Grinduro returns to Sullivan County for more stellar riding and party vibes in 2023: June 9 -11
The unique format of Grinduro comes to the Endless Mountain region of Pennsylvania! Join us in Forksville, for a weekend of good times as we rattle and hum along pioneer roads through historic logging towns, covered bridges, scenic vistas and take logging trails deep into the forests along a 70 mile route that combines the best elements of a mountain bike enduro with a gravel grinder-style road race. Festivities include an impressive display of art and music, excellent food, great people and camping!
Grinduro PA is organized by the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Cycling League, and proceeds from the event go directly back to PAMTB to support their important work.
FRIDAY JUNE 10
12:00PM - Gates Open at Sullivan County Fairgrounds
1:00PM - 9:00PM - Grinduro Village Vendors Open
1:00 - 8:00PM - Registration open @ Race Control
3:00PM - 9:00PM - Food Vendors & New Trail Beer Garden Open
4:00 - 6:00PM - Prologue Stage open to riders
6:00PM - 8:00PM - Live Music: Van Wagner
7:00PM - Prologue Awards @ Main Stage
SATURDAY JUNE 11
6:30AM - 8:30AM - Registration open @ Race Control
6:30AM - 8:30AM - Breakfast @ Grinduro Village
8:45AM - Rider Briefing @ Start/Finish Line
9:00AM - Mass Start for Grinduro & Grindurito
12:00PM - 3:00PM - Riders Lunch - On Course
1:00PM - 10:00PM - Vendors Open - Grinduro Village
3:00PM - 7:00PM - Photo Booth Open - Grab your portraits at the Giro Booth!
5:00PM - 6:00PM - Kids Bike Rodeo @ Grinduro Village
6:00PM - 7:00 - Log Pull Challenge @ Grinduro Village
6:00PM - 8:00PM - Riders' Dinner @ Grinduro Village
7:00PM - Awards Ceremony - Main Stage
7:00PM - 9:00PM - Bike Polo @ Grinduro Village
8:00PM - 10:00PM - Live Music: Top Shelf - Main Stage
SUNDAY JUNE 12
7:00AM - 9:30AM - Breakfast - Grinduro Village
9:00AM - Hangover Ride w/ komoot rolls out from the village
1:00PM - Check Out / Gates Close
Known as the "Gem of the Endless Mountains," Sullivan County is a unique area with beautiful state parks, (Ricketts Glen and Worlds End), breathtaking waterfalls, scenic vistas, small villages, natural lakes, quaint shops and a rich heritage that draws people to its region. In addition, the covered bridges located in Forksville, Hillsgrove and Sonestown are entered in the National Register of Historic Places.
Whether graced by spring pastels, summer greens, autumn hues or newly fallen winter snow, Sullivan County's mountains are profoundly beautiful. You’ll probably want to avoid the Hellbenders in the creek and Sasquach and the Stinging Nettles in the forest, but choose your own adventure!
For most people, it is hard to fathom just how sparsely populated Sullivan County is, which makes it a perfect place for amazing riding of all kinds. You’ll only have to worry about running into 13 other people within a square mile of you, except on Grinduro weekend of course! Laporte, the county seat, is perched atop the Appalachian Plateau at an elevation of 2,060 feet. You’ll get that high and higher traversing the Grinduro’s ridges and valleys.
Some special places to include in your visit to Sullivan County:
Looking for the nearest airport to Grinduro Pennsylvania? Here's your options (click the link for directions to Forksville):
Grinduro is a bike race ridden at a social pace. Riders take on the 70 mile all-terrain loop that can include anything from muddy singletrack, to gravel fire roads and pavement sections. Four timed segments on the route add a competitive element but overall timings are based on these segments alone so you’re free to ride between stages at a conversational pace.
But Grinduro is not just a bike race. It’s a weekend-long celebration of cycling with as much emphasis on the post-ride party as the race itself, with excellent food, the world’s biggest bike brands, live music, camping and a festival atmosphere.
The fun starts on Friday afternoon with the Prologue, a chance to dial-in your ride and race your buddies on the special stage for some top prizes! Chill out on Friday night with food and live music, or take a browse around our pop-up brand expo.
Saturday is the big one: 70 miles (37 miles for Grindurito riders), 4 timed stages, epic riding, stunning views, good times! 3 wholesome meals are included in your entry, along with the loudest post-ride party in Pennsylvania!
On Sunday morning, komoot will take you out on their Hangover Ride - a laid back spin around the Endless Mountains for those of you who didn't party too hard the night before!
As you leave the fairgrounds, you leave regular life behind. This is by far, the lowest population density of anywhere in PA and possibly across the whole east coast so you're more likely to see black bear and whitetail deer than people out here. Anticipation builds as jagged peaks of the Endless Mountains come into view.
