It’s already been 4 years! We’re stoked for many more years of riding. Come celebrate with us April 15th. We’ll be having some food and ice cream and doing some riding. Come out to celebrate and have some fun with us from 6-9pm.
On March 11th, we’ll be hosting The Wheel Mill Footdown Classic. The Footdown classic is a footdown tournament for all bikes and skill levels. We hope to see all sides of cycling come together to challenge each other. Many games and versions will be played but only one lucky bike rider will roll away with a cash prize. $5 to enter and everyone must sign a waiver. Games start at 6pm.
Classes:
12 and under all bikes (wins prizes)
13 and over all bikes (wins cash prize)
Rules:
Put your foot down and you’re out!
No Pegs
No head on collisions
Don’t go wicked fast (up to referee dude to call)
No t-bones
No leaning on a wall or object for longer than 3 seconds
Must have a helmet
Be cool!
We will be playing different versions of footdown the referee will inform riders of the rules of each new game.
The Winter Welcome Jam 2017 is being hosted at the park February 25th. At the heart of the jam is BMX, friends and good times. All ages are welcome! Come out for a good time with friends, bikes and music. Normal riding rates apply and spectators are $5. Here is a schedule of events and bands that will be playing at the jam.
Jams:
1:000pm: Kid The Woods Jump Room Jam (15 minute jam)
2:30pm: Powers Bike Shop Retro Bunny Hop Challenge
3:30pm: Duo Brand Longest Skid next to the Pump Tack (Win $50 and a set of Duo Brand tires)
4:30pm: The Shadow Conspiracy Jam in the Park Room (15 minute best trick jam and win $100)
6:00pm: The Woods Jump Room Jam. (30 minute jam for the following)
– Jaunt Best Table (Win $100)
– Profile Racing Trickster (Win a set of Profile Cranks)
– OTB Whip (Win $100)
– Pro Bikes Best Line (Win $100)
7:00pm: Deluxe Lap Challenge (whoever goes the most laps gets $100 or if they go over 50 laps they receive their lap total X $2 in cash)
8:00pm: Awards and Bands
Bands:
Bands are playing upstairs next to the Fundamental Skills Room. Show starts at 8pm. Show is all ages.
Pennsylvania Dirt
Kenny Snyder
Grand Piano
Side Eye
Food and Drink:
Food will be available from Steer And Wheel and Rolling Pepperoni. Cash bar available (Open 4-10pm) with drinks from Southern Tier Brewing Company, Grist House, Yuengling and Pabst Blue Ribbon.
*Must be 21 to drink and present valid ID.
Sponsors:
Thanks to all the brands who made this possible: Deluxe, Jaunt, Pro Bikes, Shadow, Subrosa, Over the Bar Bicycle Cafe, Duo Brand, Red Bull, Kink Bike Co, G-Form, Powers Bike Shop, FBM, Ink Division, S & M Bikes, Fit Bike Co., Steer and Wheel Food Truck, Rolling Pepperoni, Southern Tier Brewing Company, Grist House, Yuengling and Pabst Blue Ribbon.
Hotel Deals:
Coming in from out of town? Click this LINK for great discount at a hotel under 1 mile away.
Pre-Event:
Friday night (February 24th), we’ll be hosting a premier of We The People BMX’s new video Foundation. Screening starts at 8pm and is free to watch. If riding, normal riding rates apply.
*Times, line up and jams subject to change without notice. Must be 21 to drink. No riding after drinking. No dogs!
On Valentine’s Day (2/14/17), we will be offering buy one get one free day passes! Bring a date for a night of riding. You know what they say, the couple that rides together stays together!
On February 4th, Wood Fest Indoor Mountain Bike Festival returns to The Wheel Mill. Throughout the day, there will be skills clinics, bike demos from brands around the region and local bike shops, challenges/contests, The Dirt Rag Garage Sale, food and drink (Full list of food and drink to come) and indoor camping!
Any individual can set up a table for the Dirt Rag Garge Sale and/or get a campsite but spots are limited. REGISTER HERE.
10:00am: Doors open and demos start (Demos next to Fundamental Skills Room)
11:00am: Skill Clinic (Fundamental Skills Room)
12:00pm: Secret Challenge
1:00pm: Skill Clinic (Fundamental Skills Room)
2:00pm: Game of MTB
3:00pm: Skill Clinic with (Fundamental Skills Room)
4:00pm: MTB Gauntlet
5:00pm: Dirt Rag Bike Garage Sale Opens (Fundamental Skills Room). Food and Bar Open. Beer served to 21 & over only with proper ID. Drinking ends your riding for the rest of the day, so get all of your riding in before you grab a beer!
7:00pm: Cross Country Loop Time Trial
8:00pm: Demos End
9:00pm: Dirt Rag Bike Garage Sale Ends
10:00pm-10:30pm: Camp Set Up (Must reserve).
10:30pm: MTB Movie on the Big Screen.
*All contests will have a male and female mountain bike and unicycle division.
Morpheus Cycles
Pro Bikes
TrailFlo
SR Suntour
Specialized
Novatec
*REMINDER: Most demos take a form of collateral. Make sure to bring an I.D. or Credit Card.
