre, VT
Between 5:00pm and 5:15pm with wheels ready to roll at 5:30 sharp.
Helmets are required.
Join Barb, Kevin, Bridget, and NO Kelsey this week on a social and friendly fat bike adventure at Millstone Trails. Route will be determined at the beginning of the ride based on trails conditions, temperature, and other dynamic factors. Millstone is stunning all year round, and at the same time it is an exceptional experience in the Winter.
Dress in warm layers and also be prepared for the need to shed and carry some of those layers during the ride. Some folks have a backpack, some folks have large bags, some folks even have rear racks and panniers to carry stuff.
A front light that is bright enough (350 lumens or more) to see in the dark that is securely attached to your helmet or handlebar is required.
If you have not yet done so for 2025, filling out our rider waiver form ahead of time is required as well. You can do it all online at www.VermontBicycleClub.com/waiver.
**As with all fat bike rides, conditions of the trail may mean that we need to change locations, or cancel entirely. We will send an email update when that happens, so make sure you are subscribed to our the appropriate list or that you are paying attention to the Vermont Bicycle Shop social media.**
He flips through a few more pages in the notebook. He has been alone so long he is unsure of the difference between his inner monologue and speaking out loud. He mumbles gibberish, in his mind he thinks he’s said, “Sound like fun.”
He flips through a few more pages, and mumbles again, “What the heck is Spiderland, and MUSH?” He hears a clanking of metal in the distance, he shoves the book into his satchel and buries himself under some rubble.