A few updates on this year’s event

We’re working hard to make this year’s Farmer’s Daughter Gravel Grinder even better than the first two years. We’re retaining everything that previous participants loved about the event, which means that we haven’t changed much. We have changed the venue to a lovely town park in Chatham; the pavilion area is slightly smaller, but the location allows us to skip cycling through the downtown area of Chatham, it’s more private than the fairgrounds were, and it’s a much better location for loved ones who have joined you to enjoy themselves for the day.

Andy and I have scouted out a nice gentle off-road start to the course from the town park, we’re just working on getting landowner permissions. Here’s a little teaser for it:

Perhaps the best test was what participants said about it, so we thought we’d share a few quotes from an after-event survey as well as a couple that people said to us personally:

I have been riding bikes seriously for 25+ years across many different disciplines, locations and settings. The Farmer’s Daughter goes down as one of my top 5 most memorable experiences on a bike. 

Overall I had an amazing time. I’ll be back, with more friends next time! Thank you for putting it on!

I really enjoyed the event. It was a super challenging course, but non-competitive, which was great for early season.

Course design was stellar, one of the best rides of my life.

What a great GG. A big Thank You for all who made it possible. I won’t miss the next one.

We loved this ride. We’re going to make it an annual event, so please keep it just the way it is…or if you must make adjustments, better. Thanks!

I thought it was a GREAT ride. Damn it beat me up but I still enjoyed the experience. Thanks!!

[Farmer’s Daughter] made the Black Fly Challenge seem like a walk in the park!

While i went into this ride knowing it was the hardest thing I have ever done. I made it to mile 50 which was my goal at least if i couldn’t do the full 65…. The course was gorgeous, the support was great, and the climbs were killer in more then one way. It was definitely a ride to remember. (NB: There were opt-out routes back to the start at miles 28 and 50, and will be again this year. )

My personal favorites came from two friends and riding buddies after they finished the course:

Instant classic, Jon!,  and

This will quickly become an annual  “must do” event in the Northeast!

There were lots of “See you next year!” quotes, too. We hope everyone who said so can make it back this year, we’re  looking forward to seeing all of you, and making new friends who share our passion for rides like this one.

Please register soon. We have capped participation levels at 400 this year, and we expect it to fill, and will not have an overflow waiting list. Thanks!

4 thoughts on “A few updates on this year’s event”

  1. Charles Schwartz

    Jon

    Please be aware that gravelcyclist.com still lists your 2017 event occurring on May 14th, not May 21st!

  2. Charles Schwartz

    Hello
    Looking forward to the 2017 event.
    Can you please confirm whether your will be posting a 2017 downloadable route? If not, aside from the start, is the course the 2015 or 2016 course.
    You talk 2016 but show 2015.
    Many thanks for the clarification

    1. Hi Charles,
      Yes, we will post a downloadable route for 2017 a couple of days before the event. It’s different in a couple of places from either 2015 or 2016, though the bulk of the course will be the same.

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