Location: Start and end near Eastham, MA on the Cape
Ride Type: Fat and Gravel adventure event ride!
Date & Time: Saturday, October 21, 2023 (new date!)
Distance: 50km, 100km and 100 mile options for gravel/mtn bikes
Distance: 50km-100km for fat bikes
Do not need NEER membership to register, however, NEER members get a good discount
Price for non-NEER members: $50 before October 16, $65 between Oct 16 and Oct 19.
Price for NEER Members: Category 4 members: $25, Category 3 members: $10, Category 2 and 1 members: No Charge.
Registration deadline: Thursday, October 19 at 11:59pm.
Register at BikeReg.com
Details
This very special ride takes cyclists to many interesting trails, dirt roads, and a little pavement on the Cape. Fat bikes go to some sandier places and a few beautiful beaches. This is a sandy place meaning the trails dry very quickly if they get wet and there is sandiness on the trails in general. The chances we would need to cancel this ride due to the weather is very small. We expect to ride rain or shine and will only cancel if the weather appears dangerous to riders or trails.
If you’re a bikepacker and want to test your gear, strap it to your bike and come along! If you just want to enjoy a lovely autumn day on the bike without hoards of people on the Cape, this ride is for you, too.
Keep reading, there’s a campsite near the start of the ride if you want to bikepack out to the ride or drive from somewhere that’s further away.
100 Mile Fat Bike Option offered on Saturday, October 14 for NEER members
If you are a fat bike rider interested in a 100-mile fat bike ride option, we have this running separately the day before on Saturday. Details are on the Ride Page for that ride.
What You Get
Ride a beautiful place not all that far from civilization nor too far from where you started. It’s off-season on the Cape but before everything closes for the winter - a perfect time to be there!
A well-vetted route that takes you to places you’d never know to ride otherwise.
An opportunity to ride your gravel or fat bike with plenty of dirt, cool trails and beautiful beaches.
The chance to share the day with your friend group, ride with a group of people we match up based on expected pace, or ride solo without feeling alone.
A simple, hearty warm meal and treats at the end of the ride to finish feeling satisfied from riding and not being hungry!
No clock: this is not a race, it’s an opportunity to enjoy riding your bike, take the time you want to out there, ride as fast or slow as you wish.
Get your Friends Together to Ride Together!
We’re offering a separate rollout time for all friend groups so you can start together and stay together. Get your friends together and when you register, tell us their names. Your start time will not be more than 30 minutes different from the start time for the category you register for unless you request a different time.
If you don’t have friends who want to do the ride, that’s fine, we will get riders of similar paces to ride together or you’re welcome to ride solo. We prefer to start solo riders nice and early so you’re seeing others throughout the day and not the last rider out there.
Start Time Requests if different from the category start time
We’re happy to accommodate anyone’s start time requests unless it looks like it’ll get you back too late so please tell us your requests in your registration information. If you’re riding with a friend group and you request a specific time, we’ll assume everyone in your group is on board with this request.
Pace
If you choose to ride with a group of friends you or someone puts together, ride the pace your group prefers! We offer a start time for your group so that you can start separately and stay together.
If you’re riding solo, you’re welcome to ride the pace you want as long as you have time to complete the route before we stop serving food. If you’re wondering about your pace and timing, email us.
If you select to ride with a group of people we assemble, then you’ve told us your pace and hopefully those who we match you with are around the same pace. There’s always a risk of the group being a little faster or slower than how you want to ride so come with the route loaded and be prepared. Our rides typically attract people in this category who want to ride with others so will alter their pace to appease others in the group so as to have a group experience.
Start, Distance & Estimated Ride Time
Start times that you see when you register are all approximate. We will roll out groups of friends, groups we assemble, and solo riders separately. You'll get an email with exact rollout times 7pm Thursday evening prior to the ride.
Everyone will receive an email by Thursday evening at 7pm that includes all of the details of the ride, the routes for all distances, and roll-out times. Your roll-out time will be within 30 minutes of the time you’ve registered for and it’ll probably be a bit closer than that.
We expect all riders to be done riding by 6pm, that’s when the sun sets. We don’t want anyone out riding after dark.
Parking
There is a large parking lot that allows for all-day parking at no charge where we’ll be starting and ending. Long routes will visit the lot during the day so there’s an opportunity to go to your car/grab stuff, etc.
Route & Route Notes
The routes will be emailed to all who register no later than 7pm Thursday evening prior to the weekend of the ride.
A general note about the routes: you’re never going all that far from where you park so cutting the course is not an overly challenging thing to do if necessary to get back early for whatever reason.
This is a sandy area. Both gravel and mountain bikes are welcome for the gravel-version of the ride. Gravel cyclists not familiar with sand will have the opportunity to get familiar with it! 40mm or larger tires are recommended.
For the fat bike routes: fat bikes are required with a minimum of 3.8” tires in order to properly enjoy the beaches included.
Terrain Description
The routes may evolve prior to it being finalized. Weather may change the route at the last moment, too. Last minute road work also sometimes requires re-routing. The point is, these percentages are estimates and may change.
