Coffee With: Mick Ferraro of the New England Mountain Bike Association

By Carl Wiser

Staff writer

"Mountain biking isn't punk rock anymore," says Mick Ferraro of the New England Mountain Bike Association (NEMBA). "It's a very mainstream sport now. You show up prepared, you go on group rides, you hang out afterwards. The vibe is: I'm here to raise my cortisol levels, talk to people, be outside, hear the sounds, maybe see a bear. It's 'let's have fun.'"

Doing what I love at the Satan's Ridge trail network in New Hartford. (supplied)

That's good news for those of us with high-deductible health plans whose daredevil days on two wheels are behind us but still want to ride. The NEMBA chapters organize group rides where 30 bikers of various skill levels might show up. Unlike road biking, there are different tracks and trails that lead to the finish, so the hard-core bikers can tackle the toughest terrain and the more casual riders can go easier.

"We have a ride leader and a ride sweep, and along the way we split up by skill level," Ferraro explains. "You might have a group that says, 'We're going to do three miles and stop to play.' Then you've got five people who want to drop the hammer and go fast. In the middle group, they might go eight miles, stopping to take in the scenery but going fast at times."

The "ride sweep" takes up the rear, offers advice and encouragement, and makes sure no rider is left behind. That's usually Ferraro's role.

Where To Ride

There are a lot of great trails in the area. Here's what Ferraro recommends by skill level:

Beginner:

Cowles Park in Granby

"There are great low-level, twisty trails where you can really learn to ride, with access roads and some entry-level features to test your skills. That's your green run, like in skiing. The town of Granby owns it, and they've done a great job of maintaining and signing the trails. There's very good parking and it's close to everything."

Intermediate:

Sessions Woods in Burlington

"More contiguous trail, a little more challenging, a real next step up. It has great parking, so it's a really popular place to meet up."

Advanced:

Nepaug State Forest in New Hartford

"A newer trail network and extremely difficult. It's drawing people from all over New England. It's a small parcel of land, but it's unique: really rocky, really steep and punchy. It truly tests your technical ability."

Growth of the Sport

Many bikers started during COVID (when we all needed to get outside) and have stuck with it. And a lot of kids have gotten into it. The community should grow next year when the pump track at 55 Lawton Road in Canton is completed. "It's going to fit everyone from kids on strider bikes up to people who really want to work on their skills," says Ferraro. "It's like a playground or skate park for bikes."

And thanks to e-bikes, which are part of the landscape now, there are many older riders on the trails.

"I work with a guy who is 82 and he's still mountain biking," Ferraro says. "He rides 15 miles. He's not jumping off anything, but he doesn't care. He just wants to be outside, pedal his bike, and have the fellowship. The e-bike is a game changer. For older riders or those with injuries or health concerns, it can level the playing field."

With Gov. Ned Lamont and CT DEEP Director of the Office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences Jeff Shaw at Mohawk Mountain. (supplied)

Mick's Journey

Ferraro grew up in Maryland and went to Greensboro College in North Carolina, where he played soccer and tennis. His two older brothers got him into competitive riding.

"I was riding in college, and then in 1996 I did my first 24-hour race in West Virginia with my brothers. The three of us just started organically racing bikes together, going on trips to Sedona, all through West Virginia. Then we rode from D.C. to Pittsburgh. The bike just became part of our lives and brought us together - it still does. My little sister too - she did all the 24-hour races with us. We had this whole community around mountain biking. It was awesome."

Ferraro wasn't interested in turning pro. "I was always 'party pace,'" he says. "We were always there for a good time. There were a couple of times where we thought we were going to win, but then we'd say, 'Nah, this is too much fun.' I was fast - I raced some 100-mile races, I did stage races in Breckenridge - but I never raced to win. I wanted to test myself. If I finished, that was cool. That's been my ethos with mountain biking."

For his livelihood, Ferraro worked at marketing and PR firms. He was living in Charlotte when he met Mia, whom he married in 2004. She's from Simsbury, which Mick fell in love with on visits to see her family. "Every time we went outside, there were people riding, people hiking, ice skating, skiing. I thought it was amazing."

