Sat. Jan. 24: Heat of the Day Snow Ride
Location: Start and end in Weston, MA
Ride Type: SNOW Mixed Terrain Ride for bikes with 3” studded tires or bigger
Date & Time: Saturday, January 24, 2026, 12:00pm start
Distance: 15 miles, ~3ish hours
Price: Free; see NEER membership requirements discussed below after the first ride you do with us
RSVPs: Required, see bottom of page for RSVP form
Details
This mixed-terrain SNOW ride takes cyclists to mostly trails and a few back roads for a total of ~15 miles. We’re aiming for a 3-hour ride and will adjust the route appropriately on the fly if necessary.
There is plenty of snow and ice on the ground, thus studded tires are required.
Pace
If you can maintain a 14mph average pace on the road (on a road bike) for 3+ hours, you have the fitness you need for this ride. This ride’s pace will be much much less than 14mph (probably more like 3-5 mph) with the winter clothes, big boots, snow conditions, etc. Considering the cold temps that are predicted, please don’t come out if this is your first snow ride ever or if your equipment hasn’t been tested yet for the season. A mechanical is very challenging in this cold and some people will have a hard time dealing with standing around in the cold to fix something. Opt in only if you and your gear are ready for the conditions.
If you’re not sure if you’re ready for this ride, just email connect@newenglandexpeditionriders.com and we’ll discuss. We’re encouraging but will not offer stupid advice.
Start Time
11:55am - Be ready to ride! Stay in your car if you’re ready early if it’s cold enough to freeze you before the ride starts.
12:00pm - Safety talk starts, then everyone rolls out
Distance & Estimated Ride Time
The ride is 15 miles in length. The route is a figure 8 so if you want a shorter ride, it’s possible to cut it short. The decision point will be at mile 5.5, and if you cut the route, you’ll end up with a total of 8.1 milesso there will be time to decide and you don’t have to figure it out too early in the ride.
Allow ~3 hours for the ride.
Parking
Parking is free and ample:
Burchard Park, Weston, MA
Address for your GPS to get to the parking lot, this is a public park:
269 Concord Rd, Weston, MA 02493
Route
The route will be emailed to all who RSVP no later than 7pm the night before the ride.
Route Notes
The route starts by going uphill so this helps riders warm up quickly early in the ride. Most of the route is off-road. We put this route together for a snow ride last year that we couldn’t run (there was too much snow that day!) so there’s a chance something doesn’t work; we’ll figure out a re-route as appropriate. This is an area with a lot of trails and many options.
The most important aspect of this ride is to dress appropriately for the weather since it will be very cold out. It will be easy to overheat if you overdress (overheating leads to freezing). Wear layers so that it’s possible to start warm and then take some off as the ride start moving. Bring chemical hand & foot warmers if your gloves/boots are thin.
With this cold, bringing extra of everything is smart. Goggles and hand warmers are really good to have no matter what.
Lights are also a good thing to have. Did you know that a light gives off heat? Yes, yes it does. Not a bad way to warm up if you have nothing else. Also good to have with the sun low in the sky!
Any mechanical issue that will take more than just a couple of minutes will mean that rider needs to call for a ride (Uber/Lyft/friend) or walk back to the car and the group will need to proceed or else everyone could be at risk with the cold. Please understand that the group will need to continue moving and be ready for any issues with all of the right tools/tube and phone to call for a ride if necessary.
After the Ride
It will be later in the day and everyone will be cold so we’ll say a quick good bye and get moving toward home!
Last-Minute Information
We will email all participants with any critical late-breaking news.
Contact Information
Email - connect@newenglandexpeditionriders.com with questions about this ride anytime 1 hour or more prior to the start of the ride.
CALL US if you need us to know anything just before the ride start or during the ride at 413-461-7433.
Don’t txt if you need an immediate response, all txt msgs go to our email that we aren’t checking if we’re in front of people at the ride or on our bikes.
Riding Rules
All riders are required to read and are expected to abide by These Rules. RSVP’ing to this ride indicates you have read and accept all of the rules. These make the ride safer and more fun for all.
Waiver
NEER requires a signed waiver before your first ride. Please fill it out online prior to your first ride.
If this is your second or more ride with us, our insurance requires that you become a member of NEER.
Proper bike & Equipment
STUDDED 3” knobby tires OR BIGGER. Wider tires are nicer! Tire choice depends on your riding skill set. We expect to see fat bikes at this ride considering the snow conditions. It is possible a mountain bike with studded tires will be okay out there too, hard to know until we’re rolling!
Clipless pedals and shoes. These are important elements of bike control. If you are an experienced cyclist who has used platform pedals and sticky shoes extensively, this is acceptable. Note that mountain-style pedals/cleats are significantly better than road-style. We strongly discourage road pedals/cleats on a mixed terrain ride. You can possibly get away with road pedals/cleats on a gravel (dirt road) ride, but not a mixed terrain ride.
A bike that’s in safe working order that is properly lubed and tuned. We’ll ask you to call for a ride or take an Uber home if you have a mechanical situation that will hinder the forward progress of the group by more than a few minutes.
High enough tire pressure to prevent pinch flatting and burping your tires. We recommend about 80% of maximum rated tire pressure. Sometimes this is much too high, ask us if you’re not sure where to set your tire pressure. We like you to have more than enough air for these reasons:
We want to minimize flats on the ride; waiting for someone to change flats is not why we ride. We typically see zero flats on our ride. One of the primary reasons for this is due to higher than average tire pressure.
You can easily take it out, much harder to add it in.
Be sure you have supplies necessary for all common mechanicals including extra derailleur hangers, a multi-tool, quick chain links, tubes, CO2 or hand pump, etc. You are responsible for you and your bike.
RSVP to Participate in this Ride Now!
Please RSVP only after you’ve made sure you can attend. It is inconsiderate to RSVP prior to committing to attending since it affects the experience of the other cyclists in attendance. We understand that things come up last-minute. Be sure to email us if you can’t attend: connect@newenglandexpeditionriders.com.
