The biggest week of 2026 for Greater Portland MTB’ing starts this Sunday
New Lowell DH trail opening, Pride Ride, Best Day Ever, and more!<!–
Pals,
After a big big push over the past many weeks and months, we’re thrilled to announce that the new Mt. Abram-built downhill trail in Lowell Preserve will be opening this Monday for the first time. Maybe you caught a sneak peak of the new trail in the recent promo we shot with the Hearts of Pine? That was fun — in part because DAMN does this new trail, “Hung Down”, ride well. It’s what you only get when you garner the support of over 150 different donors, the Maine Mountain Bike Trail Fund, over 600 active paying members (whose membership funds paid for the “Stove Up” climbing trail), incredible willing partners in Presumpscot Regional Land Trust & the town of Windham, some of the best trailbuilders in the entire Northeast, and dozens of volunteers willing to shuttle lumber, build bridges, clip roots, move dirt, and turn an underutilized part of the forest into the next chapter of world-class riding in Greater Portland.
Of course, that’s not the only thing we got going on in the week to come — we’re also hosting our 2nd annual Pride Ride this Sunday, screening a radical documentary about adaptive mountain bikers at Allspeed, and putting together a guided group ride of all the Lowell trails (new and old!) this coming Thursday.
It’s all happening, friends. Every week, we get closer to our world-class future.
Keep riding, keep digging,
Ryan
Sunday Starts a Big, Big Week For Greater Portland Mountain Biking
Sunday, June 21st @ 4:00 pm: our 2nd annual Pride Ride, led by Lou Daigle-Costello, kicks off this Sunday. Join GPNEMBA for an 8-ish mile beginner-friendly group ride, led at a social pace, around the Weeks/Moody’s trails in Gorham. This ride is open to and celebrates LGBTQIA+ riders and the allies who support their community! Wheels roll by 4:15.
Monday, June 22nd @ 5:00 pm: join Greater Portland NEMBA, Presumpscot Regional Land Trust, and our pals at the town of Windham to celebrate the GRAND OPENING of the brand-new MTB downhill trail in Lowell Preserve, “Hung Down,” built by our friends at Mt. Abram, with a dedicated climbing trail (“Stove Up”) built by Sanctuary Trails. This work of art, loaded with Max Southam-built berms, rollers, jumps, gaps, flow, and rock gardens, is going to be an incredible addition to the Greater Portland riding scene and the first of two that will descend from a summit trail hub we’re called “Scholl’s Col” in memory of Greater Portland rider Michael Scholl, who passed in 2025. Join us at Scholl’s Col at 6:00 pm for a dedication with partners, donors, volunteers and supporters, and get your first laps on Hung Down. And if you missed our promo video we shot on Hung Down with our friends at the Hearts of Pine, be sure to check out the video on our Instagram!
Wednesday, June 24th @ 6:00 pm: Join us at Allspeed Cyclery for a film screening of the award-winning documentary about adaptive mountain biking, Best Day Ever. Best Day Ever follows the stories of adaptive mountain bikers Greg Durso and Allie Bianchi as they navigate the relentless challenges of their disabilities and embrace the tremendous support, friendship, and joy they find in their rural Vermont riding community. Allie and Greg navigate disability and regain independence with humor, attitude, and grit on mountain bike trails that dismantle ableism, build community, and become a blueprint for trails anywhere.
The goal with this event is to raise money and awareness around adaptive sports and adaptive trail building. Bring cash or your card because we’re going to be raffling off some sweet prizes, all proceeds go straight to our good friends at Maine Adaptive. Allspeed will have tasty beverages available at no cost courtesy of Orono Brewing, and food available to purchase from the Sal De La
Terra foodtruck.
Thursday, June 25th @ 5:30 pm: join us for our guided weekly group ride, this time at Lowell Preserve to tour the new Hung Down downhill trail & Stove Up climb trail loop, and the new Odyssey XC trail that just had a pile of work done on it by our volunteers & Gorham Bike & Ski last weekend. This’ll be your chance to get to know Lowell better, learn how to connect all the new trail we’ve built, and maybe learn how to connect it with East Windham & North Falmouth! Wheels roll at 5:40. Lowell is pretty technical by nature, but if you feel comfortable riding neighboring East Windham, you should feel comfortable riding Lowell. Hope you can join us!
