The MoCo Epic is a festival celebrating mountain biking, trails, and the community that makes this region a great place to ride!

In the mid-90's, mountain bikers were looking for places to ride in Montgomery County. Thanks to the efforts of dedicated advocates, the White Trail in Schaeffer was built and open to bikes. Mountain bikers realized that getting more trails on the ground would require a concerted effort, trail building knowledge, and volunteers willing to swing tools and move dirt. MORE members got to work! With the help of thousands of volunteers, partners, and supporters over the years, we now have an amazing network of natural surface trails in the county.

In 2009, a group of MORE members had the idea of linking natural surface trail systems together, creating a supported, "epic" off-road bike ride, the MoCo Epic. Each year, proceeds are invested back into local trails to expand and improve places to recreate in the region.

Saturday, October 11

Skills clinics for all ages
Youth and family rides
Gravity Soul Jump Jam
Packet pick-up
Community dinner for campers

Sunday, October 12

Epic Rides (Adaptive, 10, 20, 30, 40, 55, 70, and 100-mile options)
Awesome, community-led aid stations
Festival with food trucks, local craft beer, and a DJ

New this year: CAMPING!

We will be opening up limited RV and tent camping spots from Saturday, October 11 to Monday, October 13. You can reserve a spot once registration opens on July 1. MoCo Epic participants are also welcome to book campsites at Little Bennett Regional Park or nearby Button Farm, and join us for the community dinner on Saturday night.

New this year: PRE-EVENT SUPPORT

There are many reasons to ride the MoCo Epic. Some folks choose a shorter distance to enjoy their favorite trail and have more time to party. Others use the event as an opportunity to challenge themselves and take on their longest ride to date. Whatever your reason for riding, whatever distance you choose, we want you to finish strong! We're partnering with members of the community to offer webinars on long-distance riding, opportunities for one-on-one coaching, and training rides leading up to the event. More info coming soon.

New this year: LIBERTY BIKE PATROL

Our friends from the Liberty Bike Patrol will be helping us keep riders safe on the course. They will be providing emergency response and pick-up in addition to the first aid station at the mothership.

All rides will start and end at the mothership in the South Germantown Bike Park. All routes will have aid stations stocked with a selection of sweet and savory snacks, water, electrolytes, first aid supplies, a course map, and a portapotty. Sample GPS routes coming soon.

sMORE's Rides (Saturday)

Choose from a 6- or 10-mile ride for kids through Schaeffer Farm. Parents/guardians are welcome to join their kids at no extra cost. Junior riders will get the full epic experience, with one aid station run by our friends at Calleva.

EPIC RIDES (Sunday)

10-miler: Don't be fooled by the distance, this 10-mile course through Schaeffer Farm has a good amount of roots and climbing. Experience OG MoCo singletrack. You'll have the option to stop about halfway through your ride and refuel at an aid station before heading back to the mothership for the post-ride party.

20 & 30-milers: Enjoy some of the flowiest, most fun northern MoCo trails! Your adventure will take you through Hoyles Mill Trail, up through Ten Mile Creek, and into Black Hill Regional Park for your first pit stop. Heading back on the Diabase Trail, 20-milers will head back to the mothership for post-ride festivities, while 30-milers continue into Schaeffer Farm and back to the South Germantown Bike Park to finish.

40-miler: Also known as the MoCo south loop, this route offers the highest percentage of dirt trails of all the Epic routes. Starting off on the Diabase Trail, you'll dip into Schaeffer and continue to the fast flow of Seneca Ridge Trail. Traveling south on Muddy Branch, you'll drop down into the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, then turn to climb Seneca Bluffs, and pop out at Black Rock Mill. The final leg of your journey is back into Schaeffer Farm and onto the post ride festivities.

55-miler: The full tour of MoCo north trails! This route strings together Hoyles Mill, Ten Mile Creek, and Black Hill Regional Park trails. Then you'll begin climbing on road to the flowy trails of Little Bennett and Damascus Regional Parks. From there, head south on the Seneca Greenway Trail toward Seneca Creek State Park and connect with the Seneca Ridge Trail for the long, fun run to Black Rock Mill. Then it's the final climb through Schaeffer Farm and back to the mothership for some post-ride refueling. This route is about 85% singletrack with occasional paved roads.

70-miler: The longest of our marked courses, the 70-miler combines the north and south loops for an epic day on the bike. Start on Hoyles Mill and head north to Ten Mile Creek and Black Hill Regional Park. Climb the road and be rewarded with flowy trails in Little Bennett and Damascus Regional Parks. From there, head south on the Greenway Trail toward Seneca Creek State Park for a tour on the Powerline Trail, Muddy Branch, and finally the historic Chesapeake & Ohio Canal. The final portion of your epic loop takes you through Seneca Bluffs, Black Rock Mill, and Schaeffer Farm, then it's time to party.

100-miler: This self-guided course is not for the faint of heart. This Epic adventure hits all the parks of other routes and squeezes more mileage out of the various trail systems. Riders will be allowed one drop bag which they can access about 60% of the way through the ride. There will be no course markings on the 100-miler, and riders are required to download the GPS route.