The VMBA Days series is coming back for its sixth season with some new great additions. We’re beyond excited to welcome back Lawsons Finest Liquids as the presenting partner of the series. We’re also happy to welcome POC as a supporter of the series as well.

For DH, we are bringing back our ‘New to DH’ and ‘Show Me Around The Resort’ group with a twist. VMBA Ambassadors will be doing the New to DH ride and Thunder Ambassadors will be doing ‘Show Me around the Resort’ rides all day. At each stop we will also have a Community Builder partner that will lead their own group rides. Signing up for group rides secures a raffle ticket for the day. For this stop we will be donating a portion of the proceeds to Kingdom Trails Association. Not only do you get a chance to win the rad items below, you will be supporting two great organizations!

At each stop of the series we have great activities throughout the day. At Thunder we are lucky to have a little bit of everything. From getting the basics from a Thunder coaches on Saturday, race the Friday before and Laps all weekend long . Then at the end of Saturday Lawsons will be hosting an on-site Aprés and providing a limited amount beverage tickets to people who purchase $20 or more of raffle tickets (while supplies last). During the Aprés, we will also pull the winners of the raffle!

Following Saturday at the resort, we’ve teamed up with the local trail stewardship organization to host a trail ride day on Sunday! For our fourth stop at Thunder, we will be riding NEMBA’s own Deerfield River Trails and Hawley Forest/Kenneth Dubque State Forest on Sunday the 8/16/26. These will be great opportunities to ride new single track with the local riders and trail builders.

Please see below for a full breakdown of the activities, timing, prizes, and other rad things we have in the works for each stop. With limited space available, make sure to secure your spot on a ride. If you can’t make this stop, make sure to look below for our other dates.

Host Resort: Thunder Mountain Bike Park

Host Trail Organization: Deerfield River Trails & Hawley Forest/Kenneth Dubque State Forest

Date: Thunder DH – 8/15/26 & Trail Day – 8/16/26

Special: This Saturday (8/15/26) you can redeem the VMBA 50% Off ticket for a $20 Lift Ticket which includes a raffle ticket! ($5 will be donated to VMBA and $5 to NEMBA) Show your VMBA App at the ticket window to redeem.

Address:

• Thunder Mtn: 66 Thunder Mountain Rd, Charlemont, MA 01339
• DRT Trails: 66 Thunder Mountain Rd, Charlemont, MA 01339
• Hawly XC (Hawly Fire Department): Plainfield Road, Hawley, MA, 01339

DH Rides (Make sure to get your Tickets!):

New to DH: A ride geared towards riders who have done single track, but have either never ridden DH or still new to it. VMBA Ambassadors will help provide tips on how to make the transition and have fun doing it. (Beginner/Intermediate)10 spots $5 tickets that are a raffle ticket for the day.

DH Clinic: New for 2026, VMBA is partnering up with each resort to provide a new to DH clinic. This is designed for riders who want a little more structured coaching.12 spots per location. Sign up by calling Thunder Mountain Bike Park. (10am – 2 pm)

Community Builder Rides:

Vermont Adaptive: Please sign up and find more details at vermontadaptive.org

Trail Rides:

Hawley Forest/Kenneth Dubque State Forest (Intermediate Ride, XC Style) Come get joining us for some classic New England tech. (10 Spots)

DRT: (Advanced) Ride some of the best trails outside of the state. Some fantastic enduro style riding that finishes off with a nice long descent. (10 Spots)

Vendors:

• VMBA
• NEMBA
• Vermont Adaptive
• Five Ten
• Leatt
• Hexagon
• Rotating list of additional vendors

Day of Raffle Prizes:

$2,000+ MSRP Value raffle at each stop, see below for a breakdown. This Stop we will be donating half of the proceeds to a Kingdom Trails!

• Pair of Sunnies from Julbo Eyewear
• 5/10 shoe of your choice
• Vermont Package (DT/Cabot Socks, Bivo bottle, Runamuk Maple Pack, Misspent Summers Book, Big Tree Farms sauce and more!)
• Thule Riding Bag
• Rotating POC DH item
• Leatt – Gravity 2.0 Helmet
• Crankbrothers shoe, pedal, and socks
• Resort Prize Packs (Tickets & Merch)
• Rim Saver – Set of Heavy Duty inserts
• Loam Pass

Free Samples (Nachos on the lift..):

• Cabot: Cheese slices
• And More!

Resort Activity:

• Come the Friday before to join their Friday race series. This will be a one off collaboration event hosted by VMBA x Lawsons.
• Free 101 Clinic (call Thunder to book) 10am – 12pm
• Thunder Ambassadors laps. Join an ambassador to have them show you around. 12 – 4 pm

Community Builder Partners: Vermont Adaptive

Accomidations (Deals for VMBA Members)

• TMBP campground
• The Zoar campground and Hawk Mt. Lodge – owned/operated by Hinata Retreat – contact info@hinataretreat.com
• Foolhardy Hill campground
• Blue Vista Motor Lodge
• Red Rose Motel

2026 Season Schedule:

• Bolton Valley Resort 9/5/26

If you have any questions about the rides, location or anything else. Please reach out to Joe Gaynor at Joe@vmba.org

We look forward to seeing you at one of the VMBA Days Series stops!