VERMONT BIKEPACKERS

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Aw, Vermont Super 8. We have a love-hate relationship back from October 2022. I found this  route following Logan Kasper, I thought it would be a fun one to try. I was very busy that summer traveling across the US to training camps and races. I was preparing for an ITT on a bike I had never ridden. I made my way back to Vermont on what I would call an “ultra-drive”. I hardly got any sleep before starting the route, I barely knew Vermont’s terrain, and quickly changing weather. I found myself sleep deprived before even starting the ride, falling asleep while riding, forgetting my full sleep set up, it rained the week before, and the temps at night dropped into the 20’s, and highs in the 30’s. I somehow managed a South Lobe FKT, but I scratched the north lobe after arriving at my ice covered truck at 2am. I could write a book on how NOT to race/ride the Super 8. I knew I wanted to come back and try again someday. Fast forward to 2025, Sarah Skelly had set a new women's South Lobe FKT in 2024, and Stephanie Hall wanted to get more women to the Grande Depart this year, so why not try again! 

 

I drove up Thursday September 25th for the pre-ride pizza party in pouring rain. This made me question if this is what I really wanted to do. I have done the wet muddy Super 8 before. Did I want to do it again? Looking at the weather app the rain was to stop over night and be a beautiful sunny weekend. This was my chance. Dexter Kopas found us a super cheap dorm to stay the night at with showers and warm beds in Plainfleid, VT. I was so anxious and excited that I barely could sleep, but much more sleep than the first time I did this. The air was wet still, but the sun was peaking through the fog. You could tell it was going to be a warm day. I made it to the parking lot where I would leave my safe place for a few days, along with many others getting ready to ride. Looking over my bike one last time, feeling confident I had everything I needed. I made the mistake of lifting everyone else's bikes and realizing how heavy my bike was in contrast. I do not recommend this! You have what you need and they have what they need. 

 

My plan was to start on the south lobe, maybe stop in Montpelier for sleep before starting the north lobe, and finishing by Tuesday. I want to have a goal of 150-200 miles a day, and actually stopping for a few hours of sleep each night. I tried the no sleep strategy and it failed epically. With the amount of physical strain the south lobe requires, the body needs rest at some point. For example, 60 miles of one section could take 12 hours depending on if it is rideable or has become a bike hike. 

 

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Day 1: Montpelier- Newfane 148 miles. 16,641 ft. 15h15m 

 

September 26th, it's my birthday, it doesn't feel like it, but man how exciting it was to be leaving on this adventure with people this time. It was so fun to start with my friends, our eyes blinded by the sunrise, the sun warming our skin. It was magical. We were all so full of life and laughter, not knowing what our fate was on the route this year. As we made our way up the first hill out of Montpelier, I found myself moving up to the front, and eventually off the front following two other riders. I wasn't trying too hard, I was feeling really good, and decided to just keep chugging on that and staying nice and steady. This ended up being really nice as we made our way through the first class IV road and I wasn't getting caught behind people. I finally made it to the front and the 3 of us were leap frogging each other for the next 100 miles or so. Some faster at climbing and others faster at descending. It made it like a washing machine rotation, and was quite fun and entertaining. As people stopped for food and supplies, the group broke up. I found myself alone on the Curtis Hollow climb. This climb will suck the energy right out of you. It is 1.6 miles 1,000 ft, and at the very top it is so steep with rock slabs, you have to walk. It was very hot at this point in the day, it was so humid, I was sweating faster than I could drink water. I made it over and down, but now I was feeling sick. I was nauseous, a pounding headache, and couldn't eat. I thought this was it, the end of my ride. I made it to a field, removed my helmet and hat, threw up a little and took some tylenol. I saw Ricky coming and rolling past me, and I knew I needed to keep going. I think seeing someone else helped me mentally. I stopped at the next gas station in Springfield, which would be our last for a long time. And ate some food, a soda, and chocolate milk. I was now feeling better again. This is when Ricky and I started to ride together, having someone to talk to made everything so much smoother. This is the area Stephanie and I pre-rode so we would get lost on the hidden class IV sections, and I am thankful we did. I warned him about the Chester chain bridge and our MTB handle bars that would not fit, and he was eager to prove he could fit. BAM! He hits one side of his bars and then the other. I thought his ride was over, but he was okay, and we had a great laugh about it for a while. Somewhere after Pete’s campground, Ricky’s friend Tyler ended up catching up to us, and we ended up catching up to another rider. It was so fun making new friends!  My goal was to make it to Brattleburo (164 miles), but if I could not make it by midnight I would stop at Pat;s yard (148 miles). I would end up camping at Pat’s, a kind supporter of the VTS8, who put out snacks and a plug in for charging. 

