Trails are calling, cyclists must go

A win-win weekend it was when 647 young cyclists, their families and fans rolled onto Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Schneebeli Earth Science Center for a state competition hosted by the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Cycling League Sept. 7-8. After tackling miles of challenging, mountainside terrain, the youngsters rode off with memories, medals and Penn College swag. 

“We were very appreciative of the opportunity to host this at Penn College’s Earth Science Center,” said Joe A. Tavani, a coach with the local Lycoming Composite Mountain Biking team and an instructor of automotive, Honda PACT at the college. “This experience was a win-win for the league and for the college.”

To prepare for the statewide PICL event that attracted 64 teams, Tavani and fellow Lycoming Composite coach Jeremy Rusczyk, a 2008 Penn College civil engineering technology graduate, mapped out the competition course and built 3.8 miles of new trails with assistance from other coaches, team members and their parents. Their efforts were successful, with PICL riders commenting on the technicality, vista view, rock garden and elevation gain. 

The gathering was the first time a PICL competition had been held north of Pennsylvania’s Interstate 80, so the Penn College event site was a great source of pride for the local team. Typically, the local team travels to venues farther south in the state or in northern Maryland, so Tavani said: “It was nice to sleep at home!”

To host a competition, parking is the biggest challenge in finding a venue, according to the coach and automotive instructor.

The PICL cyclists, in grades 6-12, competed in eight races. Middle school student-athletes raced on Saturday, and the high school student-athletes competed on Sunday. The middle school racers completed between 4 to 6 miles with 250 feet of climbing per 2.1-mile laps. The high school course was 4 miles with 450 feet of elevation gain per lap (with cyclists completing two to four laps).

With five medals awarded for each race, there were a total of 40 podium spots. The Penn College Wildcat was on hand (and paw) to congratulate Sunday’s winners.

Other college staff welcoming and cheering on the visitors were: President Michael J. Reed; Chuck D. Crews Jr., assistant director for secondary partnerships; Sumer A. Beatty, associate director of marketing communications; and Carlos Ramos, director of strategic marketing. In addition to T-shirts, they distributed Penn College stickers and information and fielded numerous college-related questions from the engaged audience.

Located about 10 miles south of Penn College’s main campus in Williamsport, the Earth Science Center is home to 400-plus acres and the college’s forestry, horticulture, diesel, power generation and heavy equipment majors.

The next PICL state event is set for Sept. 14-15 at Granite Hill Camping Resort near Gettysburg. The league, which is divided into Eastern, Central and Western conferences, also holds conference competitions. 

Lycoming Composite has been involved with PICL since 2016. The league is a part of the National Interscholastic Cycling Association.