Over the past several years, CMC has evolved through multiple iterations. Catskills Moto Club started as tongue-in-cheek moniker for a transient group of folks who found themselves riding together in the Catskills under the socially distant shadows of the COVID era. Eventually the ‘club’ became a less transient core group of riders and a little less tongue in cheek. Over the past two years, it was evident that Catskills Moto Club needed some sort of headquarters that isn’t Jake’s garage. So the search started for some place for us to call home.
In February of 2026, we identified a spot in Stamford, NY that is literally feet from some of our most frequently visited spots along Main Street. It is an old barn owned by Village, which it no longer had any use for and was/is in dire need of some TLC. After an initial round of due diligence, we decided that it might just work. We went under contract in the first week of March, hoping to close by early summer and be able to spend the summer making it our own.
As fate would have it, the process dragged and dragged. Dealing with a municipality always takes a little bit longer. But red tape aside, everything that could go wrong, did. By the end of August, when we still hadn’t closed, and did not have a clear picture where the status of things even stood, we were starting to lose hope that the deal would actually happen.
It was about that time, that Szabi and I were taking the maiden ride on our new (to us) XT600s. We made a stop in Stamford to say hi to our boy Sal (a fellow rider) at Catskill Outpost, and to show him the bikes. Jake started complaining about how long it was taking to purchase the barn, and Sal replied with something like, “I know dude, you were on the front page of the paper this week.” At first we thought he was joking, but then we was like, “no dude, really” before running next door to grab the latest edition of Mountain Eagle. We were initially dumbfounded, since we clearly had not yet closed on the thing. But apparently the Village had finally officially voted on the sale and it was approved!
We are very happy to report that we finally sealed the deal last Thursday. Now that the ‘easy’ part is over, the real work starts. This barn is going to take A LOT of work to get it back in good working order. As things start to take shape at our new HQ, we have a long list of ideas that include the broader local riding community (and community generally). We will be sharing them when the time is right. Very happy to be the proud new owners of this humble structure. Here’s to its potential!
