Vermont Bicycle Shop is proud to present the 2026 Ride Every VMBA Trail Challenge. In partnership with Vermont Mountain Bike Association, Orbea Bicycles, Trek Bicycles, and Millstone Trails Association.

Last year we had 29 people from across New England signed up and exploring everything Vermont mountain biking has to offer! And by mid Summer we had our first place winner, Kelsey LaPerle!

Other contenders continued the challenge with the last participant finishing just days before the end of Vermont mountain bike season.

We’re ready to get the 2026 party started!
Orbea Bicycles and Trek Bicycles along with Vermont Mountain Bike Association and Millstone Trails Association are back with cool prizes (Prize pool to be announced).

What is The Ride Every VMBA Trail Challenge?

We’re challenging you to ride at least 1 mile of trail from each Vermont Mountain Bike Association chapter!

There are 28 amazing VMBA chapters in Vermont, hundreds of miles of incredible mountain bike trails; ALL of them are built by your neighbors, co-workers, family, and friends.

It is an incredible feat of community strength, it is a magnificent wonder, our community here have built the best mountain bike trails in the world.
Let’s celebrate their work the best way we can, by experiencing it all.

Between May 1 and September 30, you’ll use the Trek Ride Club app to track your rides, then email us each ride.

Why the Trek Ride Club app?

Quick pause for an explanation: Let’s be frank, some of us can afford to pay for our trail apps even after buying into a pretty expensive sport. And for most of us that means the apps that have existed have been fine enough. That isn’t ideal for new participants though. For them, none of those apps complete the experience and often leave them frustrated. Sure, one app lets us draw our own routes for free, another app gives us turn by turn directions for free, and another will let us search through regions for ride suggestions or even other rider’s routes, and if we’re clever enough we can use each of them to put together those features for free. None of them will do that in one place, and make it very easy even after paying for the app.
Except for the Trek Ride Club app. For me that is a huge equity win for folks who are new to all types of cycling. Pair that with a ton of other features that are ideal for someone experiencing their first bicycle trail outing, or their 28th mountain bike ride.
Features like:

Ride Line. Whether it’s online chat, instructional videos, or on the phone with a real person who rides bicycles you can get all the bicycle ride help you’d need from how to remove and install your new thru axle wheels to dialing in the seat height after a Winter riding indoors. It’s all free.

Other Challenges. Trek issues tons of challenges through the app, and they back that up with cool prizes, including medals for those who accomplish amazing things.

Routes. This one is just a nice presentation that is often a pet peeve for me. I make a ton of routes, however, when it comes time to use those routes I feel like a lot of apps make it a little tricky, or aren’t very obvious about where to pull up those routes. The Ride Club app puts it right where I expect it to be, as a part of the main menu on the app, visible no matter what section you are in. I love that bit.

Guidance or All the things. This last part seems a little unreal. I can log on to Ride Club on the Trek website, create a route from scratch, I can import a FIT file from a ride or other app. I can load the app in my phone, I can then get turn by turn directions with audio cues (or turn off the audio cues) I can set the screen to always stay on, I can set the screen to auto dim to save battery. For free. I can lock the screen completely without interrupting my ride. I can sync between Garmin Connect, Strava, and Wahoo. There’s a Bike Garage to store all the information on your bicycles. All for free. There isn’t even a way to enter your credit card information into the app. In my experience, I have also notice that this app uses far less phone battery than other ride tracking apps I have used. They have no intention of charging money for it. And they are only going to expand the app with more features and usability.

Plans and Community Building. The biggest thing for me about the Trek Ride Club app is that I feel like it’s the first app that is about planning what I’m going to do, rather than brag about what I did (though there is plenty of that in the app as well). It’s also geared towards getting people together in person.

The Trek Ride Club app helped us a number of times to create in person events where we were in charge and took all the credit, even helping us with this challenge. We also held our first end of the year awards ceremony with the help of the Trek Ride Club app. You bet we’re doing this every year from here on out!