 

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Day 2: Newfane-Brandon 166miles. 14,311 ft. 18h25m

 

As I woke up shivering at 4:30am, I laid there trying to fall back asleep, but the phone alarm went off at 5 am sharp! It was time to get up and pack the bivvy and get moving to Brattleburo. I think I may have woken up the whole camp, not sure how many were there at that point, but you could hear them coming in one by one over night. Putting on wet, cold bibs before the sun rises was not my favorite but man will it wake you up! A group of 4 of us headed out and the first turn was a class iv “road” called the Old mail road. This was not a road anymore, rather a water way, or as we call in the desert, a wash, that was unrideable with massive rocks and down trees that eventually merged with a proper dirt road. We made our way to the forest trails that lead into Brattleboro. These are known for getting riders lost. I was happy to be doing this section in the light. The fog was thick, the air was still chill, but another recipe for a hot day. Another rider came by us and said they were going to the Vermont Country Deli, so that's where I headed! The sound of hot coffee, and breakfast sandwiches sounded divine. It was the best breakfast I think I had on the whole route! I definitely recommend stopping at this one. This is the day that the famous new Glastenbury hike-a-bike was on the agenda. I was so anxious to get to it before the sun set, and descend in the dark. It was day 2’s Final boss! The 1 mile hike was brutal and steep, a heavy bike made it super fun. Getting to the top I threw some fist bumps for pushing hard. Being the only one on a full suspension bike, I went down the back side with ease, it was very steep, loose, muddy, and rooty. At the bottom, the fun wasn't over as you had to cross flimsy slippery logs that kept you from having to walk in water. All I could think was, “do not break your ankle!” After this was a screaming fast descent into town, where you cross into New York for a bit, and the first Stewarts store! Here I ate 2 hamburgers, a slice of pizza, a coffee, and chocolate milk. I needed it! It was time to make it to a camping destination, and Brandon seemed like a good place to stop before ascending the Brandon Gap. But first there was another store stop in Granville at the second Stewarts! Here I ate another hamburger, chips, and hot chocolate! 

 

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Day 3: Brandon- St. Johnsbury 117 miles, 12,298 ft, unsure exact elapsed time 

 

We made it into Brandon around 1 am, and slept till 530am, headed straight to Dunkin Donuts for a coffee and to dry the bibs under the hand blowers. To my surprise, an added bonus to this challenge was getting my period. TMI I guess, but it is part of the game of life, and another obstacle I would have to overcome. This does tend to happen when I push my body hard like this. I was getting cold eating breakfast, so I decided to head out alone up Brandon Gap. The mornings are starting to get a little more cold and crisp. The climb was very welcoming as I warmed up in the sunrise. Today was the day I made my way to Montpelier and started thinking about heading out on the north lobe. I just wanted to be done with the south. But today's final boss was the Braintree gap. A rough, steep climb, with a rough chunky descent. I was feeling really confident in my bike choice by this time, and knew I would have no problem getting over it. I kept thinking about my friends who are doing this ride on gravel bikes or rigid bikes. It is definitely doable, but I do not think it's the most comfortable even if it weighs less. Having done Braintree a few times before, it was known territory and I welcomed the challenge. I even saved a sparkling apple cider to crack at the top! Man, that was good! The descent was so fun, but about half way down my right glute started to cramp, and my hands hurt from grabbing the brakes. It is a very long descent. I was looking forward to it being over. By this time it was the hottest part of the day, and a lady came out of her hour on the next climb offering water and to pet her dogs! I didn't realize I needed water at that point, so it was life saving! I heard from many riders that she helped out. I hope to see her become an official GD supporter in the future. 

