2021 Circumburke Challenge Cancelled

Conceived in 2010, the Circumburke Trail Challenge is a 27-mile backcountry course for trail runners and mountain bikers to test their limits. The event was produced in partnership between Victory Hill and Kingdom Trails. Traditionally, Circumburke has been a one-day event that circumnavigates Burke Mtn. on a route through state land, Kingdom Trails, the Victory Hill Sector, and Burke Mountain singletrack. Participants have embraced the intense physical and mental challenge that the course offers. Multiple times CircumBurke had been voted “Best Bicycle Race in Vermont” by Vermont Sports Readers, plus it brought over 600 racers, as well as their families and friends to the area, as the goal of the event was to help provide economic support to the region during the Fall tourist shoulder season. 

Kingdom Trails believes it is necessary to avoid the potential adverse impact the event could have due to the continued uncertainty surrounding the request for an Act 250 Jurisdictional Opinion, JO, currently pending on the Victory Hill Sector trails. In 2020 and this year, the event was planned to be produced solely by KTA, as part of the Challenge route passes through a section of the Victory Hill trails, an integral section of the course that has been closed to bikes for more than two years due to an Act 250 JO issued by Vermont’s Natural Resources Board. The Natural Resource Board has reserved the possibility of pursuing an enforcement action against Victory Hill, if the CircumBurke event passes through their trails. Victory Hill regrets not being able to host this wonderful end-of-season tradition. Despite this setback, Victory Hill and Kingdom Trails are hopeful that the CircumBurke race will return to the Northeast Kingdom in coming years.

Kingdom Trails is also extremely proud of our recent efforts to support our mission driven events and programs. We have been dedicating our time and energy to educational efforts such as our code of conduct Ride With Gratitude, Race Back to School, the KT Kids Rides, the Kingdom East School District Summer Camp, along with so much more. Although we understand CircumBurke was part of our mission, to foster the health and vitality of our regional economy, we know producing the event would potentially cause stress and strain on the community that so generously hosts our trails.

Kingdom Trails is grateful to know there are other cycling events in the Kingdom during the Fall. We do not wish to take away from these already scheduled events by hosting CircumBurke. Our hope is that past CircumBurkers will still consider visiting the NEK and participating in all our region has to offer.

KTA wishes to thank all Circumburkers and our communities for understanding the decision to cancel the event. At this time Kingdom Trails is not sure if we’re saying a true CircumBye, rather just taking a CircumBreak, and maybe one day it will be CircumBACK! (Sorry, we can’t help ourselves!)