High above the Patapsco River, the School’s Out Event Loop travels through amazing landscapes and incorporates two bridges. The Pickall area has become a prime destination for trail users – away from the river and most informal parking areas, this section of the park remains uncrowded and retains its backcountry feel.
When Jon (Posner) and I started the Maryland Interscholastic Cycling League (MICL, a.k.a. NICA-MD) it was our dream to have Patapsco Valley State Park as an event venue. With both of us starting our mountain bike journeys in that park and riding those trails for the last 30+ years, it only made sense. Much to our dismay, it proved very difficult to find an area of the park that had a suitable sized infield for our event production, enough parking for hundreds of cars, and trails suitable for our beginner mountain bike student athletes.
I distinctly recall a local mountain bike friend, and father of a student athlete, say to us “if you had an event in PVSP, it would be a giant party for sure”. He wasn’t wrong, in the early days MICL most of our league lived in zip codes that border PVSP. Therefore, when Friends of Patapsco Valley State Park approached us about building a trail that could meet our student athlete needs, in an area of the park which had plenty of field space, and plenty of parking for hundreds of cars (Pickall), we didn’t hesitate to take them up on the offer…a short time later, the School’s Out Loop was opened.
Our first opportunity to use the Pickall area and the School’s Out Loop was in 2021, we decided we’d make it our State Finals race, and what an event it was! MICL has been to PVSP-Pickall every year since and I don’t feel I’m overstating it when I say that event has helped galvanize the culture of the MICL community. The venue has been nothing short of spectacular for MICL and we have the Friends of PVSP to thank.
If you haven’t been to a MICL event at Pickall, I highly encourage you to visit, it’s a giant party for sure!
Fred Powell
Co-Founder and former Co-Director of MICL
It’s no secret that High School and Middle School mountain bike teams have exploded in the Patapsco Valley! With several teams calling Patapsco Valley State Park home, we wanted to build a new loop, specifically for these student-athletes. The Pickall Area, which is open for events only and has ample parking and large pavilions, provides the perfect venue for our young stewards of the park.