 

I was feeling really good and made a full send all the way in Montpelier by 2pm. I stopped my Garmin at 378 miles, 37,874 ft, 37h32m17s moving time, and 54h23m33s elapsed time, 2d6h17m. From here, I showered myself with a jug of water and soap, changed into clean bibs and jersey, unpacked my bivvy and pad to dry out while I showered. I charged my charging bank and switched out light batteries. It was too early to sleep, so it was time to start the journey on the north lobe. I planned to make it to mile 55. This was a 24 hour Maplefields park and ride. I could get food, water, charge things, and sleep. Ricky finished sometime after me and was ready to go when I was so we headed out. This ended up being a very long haul after finishing the south lobe. But I was motivated to get it done! I do not think Ricky was as motivated as me but he stuck with me as long as he could. It seemed to be way colder than previous nights, maybe because it was not as humid? But I was very happy to have my quilt. It was about midnight when we made it to Maplefields. This night we would sleep a bit longer than the first few nights. I planned to maybe make a full push to the finish in the next 24 hours over Burke, to Canada, and back to Montpelier. Easy, right?

 

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Day 4 St. Johnsbury-Montpeilier 220 miles, 20,835 ft. 35h38m25s estimated elapsed time

 

Waking up and getting coffee and a breakfast sandwich, I was a bit slow moving. I knew I needed to get going but I was thoroughly enjoying a warm seat inside. Finally after packing up, layering up, and heading out into the fog once again, I found myself splitting away from Ricky. Once again, my legs felt good. The big boss today was getting over Burke Mountain, or so I thought. A few friends were up at the Kingdom trails and were heading out of town and stopped at the college to ring cow bells as I passed by! That was such a motivation booster! Stopping at Lyndonville market, I saw another friend on her way to work. It was a magical morning! I packed up as much food and drinks as I could preparing for an 80 mile stretch with no resupply. I was cruising! I made it over Burke with ease, navigated the backside and single track through Victory trails, and made my way to the forest roads. Here you could see the miles of powerlines, the steep inclines, and loose dirt. I just knew I would be walking my bike up those pitches. This was probably the hottest part of the day in direct sun. I went through 4 liters of water! Luckily, there were rivers to filter water from. I could see fresh moose tracks and scat, and decided not to stick around too long in that area. The sun was starting to go down, and I was still not finished with this forest section, the resupply was about 15 miles out and they close at 7pm. I had to make it there or there is no resupply for another 40 miles after that! I pushed hard, and I made it to Kingdom market, where I got a deli sandwich and snacks. I really wanted something hot but they were closing up. My next goal was to get to the Canadian border getting there around 9pm.Here I stopped at the Circle K and the attendant offered an outlet to charge things. I stayed here for maybe 45 minutes drinking coffee and more food before heading out on my all nighter. This is where Dexter texted me that he was done, I really felt that I could get done by 8am and see him off. The night would be my final boss. I was cold, I was slow, my stomach was not happy, nauseous, and tired. I made it over Bailey Hazen, hike a bike, and gnarly descent, dropping into Eden around 2am. I was so sick, I just wanted to vomit but I had nothing in my stomach. I hung out in a portapotty for like 30 minutes to try and get warm. But I knew I had to keep moving. Around 4am I started looking for a ditch to sleep in, and I don't know if my brain just wasn't working or if there was really no where to sleep, but I seemed to be searching until 530 am, and finally found a farm field to sleep for maybe an hour until the sun came up. This was the hardest part of my whole race. I had maybe 40 miles to go, and this seemed to drag for so long! No matter how hard I pushed up the hills I still wasn't going very fast. 8 am came and went. I needed real food at this point. I found the Wilcot market, and they had homemade banana bread that was so amazing and just what I needed! The final boss today was a hike a bike up Woodbury. I think I did pretty well riding most of it. Next on the list was the single track into Montpelier! I zoomed all the way down following the Garmin gps, and when I got to an intersection the Garmin decided to finally alert me that I went the wrong way. I had to turn around and hike back up the damn hill and find where I went off route and get back on. This added another 30 minutes because of how steep it was back uphill! Once I found the trail again, I knew this was it! Time to finish this thing! It is such a surreal feeling because no one in Montpelier knows or cares about what you just did as you roll through the city. But I have the greatest friends and they came to surprise me at the finish! That's when reality hit me and I cried so many happy tears!  

