Shadows dance as lights bounce through the woods on a cold, dark autumn night making every root, rock, mud puddle, and tree branch seem to come alive. Now that daylight-saving time is behind us and the sun drops below the horizon well before 5 p.m., most mountain bikers have given up on the idea of an after-work ride through the woods.

For some however, it is the beginning of a new season of off road adventures: night riding.

Riding a mountain bike through the woods at night might sound like pushing an already classified "extreme sport" just a bit beyond reasonable bounds, but there are a lot of reasons to give it a try.

First of all, it will make your daytime riding better. Lights make every bump look bigger, every steep seem steeper; and every corner becomes a complete unknown. It is a true test of your technical riding skills. There is nothing fast about it, except how fast you hit the ground after misjudging an obstacle.

Besides making you a better rider, it will provide you with some great scenery. Wildlife is more active at night, making the chance of seeing raccoons, deer and moose more likely. Watch out for the little critters like skunks and porcupines, however, who could, if caught by surprise, cut your ride dreadfully short.The best part about night riding is the change of routine.

"You can go to the same place and do the same ride all year long in the daylight, but going there at night makes it a completely different ride." says Steve Gioacchini, 35 of Burlington. Steve has been riding at night ever since he started mountain biking in 1989. Even before he had a bike light he would go for rides during clear, full-moon nights. "I have a hard time getting off my bike; I'm addicted."

Maneuvering his full-suspension Klein mountain bike over a fallen tree, Randy Hill, 31 also of Burlington, says, "It makes the easy stuff look hard." Hill started night riding in the early '90s. "Good bike lights were just starting to come out and sometimes there just wasn't enough time in the day," said Hill, who at the time, was working 12-hour days at a bike shop in Buffalo, N.Y.

Sounds like fun, right? It is, and it's real easy to get started once you know a few simple things.

The inexpensive toy-store lights and generator sets we had as kids are fine for making you more visible to traffic, but a true nighttime off-road adventure requires some serious candlepower.

With the growing popularity of night riding comes an increasing number of manufacturers offering a variety of lighting options.

The first thing you need to decide is whether you want a handlebar-mounted light or a helmet-mounted light. Most serious off-road night riders have both. From there the options can be dizzying: single or double beams, NiCad or NiMH batteries, digital or analog systems - and it doesn't stop there.

Some of the newest lights are using the technology seen in the latest Mercedes and Lexus headlights. These systems, called HID lights, which stands for high intensity discharge, use lower wattage than standard Halogen bulbs but emit a brighter, more even, white light.

Most lights have variable settings, offering a variety of brightness and battery run time. The brighter the light, the shorter the run time of the battery.

The last thing to keep in mind is the cost. Be prepared when you go shopping. The prices will give you as much of a headache as staring directly into one of these lights. You can expect to spend between $100 and $500 for a single light. One of the best things about these systems is that the good ones come with chargers and battery packs that, if cared for properly, will last a long time under some fairly strenuous conditions.

A quality bike shop will be able to take some of the headache of shopping away by showing you lots of options and answering any questions about the different lighting systems available for the type of riding you want to do. They might also be able to hook you up with some fellow night riders to take you out on a dark and wooded adventure.

Now grab some friends and go out and enjoy the night like never before. Just remember that as the days get shorter, the nights get colder, so dress for excess, shed layers as needed and keep an eye out for glowing sets of eyes.

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UVM hockey coach retires after 19 years

- By Patrick Garrity --- Free Press Staff Writer --- Saturday, May 17, 2003

Mike Gilligan steered the University of Vermont men's hockey program through two decades, from the soaring heights of the national semifinals to the heartbreaking depths of a canceled season.

That stewardship ended Friday morning when the stoic coach stepped down after 19 seasons and 614 games.

Gilligan, 55, leaves as one of college hockey's all-time leaders in coaching victories and is only one of three men to coach the Catamounts in their 40-year history. He will take a position as a special assistant to the school's new athletic director, Bob Corran, focusing on fund-raising and development.

"All I wanted to do was get the team to a point where I think it was comfortable to give it to somebody else," Gilligan said. "I think it's in that position right now."

"Personally, I'm really happy he's going to stay with us," Corran said. "It will enable us to bridge to the next coach and next staff and also to the plans we want to put in place to really jump up the program to the next level."

Gilligan's decision is the latest and most significant in a month of upheaval for the UVM athletic department.

Two weeks ago, women's basketball coach Keith Cieplicki bolted for Syracuse. Last week, Corran's hiring ended a four-month search for Rick Farnham's successor as athletic director. Ski director Chip LaCasse and track and field coach Ed Kusiak each completed 30-year tenures at the school year's end.

The changes come as UVM has renewed its commitment to the athletic program, underscored by president Dan Fogel's public comments and Corran's lofty $140,000 salary. Gilligan's departure leaves a vacancy at the helm of the school's flagship team.

The Catamounts draw 4,000 fans on winter nights to Gutterson Fieldhouse for each home game. The waiting list for season tickets remains long and stubborn. Seven former Catamounts have gone on to skate in the National Hockey League. Two, John LeClair and Aaron Miller, played in the 2002 Winter Olympics.

"It's a very important program to the university, to the community and to the entire state of Vermont," said Jeff Schulman, assistant athletic director and a former defenseman under Gilligan. "So, while we're going to try to move quickly to get this finished, we're going to be very thorough."

Gilligan's teams won 279 games, played in three NCAA tournaments and reached the Final Four in 1996 behind stars Martin St. Louis, Eric Perrin and Tim Thomas. But the Catamounts have struggled recently. The 13-20-3 record this winter marked the team's sixth consecutive losing campaign, a period scarred by a hazing scandal that resulted in the cancellation of the 1999-2000 season.

"I know a lot of people who gave up their season tickets because they'd had enough," said Scott Boyson, a hockey fan from Milton. "I think the change is good. They've got to get that enthusiasm back."

Through the unprecedented highs and joyless lows, Gilligan remained the program's anchor. Quiet and private, the native of Beverly, Mass., became known for his cool demeanor and measured public comments. He also came to be revered by many of the young men who skated for him.

"He's a big reason why I went to UVM," said Miller, an All-American defenseman in the early 1990s who stars in the NHL for the Los Angeles Kings. "A lot of times, a coach is just a coach, but he's a friend of mine."

"He's been a role model for many of the players," said junior captain Brady Leisenring, "a guy you know you can go to when you have a problem."

Gilligan pointed to the professional success of players like Miller, St. Louis and John LeClair and the 1996 NCAA tournament win over Lake Superior State as highlights. He said, however, he would like to remembered for other accomplishments.

"We tried to give kids, every kid we brought in, a pretty good shot. When I brought a kid in and I made a commitment to that kid, we lived up to it," he said. "That's one thing we did pretty well.

"The other thing we did is show the kids that treating people a certain way was important, that it was important to maintain some dignity, some respect for people. I thought our guys always did a fabulous job in that way."
Free Press Sports Editor Ted Ryan contributed to this report. Contact Patrick Garrity at 660-1868 or pgarrity@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com
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