"Tour de Pownal" Fall Bike Ride
Saturday, September 19, 2020, 9:45 am (for 10 am start)
Join us and get to know the river that runs through our tri-state community with a free recreational bike tour on September 19, 2020. The ride, co-presented by the Pownal Recreation Task Force and the Hoosic River Watershed Association (HooRWA), is limited to the first 20 preregistered participants.
The 10-mile loop begins and ends in North Pownal in the parking lot of the North Pownal Congregational Church at 3554 Route VT-346, near the bottom of North Pownal Road. The ride includes optional extensions for a 16-mile or 23-mile version of the ride. (Note: the extended routes are paved except for a one-mile section of hardpack gravel on Indian Massacre Road.) Meet at 9:45 am for a 10 am start.
New this year, the North Pownal Congregational Church is providing its parking lot as the ride's start and end point. The opening remarks include a brief update on the proposed bike and pedestrian path along the historic trolley line from Bennington to Williamstown. Faith Christian Fellowship is offering a mid-ride hydration station on Burrington Road at Hoppy Valley Organics, Pownal's landmark hops farm, with snacks and a chance to chat and take in (and photograph!) the sweeping view of Pownal Valley. The Pownal Regulators ATV Club will provide another water station at the end of the 10-mile loop.
Pownal resident Julie Mackaman and HooRWA board member Lauren Stevens will co-lead the ride. Contact Julie at jmackaman@gmail.com or 802-823-5545 by September 17 to preregister and to receive an email the morning of the ride if it must be canceled due to weather or updated public health guidelines.
A map and cue sheet for the 10-mile ride is posted at:
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33187102
Maps and cue sheets for the extended ride options are posted at:
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33187248 (16 miles)
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/33187380 (23 miles)
Covid-19 Considerations. The ride is limited to the first 20 preregistered participants, who are asked not to attend if they have a fever or are feeling unwell in the days before or morning of the ride, and to follow basic social distancing guidelines of leaving spaces between parked cars and wearing a mask in the parking lot. While masks are not required during the ride, participants are asked to bring them along on the ride and to keep a distance between themselves and other riders.
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