Does it collect marketing info? Not as much as some other apps do. Is it perfect? No, neither are any of the other apps out there, and those apps are making you pay for that imperfection (and they’re also making you pay them for collecting your data). I am looking forward to the work happening at Trek with this app and I’m looking forward to using it to find new ways to get people together around bicycles.

Don’t have the Trek Ride Club app yet?

So about that VMBA Trail Challenge!

We’ll track your efforts on a public leader board.
We’ll reward the first 3 folks who complete the challenge with amazing prizes.
All finishers will be recognized on the leader board.
Prizes are provided by Vermont Bicycle Shop, VMBA, Trek Bicycles, and Orbea Bicycles and more to come!

The Prizes so far:
– A 2027 annual VMBA membership from VMBA.
– Your choice of Trek Gravel or Mountain Bike Tires, and some other swag and apparel.
– A pool of Surprise Bag swag from Orbea Bicycles
– Bicycle frame bags, rain jackets, a hydration back pack and other swag from the Vermont Bicycle Shop Treasure Box!
– A Millstone Trails Jersey (Proceeds paid to Millstone Trails by Vermont Bicycle Shop)
– A Kuat Sherpa 2.0 (Black Metallic/Grey Ano) 2 bike bicycle rack for 1″ 1/4 Rec. Hitches provided by Vermont Bicycle Shop! (1″ 1/4 to 2″inch” adapter sold separately)
– More prizes to be announced!!

Here’s how it works:

Set up the Ride Club app:

• Download the Trek RideClub app from the app store or google play.
  If you already have a Trekbikes.com profile, you can use that to login to the app.
• Set Vermont Bicycle Shop as your preferred retailer. You can learn how to do with the video found here.
• Find the Ride Every VMBA Trail Challenge in the Challenges tab.
• Hit Join Challenge. Once added, you will be able to find this challenge under your Challenges tab at the bottom of the app.
• Because the app doesn’t yet have a ride location component, the first time you ride a mile in the app it will count this challenge complete. We use this first “completed challenge” to mark your official entrance into the Ride Every VMBA Trail Challenge.
  **This does not complete the entire challenge or satisfy all the qualifications for participating or winning the challenge. You will need to follow the guidelines below and you will need to track your rides and submit them per the rules below to ensure your eligibility.**
• You can link your Strava, Wahoo, and Garmin accounts to the Ride Club app. This will allow you to use your normal devices to track your rides, be sure to check your privacy settings and make sure the apps sync up your rides before you start the challenge!
  If you normally use your phone, you can continue to do so. Just be sure that the ride app you use syncs with the Ride Club app. Or better yet you can use the Ride Club app to track your rides.
• Test the app out a few times to get familiar with how it works to track a ride, make sure the app is syncing with your preferred devices/apps. You can find live chat or over the phone help right in the app, or give us a call, or stop in, we’re here to help!

Do the Challenge, track your progress:

• At the start of your ride be sure to use either the Ride Club App or a connected and compatible device to track your ride. 
• Ride some amazing trails, each trail ride must be at least 1 mile of an official VMBA chapter trail.
• Once your accounts sync with the Ride Club App you will be able to find the completed ride in the Ride Club app. You can edit the name of the ride and you will need to enable the Make this Ride Public function.
• Then navigate to Activity (on the bottom of the app).
• Click Rides (on the top of the app) and click on the ride you saved.
• Take a screenshot of the ride. You’ll be emailing this screen shot to us! The screen shot must be from the Trek Ride Club app, it will contain your distance, it will contain your elevation gain, and it will contain the date and time of your ride. All those details are a part of how we will verify your ride in the Ride Club admin panel. Setting your ride as public is important! You’ll be emailing this screen shot to us per the instructions below. Here’s a video on where to find your rides in the Ride Club app.

