[Nail Every Trail]

Just wanted to say I enjoyed the article on the development of the various trail networks in Vermont. It was a decent read.

Seems like there is a lot of momentum building for mtn biking in VT.

I own a house near Sunday River and wish there was as much buzz about mountain biking/trail building as Vt has. That being said, Sunday River itself is doing a decent job with the downhill side of things and there is a new parcel in Bethel that is in the planning stages of trail development.

Congrats to riders in VT, nice effort.

 

[Schott]

They have put forth a huge amount of effort all through the state to build sustainable trails, maintain them, and not least of all promote them. They are doing a great job. We do an amazing job of building trails around my town too, and they are super fun, but until we have a big enough system to handle it, we aren't going to really pursue trying to draw people in. Word of mouth for now, working so far, I think the word is getting out. If you are just over in bethel, come on over some time. Gorham, nh...good things are happening.


"You're like a Ferrari engine driving a dump truck"

 

[mattgVT]

Sniggle, diggle, hurgle-durgle?
Never heard those before and hope I never do. Other than that I enjoyed the article.

I agree there is some amazing trail work being done. Definitely seeing more cars at trail heads this year than in the past few.

 

[DaveVt]

Sniggle=single track
diggle=double track
hurgle durgle=overly turny, lumpy, and generally not flowy single track.
Snig-diggle=double track with a single track burned into it.

These are a venacular that developed at Irie Cycles in the late 90s. The words became a shorthand when giving directions to the many miles of unmapped primative trails that put Stowe on the map. Hardy Avery, former owner of Irie, now Iride, and his partner Dana were giving directions out to tourists multple times a day. Over the course of the summer saying,"left on the single track, right on the double track, right on the next doulbe track..." became a mouthful and the words sniggle and diggle saved a few precious moments for them. It's a colorful slang that became part of our everyday, Mountainbike-centric lives. Back in those days in Stowe the shop rides happened every night after closing and would see a strong posse of 10 or more with regularity. It was an awesome and energetic scene to be a part of. When the SMBC was formed and really became a marketing machine as much as anything else, the slang spread. The english language has always been subject to such abbreviations and in England there are many kinds of slangs that attempt to streamline our cumbersome language. Seen Oceans 11? The English explosive expert speaks in rime sag the entire time. Most think it's funny or amusing....but, as they say, haters gonna hate. I havent read the article, but it's bitter sweet to hear it's now in print in a mag like DirtRag. In one sense, I feel a tinge of cremudgeony ownership to those phrases, but ultimately this is homage to a tiny, rootsy MTB specific shop that kept a bunch of poor-as-dirt ski bums rolling during the salad days of our youthful vagrant lives. Avery, and the SMBC have never stopped working toward getting people on bikes and out into the incredible backcountry that surrounds the towns they have lived and played in their whole lives. Be stoked for them...keep your negativity to yourself....don't be a player hater bro.

 

[mattgVT]

Not trying to hate, but I wouldn't call it common vernacular all over VT like the article makes it sound but could be because I ride solo most often - I think you're saying the same thing, kinda specific to a group of guys in that area. I like Stowe, and Iride, but that's not my regular area I guess so I don't hear it.

 

[zaab70]

Nice history, Dave. It's cool to hear Stowe's story. First time I heard it. I could tell a very long, strange story about GMT. I'm eager to read the article if only I can find someplace near Pittsfield that carries Dirt Rag.

 

[JeffSkisMontana]

DaveVT.....ditto on the thanks for the story about the origins of the Stowe riding.....I appreciate the history .....have ridden the area a few times over the past few years...Zaab....would love to read the origins of Mtn Biking at GMT when you decided to put it out there.....you have told a few bits in the times I have caught you at the Vermont Mtn. Bike fest a few years ago....the one you were giving the t shirts away at...and on the trail twice when we talked.....

 

[in the trees]

DaveVt - Time to re-post old "Sniggle" vid with the Parliament soundtrack.

 

[DaveVt]

b2bPromo - YouTube
Sniggle Unrest....a bunch of riding from those ays with a title that makes fun of ourselves. The roots of Stowe MTB go deeper. We were not the original guard, just held the torch and have mostly passed it on. Iride, Skiers Shop, AJs is doing a great job keeping the momentum as is the SMBC.

 

[BushwackerinPA]

it was not untill I worked for Dana and rode with him and hardy that I ever heard this as well. the OG crew in stowe for sure uses it though.......

 

[zaab70]

Jeff, when building season is over I'll try to write the story in it's totality just because its such a unique situation and pretty funny. A lot of the story is still ahead, though, I'm sure. Matt

 

[DaveVt]

it was not untill I worked for Dana and rode with him and hardy that I ever heard this as well. the OG crew in stowe for sure uses it though.......

Lots of people now use what was built by, and kept running by that crew either as volunteers before the SMBC, and later as paid labor. Quite a scene is being created and that has certainly changed the vibe there since BITD. Persnally, I find it a little sad to ride alot of the old trail. Kind of like seeing your old sweetheart again after many years and realizing the whole town has banged her, and that sweetie you once loved is gone forever. She sure is gettin a makeover these days though. Not what it used to be but a lot of fun from what I'm hearing.