Percentages are by shown by distance, not time.
Percentages are very similar regardless of route distance. The fat bike class is the exception; see those differences below.
Total climbing: 4,300 ft.
| Cars/No Cars | Terrain | Percentage | Ideal Bike |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars Likely | Pavement, roads | 20% | Gravel bike w/30mm slick tires |
| Cars Allowed | Dirt roads | 5% | Gravel bike w/30mm slick tires |
| No Cars | Pavement that's car-free, abandoned roads, closed roads, and bike paths | 10% | Gravel bike |
| No Cars | Fire roads and access roads | 20% | Gravel bike w/40mm tires |
| No Cars | Smooth Singletrack | 15% | Gravel bike w/40mm knobby tires |
| No Cars | Rough, abandoned, washed out, and class 4 roads | 10% | Hardtail Mountain Bike |
| No Cars | Singlegrack, tight, rocky, or overgrown | 15% | Hardtail Mountain Bike |
| No Cars | Trail Sand | 5% | Gravel 40mm knobby or wider, depends on how rainy it is just prior to the ride |
| No Cars | Beach Sand | 0.3% | Fat tires 4" or wider, Probably not rideable on a mountain bike tire. Definitely not rideable on a gravel bike tire. |
| For the Fat Bike Routes: | No Cars | Beach & Sand | 20% | Fat tires 4" or wider | This % replaces some of the above terrain |
Food & Water During the Ride
We’ll be hosting a mid-ride food stop for the 100-mile riders with basic calories. There will be ample water for bottle refills. This is the same location where you’ve parked, so if you want to resupply with your favorite food, you will have the chance to grab whatever you want.
There are quality food stops on the route with stores that are open at this time of year that provide free water and tasty food if you’d like to get extra things to eat while you’re riding.
Our pre-ride email will include information on places to stop to refuel during the ride.
After the Ride
Bring a change of clothes and a lawn chair so you can enjoy a bunch of social time post-ride!
We’ll provide a hot, tasty after-ride meal for all riders. We’ll be serving food until the sun sets and hanging out until everyone is done enjoying themselves. Be sure you have completed your ride prior to sunset which is 6pm.
What happens if it Rains?
We moved this ride from the original date to this day in order to avoid the rain. Crossing fingers! We also changed the name of the ride since it doesn’t have to be brutal…we’re aiming for beautiful and pleasant riding for you!
If it looks rainy/cold for Saturday, October 21, we will see if moving the ride to Sunday, October 22 offers a more pleasant day and is feasible for both us and for 3/4 of the riders. If not, we'll run the ride on October 21. We'll communicate with all registered riders in case we need to move the date or change ride details. If you can't make it on the day we end up being able to run the ride IF we change the date on you due to weather, we need you to email us no later than 2 days prior to the ride so we can issue you a full refund. We won't offer refunds after the night before the ride runs. If you don't want to ride due to the weather (if we haven't moved the date from the date you registered for) and email us 2 days or more ahead of time, we'll issue you a 50% refund.
Last-Minute Information
We will email all participants with any critical late-breaking news via BikeReg.com so make sure you get communications from BikeReg!
Contact Information
Email us with questions at connect@newenglandexpeditionriders.com.
CALL US if you need us to know anything just before the ride start or during the ride at 413-461-7433.
Don’t txt if you need an immediate response, all txt msgs go to our email that we aren’t checking if we’re in front of people at the ride or on our bikes.
Camping Option
We recommend staying at the Atlantic Oaks Campground if you’d like to camp nearby the start. We’ll be hanging out there Saturday evening. Select a red “A” site if you’d like to be near to us and other Brutiful riders.
Riding Rules
All riders are required to read and are expected to abide by these Rules. Registering for this ride indicates you have read and accept all of the rules. These make the ride safer and more fun for all.
Waiver
The insurance for this ride requires a signed waiver. This will be shared with all who register to sign.
Proper bike & Equipment
For the Gravel Routes: A gravel bike or mountain bike with 38mm tires or wider.
For the Fat Routes: A bike with tires 3.8” or wider is required due to the beaches these routes include.
For ALL Riders:
Required: A GPS computer with the route loaded ahead of time
Required: A bike that’s in safe working order that has been recently tuned and is free of creaking and squeaking.
Required: All of the tools for typical mechanicals such as:
Flat fix tools and at least one spare tube (yes, even if you’re running tubeless tires), air via CO2 or hand pump, multi-tool
Nice to have: Extra chain link, chain breaker, chain pliers
Spare derailleur hanger if your bike needs a spare
Extra clothes and storage capacity so adding/taking off layers is easy
Required: Cell phone and a plan to get back to your car in case your bike or body stops working - we cannot offer rides to anyone (per insurance requirements)
Required: Two full water bottles at the start of the ride
Required: Front and rear lights if there is any chance you’ll be riding in rain or before the sunrise/after the sun sets
Nice to have: Extra calories in your pockets
