Braintree 357 Circus Ride - Riding One of MTB Magazine's Top 10 MTB Routes on a Gravel Bike

With peak foliage season upon us, we headed to Braintree, Vermont for the annual 357, one of the most underrated, challenging and entertaining events on Vermont's gravel calendar. This year featured the 'Circus Ride,' an epic route that featured more Class IV roads than it didn't and pushed Phil to his limits. Along the way, he would summit both both Braintree Gap and Randolph Gap, cresting a total of more than 6,000 feet of elevation gain in less than 40 miles. Many sections were impossible to ride through, due to the sheer gradient, the rough terrain, or both.
Not for the faint of heart, this ride is one to remember.
From the press release:
"On a spectacular fall day, the sixth annual Braintree 357 took place on Sunday at the Braintree Meeting House, drawing more than 100 riders to test their mettle on a new route for this year-the Circus Ride.
This route, a 38-mile loop, has deep roots in the Randolph and Braintree area and was created by longtime local biker and Paul Rea in the mid-90s.
Initially called 'Pedro’s New England Mountain Bike Festival,' the route traveled up and over Braintree Gap and back through Randolph Gap, totaling a leg-burning 6,000 feet of climbing.
Named after a story about a circus traveling up and over Randolph Gap between Randolph and Rochester and back, the story goes that elephants were use to pull wagons up the slope before switching roles at the top and acting as living brakes to ease them down the mountain.
'It was really cool to see people’s positive reaction to the Circus Ride when I announced it. So many have great memories of the festival and doing this ride 30 years ago,' wrote organizer and cyclist Zac Freeman this week. 'The Circus Ride was actually named one of the top-10 hardest rides in North America back in the mid-90s by Mountain Bike magazine!'
- www.ourherald....
Featured in this video:
Braintree 357: www.braintree3...
Ridgeline Outdoor Collective: www.rastavt.org/
Bent Hill Brewery: www.benthillbr...
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Our thanks to our stoke providers:
Wildbranch Cider: www.wildbranch...
Cornerstone Pub & Kitchen: cornerstonepk....
Picky Bars: www.pickybars....
Aero Tech Designs: www.aerotechde...
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