Grinduro! Features almost 70 miles of rugged mountain trails, atmospheric woodland, soaring peaks, historic roofed bridges and trails aplenty with four timed races stages. Pennsylvania is quickly becoming one of the USA's must ride destinations, with trails ranging from steep and technical to fast and flowing. In other words, it’s the perfect location to host the perfect Grinduro!
If that sounds like a little too much to chew, or you just want a taster of the Grinduro! experience, then there is always the Grindurito! A fun non-competitive 37-mile ride (not timed/scored) with that same fabulous cruise back through Worlds End and same great party finish.
Grinduro features four timed enduro-style stages to race for victory. These demand everything from the participants and the faster overall will achieve podium glory!
The rest of the Grinduro course is untimed, meaning you can ride as fast or as relaxed as you choose... Hang out with your friends, relax at our many and varied feed stations, chill at the beer stop. Or just go hard all day!
Stage 1 Rolling Time Trial
It’s up, it’s down, it’s up again! Pace yourself for the win.
4 miles +225ft
Stage 2 Steep Hill Climb
Short n’ nasty. With a false summit sucker punch
0.78 miles, +475ft
Stage 3 Gravel Descent
Gravity will take you to the bottom for sure, but you’ll still need pedal power to own this stage!
2,95 miles, -475ft
Stage 4 Singletrack Descent, Climbing Finale
Loose n’ rocky, with a couple o’ cheeky streams to cross before a final lung buster climb to the finish.
1.10 miles, +125ft / -150ft
Grinduro PA will accommodate all entries from Women and Open Gender riders. We'll even extend our entry limit to fit you in. Guaranteed. Spread the word, encourage new people to register, and let's make Grinduro the best party to ever hit PA!
The Grinduro course features a blend of pavement, dirt road, gravel road and singletrack.
Be cool, have fun and enjoy the ride. Those are the rules!
For those of you who need things spelled-out, here you have it…
Welcome Campers! Camping areas are located stumbling distance from the Grinduro Village, so you’ll be able to easily get back to your tent after letting loose at the party.
Showers are available within the camp grounds.
Absolutely no fires of any kind (including gas fire pits) are permitted anywhere at Sullivan County Fairgrounds. Some gas fire pits may be located in the Grinduro Village. These are pre-approved, can only be operated by event staff, and will only be used if deemed safe by local officials at the time of the event.
Please respect our neighbors and keep noise to a minimum after 10pm.
Please only park in the designated Grinduro parking areas. Do not park along the road at the fairgrounds or on the nearby neighborhood streets.
If your four legged best bud is here at Grinduro with you, please respect these rules:
Be sure to clean up absolutely everything in your campsite. Please be diligent and leave nothing behind, there will be a dumpster on site for you to dispose of all garbage and recyclables.
Life is about more than riding a bike. So we offer a great music festival. So prepare for a good party with craft beer, marshmallows at the camp fire and hearty food!
FRIDAY NIGHT
Van Wagner - acoustic music session to keep you chill before the big ride.
SATURDAY NIGHT
Top Shelf - Pennsylvania's Premiere Variety Band, playing a great mix of familiar dance tunes from the best decades in Rock & Roll along with some legendary country radio classics!
We believe that bike riders’ health, attitude and performance is directly related to the foods that they eat, so we have amazing food planned for the weekend. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all included with race entry. For the rest of the weekend we will have various vendors on site selling food.
We’ll have a podium awards ceremony on the main stage in the Grinduro Village on Saturday evening. The top three finishers of each category will be brought onto the stage for their moment of glory. In addition to fame and bragging rights, each winner will take home a little something special.
THE BEST BIKE: You can ride any type of pedal-driven bicycle (no electric-pedal assist!), although we recommend a cyclocross bike or gravel bike for the Grinduro and Grindurito course. The ultimate setup is probably a disc brake-equipped cyclocross/gravel bike with fast-rolling, tubeless clincher tires.
MECHANICALS: Be prepared to fix any mechanicals you might encounter out on course. We recommend riding with at least two extra tubes, tubeless tire plugs, a multi-tool, and mini-pump.
CLOTHING: You never know what late spring will bring to the Endless Mountains region of Pennsylvania, so come prepared to ride in as low as 40 degrees and upwards to 80 degrees. Weather is generally predictable so check the forecast before leaving the Shire.
FUEL: There will be feed zones (and an excellent lunch!), but smart riders will bring at least two water bottles and their favorite nutritional supplies.
SHOES/PEDALS: You can ride this loop in road shoes with road pedals, but we recommend mountain bike pedals and shoes for their versatility.
PROTECT Yinz Skull: Don’t take the start line without a helmet on!
Grinduro Pennsylvania's Handmade Bike Show is hosted by the Philly Bike Expo. PBE has been wooing crowds with it's display of handmade bikes since 2010, but it is more than just a show of steel, it represents the full spectrum of cycling and promotes cycling culture.
