News/Events

Thursday Feb 19, Freedom Park Night Ride: CANCELLED due to rain overnight and continuing during the day today.  AND TRAILS CLOSED TO BIKES AS OF THURSDAY AFTERNOON.

*ALWAYS CHECK BACK HERE SHORTLY BEFORE EACH RIDE TO CONFIRM THE STATUS.

Night Ride Details:

All rides begin at 6:00 PM, but arrive early enough to get geared up, signed, & ready to roll by 6:00.  

2 lights required: usually one for your helmet & one on your bars.

These are group rides, so we'll decide as a group what route to take and (mostly) stick together with some stops to regroup.

We must be off the trails by 7:45 and out of the gates by 8:00 PM.

The weekly Wednesday retirees group ride (18 Feb) will be at Mariners Lake, 2 PM.

If you have any questions or want more info, EVMA members can reply to the most recent weekly e-mail.  Non-EVMA members can join us and get more info.

April 29-May 3, 2026, Stokesville (Harrisonburg VA area): Some rock & gnar, some flow, some shuttling, plenty of climbing.  Get your own campsite or rental house.  (Some of us already have houses.)

Sept 10-13, 2026, Allegrippis Trails @ Raystown Lake, PA: Flowy for mountains, beginners to intermediates friendly (but still some climbing & some rocks). Get your own campsite or rental house.  (Campground: Seven Points Campground preferred; March 10 is reservation date opening; Ridge camp 1^st choice, Meadow Camp 2nd.) or rental house.  Some of us have a rental house, and there are lots more nearby.

Oct 7-11, 2026, Pisgah/Dupont, NC: An epic destination.  Some flow, lots of rocky gnar, long descents after the climbs to get there.  E-bikes not permitted on most trails we’ll ride.  Get your own campsite or house.  Some of us already have rental houses.

It should be pretty nice weather this Saturday, so better get your ride in before it rains Sunday & Monday.

Join us for a group ride on Sat, Feb 14 at York River State Park.  10:30 AM start time to allow our friends from Southside, Gloucester, etc. not have to get up too early. (Please be ready to roll by 10:30.) Should be mid to high 40s by 10:30.  Meet in the main parking lot just past the pay station, by the restroom building.

Want to get push notifications when trails are closed due to weather/wet conditions?  James City County just added Freedom Park to their Rainout Line.  Sign up at the Rainout Line Website https://rainoutline.com/subscribe/notify/7572392002/0 and use the tabs to choose app, text, or e-mail alerts.  You can sign up to get alerts only for Freedom Park Trails A-E, or any JCC facilities that face weather closures.  (*This is ONLY for Freedom Park bike trail closures, but if Freedom trails are closed, we should avoid nearby trails like New Quarter, YRSP, Wahrani, Harwoods Mill, Mariners Lake, etc.)  You can also still call 757-259-4022 x1, or visit here: https://jamescitycountyva.gov/Facilities/Facility/Details/Freedom-Park-7.

Join us for trail work at New Quarter Park Saturday, Jan 3, 10:00 AM. Please arrive early so we can start at 10:00.

We plan to rebuild a berm at the 0.4m mark on the trail (left hand turn), and depending on turnout have a few other small projects to work on.  Bring work gloves and water; we'll have all the tools.  Bring your bike to ride into the work location and/or to ride afterwards. But be able to keep it locked up at your vehicle in case you end up walking in with tools.

Meeting location: overflow parking/race area along the park road.  The EVMA tool trailer will be there, so look for the EVMA banners/flags and park there.  We'll walk or ride bikes to the work locations.  Some people can ride in, others will walk/wheelbarrow in tools.

Meet a little before 10:30 to start rolling right at 10:30 AM, Wahrani Nature Trail.  Later than usual start time allows for temps to get above 40, and time for folks from further away to get there.

This Saturday, 11/08/25, 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, Conte’s Bike Shop is hosting a FREE bike demo day at Freedom Park.  Come test ride Santa Cruz & Cannondale bikes, both human-powered and e-bikes.  Conte's staff will set up the bikes to fit you.  For more info and/or to reserve a bike, call Conte's Williamsburg location at 757-903-0702.

(This event is all Conte's and not an EVMA event.  We're just passing on the info.)  

Join Wahrani Trail Captain Mike Benton to help build a short reroute on an increasingly eroding climb form the bottom of Loggers Ridge to almost the top of Slingshot.  We'll bring the tools and we can walk in from the parking lot (a pretty short walk).  We'll try to squeeze in a ride and/or lunch at 2 Drummers BBQ afterwards.

Charge up your lights, or support your local bike shop to buy some.  

• All night rides are GROUP RIDES for current EVMA members as agreed to with the parks.  The parks are only open for our groups to ride together; no solo riding.
• Starting November 4 through March 5, 2026.  Tuesdays @ Harwoods Mill; Wednesdays @ New Quarter Park; Thursday @ Freedom Park.
• All rides start at 6:00 PM sharp, so get there early to sign in and gear up.  We’ll be off the trails by 7:45 and all cars gone by 8:00 PM. 
• Rides are weather dependent.  If weather and/or trail conditions are questionable, we’ll communicate by e-mails and by posting on EVMA.org.  Always check one or both before the ride.
• New to night riding and have questions?  Reply to one of the EVMA weekly e-mails and we’ll square you away.  Let us know what you need to know.  We’re glad to help.
• Thanks to Newport News, York County, and James City County P&R for allowing these!