 

[BushwackerinPA]

quite honestly when I moved to stowe broken sweenies and stick house were some of my least favorite trails ever. (being a XC angled 26 inch SS with skinny tires did not help, your SS dave would be so much better!)

but now i like hte old beat trails. They are fun, they are tough, its hard to ride them fast for all the right reasons....they also tend to not have guide stones

The new upper bear's trail is the future I like it and brooke's new trails is slightly less jumpy but still tons of fun but a great hammer fest and open ups new ways to ride the old trails.

like out and on brooks new trail, down Zog, then down charlies, up the cady hill road climb to rooty downs, all the ways back to the root loops, then back on brooke's new trail. Its also made riding to the high school to get to trapps/adams camp with my now 4 month into MTBing girlfriend much less of a chore. let just say the Root loops were slightly trying for her...... more trail is always good but this new stuff is seriously primo.

 

[DaveVt]

quite honestly when I moved to stowe broken sweenies and stick house were some of my least favorite trails ever. (being a XC angled 26 inch SS with skinny tires did not help, your SS dave would be so much better!)

but now i like hte old beat trails. They are fun, they are tough, its hard to ride them fast for all the right reasons....they also tend to not have guide stones

The new upper bear's trail is the future I like it and brooke's new trails is slightly less jumpy but still tons of fun but a great hammer fest and open ups new ways to ride the old trails.

like out and on brooks new trail, down Zog, then down charlies, up the cady hill road climb to rooty downs, all the ways back to the root loops, then back on brooke's new trail. Its also made riding to the high school to get to trapps/adams camp with my now 4 month into MTBing girlfriend much less of a chore. let just say the Root loops were slightly trying for her...... more trail is always good but this new stuff is seriously primo.

Lot's of new routes possible now. Now if we could tighten up the old school trails like Charlies, StickHouse ect. I was thinking guidestones are what is needed. Chralies is over 20 feet wide in places. Be nice if it was singletrack again.

 

[BushwackerinPA]

Lot's of new routes possible now. Now if we could tighten up the old school trails like Charlies, StickHouse ect. I was thinking guidestones are what is needed. Chralies is over 20 feet wide in places. Be nice if it was singletrack again.

as long as you do not put outside of the turn guide stone in it work. apex one work, but outside of the turn ones fing suck becuase you can not corner and use every bit of room with your outside foot down.... nor can you jump on the pedals out of the turn.

 

[DaveVt]

as long as you do not put outside of the turn guide stone in it work. apex one work, but outside of the turn ones fing suck becuase you can not corner and use every bit of room with your outside foot down.... nor can you jump on the pedals out of the turn.

You mean you can't. I have ab****ely no problems on extensively guide stoned trails...I just stay on the trail and miss the rocks and stumps. Where I grew up riding, all the trails arelined with rocks and jumbles of rocks. I didn't expect someone to move them for me or sanitize the trails so I can over cook turns and fly off the tread wherever I lost control. It sounds like you really have to brake more before cornering and you will not be on the outside edge of the tread at the end of the turn. Keep workin at it, you'll get there.

 

[iceboxsteve]

I can see the thread has changed direction but want to say the write up was awesome and its cool reading some old stories here. As a young guy its awesome imagining and hearing about the old stock and how they built the sport.

Further more its fantastic to see a state embrace mountain biking so much. I wish more of New England would get on the ball, seeing as this is one of my favorite places. Such potential. Keep up the work VT, see you in a few weeks for classy October riding.

 

[vtsingletrack]

Snig-diggle=double track with a single track burned into it.

A couple years ago I heard "Snubble" for a sniggled in diggle. IMHO I think this is a less hurgly-durgly way of saying snig-diggle

 

[DaveVt]

A couple years ago I heard "Snubble" for a sniggled in diggle. IMHO I think this is a less hurgly-durgly way of saying snig-diggle

Alas, no. Snubble=singletrack that has become double track due to overuse and poor line choice avoiding the tech feature the original line was meant to include. Used in a sentence, "Ridden Charlie's lately?" "Yea, pretty snubbley..kinda sad."

 

[DaveVt]

I can see the thread has changed direction but want to say the write up was awesome and its cool reading some old stories here. As a young guy its awesome imagining and hearing about the old stock and how they built the sport.

Further more its fantastic to see a state embrace mountain biking so much. I wish more of New England would get on the ball, seeing as this is one of my favorite places. Such potential. Keep up the work VT, see you in a few weeks for classy October riding.

I do apologize for enguaging what's his name in his endless crusade against the evil of guide stoners. Be aware, at the Leaf Blower there will be quite a few of them on the group rides. What made VT riding what it is was folks getting their hands dirty both litterally and figuratively. Raking and digging beyond blistered hands. From selectboard meeting after selectboard meeting. Litterally living in poverty to have less work and more riding. Caring and being passionate about something as rediculous as riding your bike around thru the woods in circles. The wheel is magic. Gyroscopic. Tranformative. Transportive. When it gets you deep in your inner ear....that's it. Your done. It makes flight almost possible. It allows you to tear through our ancient natural enviornment like a wild animal hot on the heels of it's pray possible. It allows you to flee the things in life that hunt you, and escape. Like skis. Like wings. Ridin trail fills your concious mind so completely, you are free from concious thought and left only with improvisaton. Sometimes, when I'm riding, I litterally find I'm a drooling idiot....and I like it. Mountain biking. Dig it.