Philly Bike Expo will bring a little of their magic to Grinduro PA, showcasing examples of what has made PBE one of the largest cycling trade shows in the USA, which draws in 5,000 attendees... We're not expecting anywhere near that many fans descending on Forksville this June, but we'll keep the beer cool. Just in case.
On display will be a handpicked selection of some the finest craftspeople in the handbuilt cycling industry, showcasing their personal vision of the perfect Grinduro bike. In addition to the handmade bike exhibit, we’ll have work on display from some of our favorite artists, photographers and craftsmen. The Grinduro Art Exhibit is basically a curated collection of our favorite, mostly-bike-related things. It’s two parts handmade bicycle display, one part art exhibit, one part independent craft fair and one part bike shop.
Join the inner circle of the Grinduro Planning Squad (GPS!) by volunteering. There will be lots of fun volunteer opportunities available, including course marshals, beer pourers, packet pickup assistance, aid station support, podium helpers, dance party starters, and much, much more. Grinduro wouldn’t happen without the help of all you amazing volunteers out there, so THANKS!
Grinduro volunteers receive the following perks for helping us pull this event together, all while having one helluva good time:
Grinduro today to put more kids on bikes tomorrow. Grinduro PA is hosted by a consortium of Sullivan County organizations with organizational support from the PA Interscholastic Cycling League (PICL) and the Lycoming County PICL Team, and all proceeds from the event go to support the work being done by these organizations and to building cycling in the region.
A portion of the proceeds will be dedicated to the continued growth of the Lycoming Team and to support a fund for the development of PA League teams and events in the Endless Mountains, PA Wilds, and across the northern tier of PA.
PICL is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and a member league of the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) with a mission to build strong mind, body, character, and community through cycling. The PA League is building teams across Pennsylvania, getting kids outside and on bikes enjoying PA’s amazing trails, and poised to welcome thousands more kids and hundreds of more communities to the sport in the coming years.
Love what we’re up to and want to support these efforts more? Please visit, https://www.pamtb.org/donate.
Bringing the family, but worried they might get bored while you are having a good time? Heck, Sullivan County has so much going on, they might end up having a better time than you! Just kidding.
The creek right across from the Grinduro Village is definitely a place to do some stomping, floating, n' fishing. It is easy to spend some hours in there with kids who love that sort of thing.
If you're into the outdoors though, you don't want to pass up Worlds End State Park on your visit. Grinduro PA's race director has been vacationing with his family at Worlds End for years - as a kid and now as a parent with teenagers - it is about a mile up the creek from the Grinduro Village.
The creek is full of rounded rocks beaten into submission from the flowing water over the last millenia or so...From pebbles to boulders, it is great for skipping stones, seeing what rocks make what colors of rock paint, looking under them for critters, chucking big ones in for giant splashes to get mom or dad wet, stacking them up, or damning up your own little spot in the water.
The road between the fairgrounds where Grinduro calls home and the Worlds End park is pretty lightly traveled, depending on the ages of the kids, definitely not a bad ride or a very short drive.
The park offers a designated swimming area with some sandy space, an ice cream vendor, and a section of the creek along some cliffs with some fun swift water and 'sliding rocks' to play in and on. Closer to the cabins, the "old swimming hole" usually offers some rock chutes that other campers create -though spring waters can erase these as they move the rocks around - either way, bring your tubes!
The park abounds with really good hiking trails too. High Rock is one of our favorite go-tos. It gets steep and rocky, gets you to a sweet vista, and is about 2 miles around it, from the main park parking lot back around to the same spot. Our suggestion, hike it clockwise. Even with little kids we could get through it in an hour or so, though if they are really little it gets steep and rocky enough that you might want to keep the whole family together so the big ones can help/keep an eye on the little ones.
Double Run Trail is another favorite. It takes you along a feeder for the Loyalsock that is always exhilaratingly cool and offers some beautiful falls alongside the trail. Easy to spend an hour on it. The lower loop is much easier to navigate than High Rock. The upper loop is more strenuous, but does offer the biggest falls on the hike.
The hike to Canyon Vista is longer and more challenging and runs from the park campground to our final aid point on the Grinduro course. Worlds End is an out and back right from the day use area that takes you to yet another vista along the old Pioneer Road.
You'll pass through the State Park toward the end of your ride too - definitely possible to meet the family there and chill for a bit. If that sounds like fun, you'll want to keep in mind that there is not a bit of cell coverage in the park, though you can find some when you hike to high points.
The Park's visitor center is worth a visit too. Stuffed critters abound. With being there on the weekend, it is likely that the park will be running some family friendly activities too. The park's site offers this coming week's programs as an example of what you might find there on event weekend -- check out the right side of the page: Park Info on DCNR.
Whether the family just sticks close and crosses the road to the creek or makes their way up creek to Worlds End, yes, lots of great outdoors fun to be had on or off the bike.
Grinduro Full Route
Grindurito Half Route
Friday Prologue
Sunday Hangover Ride