 

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Strava stats:

North lobe: 275.36 miles, 43h38m25s elapsed time, 28h36m42s moving time, 26,211 feet

South lobe: 378 miles, 54h23m33s elapsed time, 37h32m17s moving time, 37,874 feet 

Full Super 8: 653 miles, 4d3h39m, 64,291 feet 

 

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Bike set up:

• Specialized Epic 8 expert- 24lbs 

• Rockshox SIDluxe select+ 120mm rear travel, 120mm front travel with Ride Dynamics developed 3 position Twistloc remote adjust 

• SRAM GX Eagle AXS transmission, SRAM XS 1275 12 speed, 10-52, 36T front chainring 

• Roval Control carbon offset rims, 29mm internal, tubeless with 29x2.35 Renegade Control tires on front and rear

• Vittoria Air-liner light XC in rear tire

• SWAT internal downtube storage: where I put all tire repair gear

• X-fusion Manic 30.9 100/125/150/170 mm travel seat post/dropper 

• Profile Design Sonic ergo 52A aero bars

• Ergon GP3 gripshift bar-end handlebar grips-small

• Restrap Race aerobar bag 7.0L

• Restrap Race toptube bag-long 3.0L

• Old Man Mountain Elkhorn Bike rack with Puck mounts

• Old Man Mountain Atlas Rack Pack 9.0L

• 2 water bottle cages, fitting a 1L bottle and a 750mL bottle

• Fenix BC26R rechargeable bike light + extra battery

• Fenix BC05R rechargeable rear light

• Fenix HM65R rechargeable headlamp + extra battery 

• Amazon charging bank with attached charging cords

• Salomon Active running vest with 2, 500mL flasks 

• Katadyn BeFree 600mL water filter soft flask

• Specialized RIME 2.0 MTB shoe: for the hike-a-bikes and puddles

• Shimano XTR SPD pedal 

 

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Things I would change:

• I think a lighter bike would definitely help with all the climbing, but by the end my butt was happy with all the suspension, I think a hard tail would be the way to go, with lock out front fork. I was fortunate that my Epic 8 has the option to fully lock out front and rear for the smoother sections, but you trade weight for comfort.

• I would obviously like to stop less, or make my stops shorter

• I think 3-4 hours of sleep each night was the best strategy, and trying to sleep 6 hours on the 3rd night was not needed. I would have broken that up again into two nights, instead of trying to pull an all nighter on the 4th night. Just having that extra bit of sleep helps you push so much harder than I did when I was so tired I was barely pushing the pedals. 

• Maybe smaller tires? I was happy with the ones I used, but I think you get away with 2.2 

• I also would have stopped at the Eden camp ground, but I did not write that down on my cue sheet thinking I would just make it to the end with no sleep. They have warm showers and outlets!

 

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Essentials:

• Layers! Arm warmer, leg warmers, vest, longsleeve jersey, head warmer, puffy jacket, puffy pants, and puffy booties, gloves, also a rain jacket just in case

• Water filter

• Change of bibs

• Sleep set up: I did a bivvy, pad, quilt 

• Rechargeable lights

• For me, snack bags. It was so much easier to eat when the food was right in front of you rather than reaching into your back pockets all the time.

• Downloading the route on my phone as well as the Garmin. I found that Garmin is horrible at navigating any sort of single track or unnamed roads. I had to pull my Ride with the GPS route out anytime Garmin couldn't find the route. I heard Wahoo was better at this, but it's always a good idea to have it downloaded to your phone just in case.