NCC Trail Blasters
Youth Mountain Biking Group
Announcements!
Earl’s ride cancelled due to rain. Today’s ride (9/29) is cancelled. Next and last Friday ride of the season will be same time and place next week (10/6).
Saturday ride will be on Sunday this weekend. The Saturday ride at Coach Craig’s is cancelled. We’ll ride on Sunday at 3pm in Belchertown at the Canal Trails instead.
October schedule coming soon…
For up-to-the-minute info on rides, weather cancellations/re-schedules, and more, please join us on Slack: NCC Trail Blasters.
The 2023 season will be the fourth year of riding for the Trail Blasters since Coach Craig approached the Northampton Cycling Club about starting a youth mountain biking team (thanks Craig!).
We offer weekly rides for kids in grades 3-12 beginning in April and ending in October. Depending on who shows up to a given ride, we will typically break the whole group into elementary (grades 5 and under), middle (6-8), and highschool (9-12) groups. Each group will have 4-6 kids riding with 2-3 adults, minimum. This provides for a lot of opportunity for one-on-one instruction during the rides. Adults (parents, caregivers, family members, family friends) are welcome to ride with the group.
The only requirements are that kids have a trail-ready bike with gears, at least 24″ wheels, and a helmet. We also require that all participants be a current NCC member with either an individual junior ($10 per child under 18/year) or family membership ($55/year) to participate (that’s a pretty sweet deal!). Kids are usually ready to ride trails starting in third grade, give or take a year. If you’re at all unsure whether your child is ready, please feel free to reach out to us. We would be happy to chat with you.
Weekly Ride Schedule
We ride on Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons. The Friday ride location stays the same for each month. The Saturday ride rotates through a bunch of different locations. If you’re new to riding with us, the Friday ride at Earl’s trails is a great, beginner-friendly starting point. We can do routes of varying difficulty at Earl’s depending on who shows up and according to their skill level and interests.
Earl’s Trails on Fridays in September from 5-6:30pm: 9/1, 9/8, 9/15, 9/22, and 9/29. Meet at the end of Chmura Rd. in Hadley (please drive slow).
We will focus on basic skills for new trail riders on Fridays. All are welcome on Fridays, but the focus will be on skill development, not fast-paced riding. Older, more experienced youth are welcome to ride along and help.
Various locations on Saturdays in September from 3-5pm:
Saturday rides will be for intermediate to advanced riders with a focus on fast-paced riding with fewer stops while riding more challenging terrain and features.
Sa. 9/2: Montague Plains. Meet in the gravel lot under the power lines (Bartlett Rd. – dirt) off of Lake Pleasant Rd. (Montague Plains, Bartlett Rd., Montague, MA 01351)
Sa. 9/9: Hawley State Forest. Meet at the parking lot adjacent to the Fire Station located on Plainfield Rd. in Hawley.
Sa. 9/16: Earl’s trails. Meet at the end of Chmura Rd. in Hadley (please drive slow).
Sa. 9/23: No ride.
Sa. 9/30: Coach Craig’s trails. Meet at 61 West St, Hatfield.
Coaches
Our coaches are Safesport certified and have years of experience running youth cycling programs. Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.
Tom Hoogendyk
NCC Youth Programs Coordinator
Trail Blasters Assistant Coach
thoogendyk@nohobikeclub.org
Craig Neal
Trail Blasters Head Coach
bikeharder36@yahoo.com