Speaking at the Governor's announcement for the creation of the Office of Outdoor Industry and Experiences, a new state office in Connecticut. (supplied)

They lived in Westchester, South Norwalk and Westport before moving to Simsbury in 2019, where they live with their 16-year-old twin boys, Hudson and Hendrix. ("Hudson is a family name. And we were driving one day when a Jimi Hendrix song came up on the radio display, and we thought, 'That's cool.'") The twins don't mountain bike.

"I think I damaged them," Ferraro says. "I used to drag them in a trailer when they were babies, and they were doing races, but then they became really accomplished snowboarders. They lived in Vermont for the last five seasons training and have traveled around the world - been more places than me."

Ferraro became a member of NEMBA in 2006, and in 2021 he joined their staff as Director of Membership and Outreach. "It's tricky when you marry passion and profession, but how lucky am I?" he says. "It's allowed me to travel all across the country, helped me stay fit, and modeled great behavior for my kids. My kids are outdoor people now."

At BeanZ in Avon, we got to know Mick better with these "Coffee With" questions.

Besides mountain biking, what do you like to do when you're not working?

My wife and I love to hike and snowshoe - we've really gotten into snowshoeing this past season. Snowboarding and skiing, we love to do that. I feel like everything we like to do is outside.

We also love to travel whenever we can. The boys are starting to drive now, so that's changing things. I like to work outside, landscape, and Mia and I are obsessed with constantly improving the house - that's like a therapy session for us.

What are your favorite places in the area?

Snowshoeing at Ethel Walker Woods. When you go down by Stratton Brook, there's hiking in there and you can go all the way through. It doesn't get a lot of traffic, so it's kind of unspoiled. We love to meander back there.

For food, we're big Saybrook Fish House fans. I love Zohara over in West Hartford, and J. René Coffee. I'm a bit of a coffee snob, and he's the best when it comes to coffee.

And for art, I love the Hill-Stead Museum. They have one of the best art collections in the country.

Mick Ferraro at BeanZ in Avon. (Carl Wiser)

What's a hidden talent of yours?

Mick: I'm an artist. My mom was a high school art teacher for 35 years and is an incredibly talented pastel portrait artist. My oldest brother has a degree in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art - the things he can paint are unbelievable. My other brother, a year older than me, has a degree in photography and has an eye for everything. When I was in college I took a ton of painting classes, and I have a lot of my own paintings up in the house, but I don't think anyone who knows me would ever guess that. I paint abstract acrylics, mostly. I like to move paint around. Every once in a while I can do a portrait if I sit down and take my time, but I like big-scale acrylic paintings. I couldn't escape the art gene.

What are some of your injuries?

Mountain biking is inherently dangerous, but I have not been hurt too badly. Some broken bones, elbows, hands. My wrists and thumbs don't really work anymore. But luckily, I'm still in one piece.

Tell me about your most memorable ride.

The Southern Traverse. It's an old Civil War thoroughfare in Virginia - around Harrisonburg - where the troops would traverse the mountains. We did it as a group of about 10, and it was roughly 58 miles - an all-day ride. We stopped high up on the Appalachian Trail for lunch, walked through history. We even picked up a guy who got lost and brought him in. When we finished we rode into this little town, sat down, and had an unbelievable meal.

I also rode from D.C. to Pittsburgh in four days with my brother. We had to make it to a cousin's wedding. It ended up being about 110 miles a day and it poured rain the entire time. You just had to dig deep.

What was a transformative moment that led you down your path?

Mick: The 24-hour races in West Virginia. Everybody in my family would rally together: people riding at night, everyone cheering you on, someone handing you food. It got so big that we went from just me and my brothers and sister on one team to having three teams, with our friends' families coming out. You could see it was so much more than riding and racing.

It was four-person teams. Me, my brothers, and my sister on the first one, then I'd call a college buddy, he'd get a guy, my brother-in-law would ride, my father-in-law, and suddenly we had three teams. Everybody was bringing their partners, their kids, their grandparents. It was this palpable environment of fun where everybody wanted to be a part of it.

To get on a group ride, join either the Central CT or Northwest CT chapter of NEMBA at nemba.org. Many of the local bike shops also organize rides and can help you gear up.