Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/1525821
September 2024 9 Levels of difficulty are iden fied by the "Chili Pep- per System" with one chili for a technical sec on and up to five chili's for the AA class riders look- ing to test their skills, and limits while increasing their bragging rights. The event is based out of "Fireman's Field" a beau ful sports park located right on the banks of the Delaware River in the town of Hancock, New York. The town is quaint with plenty to do and boasts the most excellent fishing. The locals embrace the event as it does wonders for the community with proceeds going directly to the Hancock Fire Department. As someone who has ridden and raced Hancock quite a bit over the last five years, I greatly look forward to my visits to this beau ful part of the world. As with last year's event, I'd arrived two days early and just relaxed while staying at a local motel, the Smith's Colonial just a couple miles north of Fireman's Field. I'm a bit of a people person and once se led in, I enjoyed a nice meal at the Hancock Hotel, a wonderfully restored old three-story ho- tel with a nice bar and restaurant located within. With a full belly and three days of an cs awai ng, I'm thankful for the nice night's sleep during my stay at the Smith's Colonial. Friday morning, I'd arrived at Fireman's field and set up camp amongst friends I'd met at the Quarry Run in years past along with some of my AHRMA race buds. Last year, I was invited to join a group of friends on a kayak adventure the day before the event where we paddled a dozen miles south of Hancock to the artsy village of Lordville. Although the sport of kaya- king was new to me, I greatly enjoyed that a ernoon and was happy to be invited once again. In order to mix things up a bit, we trucked the boats 12 miles upstream and spent the next 5 hours paddling down the Delaware while taking in the beau ful scenery. Who knew your fuel-guzzling editor Kurt would enjoy paddling, but I've got to tell you, I had a blast and hope to join these fine folks on their annual Quarry Run tradi on for years to come. My ride of choice for this year's event was my new '24 KTM 300 XC-W. Now I have ridden this bike a handful of mes since taking delivery but I'd yet to do an event of this magnitude with it and I'll be honest, I had a bit of new bike ji ers. It took about 10 miles before I began to gel with my new ride. Hancock is gnarly with endless loose rocks and roots. As a bonus, the area had experienced torren al downpours the night before to challenge us even further.