Submit Your Progress:

• You will need to email us a screen shot of each ride you do.
  EMAIL TO: info@vermontbicycleshop.com
• Subject Line should be formatted as follows:
  VMBA Challenge, [Chapter Name], [Your First & Last Name]
  The example below what it looks like if someone had ridden at Millstone Trails.
  EXAMPLE: VMBA Challenge, Millstone Trails, Darren Ohl

What we’ll be doing:

• We’ll verify your email submission against your Trek Ride Club app data to confirm the ride meets all challenge requirements.
• We’ll verify where you rode and that any applicable local chapter rules were respected (did you ride during a closure, etc.)
• We’ll reply to your email if we have any follow up questions. Please feel free to follow up with any questions, even to ask if we got your email. We don’t mind you checking up on us, we’d love to hear from you!
• We’ll log your ride and update a leader board to be published at www.VermontBicycleClub.com/VMBAChallenge/

Ride Every Trail Challenge Rules and Eligibility

• This is a Vermont Bicycle Club and Vermont Bicycle Shop Event.
• Participants acknowledge that mountain biking is an inherently dangerous activity that may result in injury or death. By participating in this challenge, riders voluntarily assume all risks associated with cycling and mountain biking. Participants are solely responsible for their decisions, actions, and any consequences that may arise from their participation. Participating in this challenge is an acceptance of this statement. Participation also requires filling out and signing the waiver found here: Vermont Bicycle Club Ride Waiver
• Eligible riders must ride at least one mile of trail from every VMBA chapter and log that ride using the Trek Ride Club App.
• Eligible riders must set Vermont Bicycle Shop as their preferred retailer. You can learn how to do that with the video found here.
• Eligible riders must fill out the 2026 Vermont Bicycle Club Waiver.
• Eligible riders must have a current valid VMBA membership.
• Eligible riders must use the Trek Ride Club app to log their rides.
• Eligible riders must wear a helmet at all times.
• Eligible riders must adhere to all VMBA rules, local laws, and local trails rules and closures when applicable. Some good advice from VMBA on making sure you’re following the rules:
  “Always check your local chapters’ socials, website, or the [Trailforks app] for the latest conditions and closures.”
• Eligible riders must be 18 or older.
• Eligible riders cannot submit manual ride activities, rides must be recorded by either the Trek Ride Club app or an app or device that is compatible and synced with Trek Ride Club. The required screen capture must come from the Trek Ride Club app.
• Are eBikes allowed? Absolutely, as long as all local chapter rules, local ordinances, state rules, and land use permissions and rules are followed.
• This challenge will run from May 1, 2026 through 11:59 pm on September 30, 2026.
• Rides must take place between May 1 and September 30 of 2026.
• No submissions will be accepted after the final deadline of 11:59 pm of September 30, 2026.
• The leader board will be updated at least once a week on Mondays.
• Rides submitted on Sundays may not appear on the leader board until the following Monday’s update.
• In the event that a ride violates any rules of the contest, riders will be notified, and that submitted ride will be disqualified.
• In the event that 3 disqualifying rides happen that user will be disqualified from the challenge.
• In the event of a tie, total distance ridden will decide the tie breaker, in the event that the distance is the same, total elevation gain will serve as the secondary tie breaker. When that fails, the tie will be broken by video dance off (further details will be provided to the tied participants).
• All disputes or rule clarifications will be submitted to Vermont Bicycle Shop.
• All disputes or rule clarifications will be reviewed by Vermont Bicycle Shop and when necessary, VMBA or the local applicable trail chapter.
• Velomont Trail Rule: Velomont Trail is an amazing accomplishment of communities coming together to create something truly special in Vermont. We’ve added to the challenge this way to share with as many people as possible this amazing work. The Velomont Trail is kind of like the Free Space on a bingo card. If users ride a local chapter trail that is a part of the Velomont Trail, users can submit the same ride for both the local chapter and for the Velomont Trail, netting two points in one! While the same ride can be used, users must email each submission separately per the submission guidelines above.
• If a user rides multiple trails across more than one chapter in a single ride, they may submit that single ride for each applicable chapter, they must make note of that in their subject line and also make note of the applicable chapters in the body of their emails to help us log the entry.
  EXAMPLE: VMBA Challenge, Millstone Trails, MAMBA, Darren Ohl
• All VMBA and Vermont Bicycle Shop decisions are final.
• Winners must claim their prizes in person within 30 days of being notified, or prizes may be passed on to the next eligible finisher.
• No cash value options, and no exchanges on prizes except where needed for sizing at sole discretion of prize providers and where available.