To Ride: Normal riding rates apply.
To Compete: No Charge.
T0 Camp: $15 (Must reserve).
Clinics: No Charge. First come, first serve (spots are limited).
Garage Sale Spot: Free with RESERVATION.
Waiver required. If under 18 and have never been to the park, please check out this LINK.
Any camper that is under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
Camp spots 13-18 will be reserved for quiet and family friendly camping.
Food and Drink: Assorted Prices. Cash only. Beer: Southern Tier, New Belgium and Yuengling.
No Dogs.
No Outside Alcohol.
Must be 21+ to Drink.
Over the Bar Bicycle Cafe
Dirt Rag
Bicycle Times
Point Brugge
Jaunt
G-Form
Morpheus Cycles
Pro Bikes
SR Suntour
Novatec
TrailFlo
Industry Nine
Yuengling
New Belgium Brewing
Southern Tier Brewing
*Schedule of events, times and demos are subject to change without notice. Must be 21 + to drink. Camping spots nonrefundable. Children under the age of 18 must camp with a parent or guardian
This video was filmed and produced by James Pennucci with JPennucci Photography
Back again by popular demand for 2017, Lumber Cross is an indoor cyclocross race at The Wheel Mill Indoor Bike Park. Reimagining features and courses, the cross course will span the entire park. Practice starts at 5pm and races at 6pm. Racers will qualify through heats to make it to the final. We will break up into classes dependent upon rider turn out. There will be cash prizes awarded to the winners.
Spectator are welcome! Heckle groups encouraged. The best heckle group will be awarded a prize.
For those who are over 21 and have finished racing or are there to spectate, there will be a cash bar with Southern Tier Brewing and Yuengling.
General Information:
– February 18th, 2017
– Practice: 6pm
– Races: 7pm
– Fee: $35
– Classes: Dependent upon rider turn out
– Racer Prizes: Cash & Swag
– Best Rider Costume
– Best Heckle Group Award
General Rules for Racers and Heckle Groups:
– No Spikes
– Any Bike. More than 5 bikes we’ll break up into a classes (I.E. Fat Bikes or Unicycles)
– Helmet and waiver required. If under 18, please check out this LINK.
– We reserve the right to remove a rider from the race if the length behind is unsafe.
– No outside alcohol
– No spraying beer
– No nudity
Sponsors:
Live Jaunt, Iron City Bikes, Over The Bar Cafe, Apothocary Muse, Ink Division Printing, Yuengling, Southern Tier Brewing, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Cocoa Elite, Aero Tech, Specialized Bikes and Pro Bikes.(More to come)
It is an incredible feeling to be so excited to sit down and put into words how an event made such a positive impact in the lives of so many women this weekend. The Wheel Mill, located in Pittsburgh, PA, brought together an amazing group of six coaches for the Ride Like a Girl Women’s Weekend, January 7-8.
The Ride Like A Girl Weekend was developed to help women and girls become comfortable in the park and, more importantly, better educated about the fundamentals of riding a bike. By closing the park to the public, the coaches were able to split participants into small groups to work on a variety of skills, free of distractions and in a supportive environment. Small groups let the coaches see that “ah hah” moment in each student’s face!
Each day was structured to make the best use of the time. Fundamentals came first, to get everyone warmed up and on the same page with the building blocks of bike and body positioning. Next came two sessions focusing on different skills relevant to both mountain bike and BMX riding. Our morning sessions included Bike Handling, Balance, Cornering, Introduction to Pumping, and Jumping. Our afternoon sessions took skills to the next level, with Lifts and Logs, Drops and Rises, Line Choice, Advanced Cornering, Pumping, Jumping in the Woods Room, and shredding the Park Room.
Between sessions, all of the ladies were treated to a delicious catered lunch thanks to Nick at Fischer Nutrition. He closed our lunch break with a talk about nutrition and answered interesting questions.
Once the lessons were over the coaches spread out into six different areas of the park for the Challenge Hour, an opportunity for the ladies to show off what they learned. It was fun to hear the roar and screams coming from each room as riders accomplished challenges in different areas of the park!
Coach Kathi had the ladies in the beginner jump line getting rad and forming endless lady trains. Some worked on rolling through the line and others showed Kathi their sweet new jumping skills and tricks.
Coach Karen challenged the ladies to do the whole pump track without pedaling, to manual sections, or to try riding the pump track for the first time. Warning: it’s addictive!
Coach Nina brought the stoke by having the ladies conquer the legendary The Woods Jump Room. While some were working on getting through for the first time, others were working on throwing tricks and blasting jumps.
Coach Carley set up a bunny hop bar on the resi ramp and pushed the girls to improve their jump skills. Each time they cleared the bar, it continued to rise until there were no more pegs for the girls and all that was left was to jump over Carley.
Coach Hillary invited the girls to test their balance skills on the skinnies, then build up enough confidence to try the skinny foam pit. The highlight of some riders’ weekends was getting over the fear of trying that technical MTB room.
Coach Cory motivated ladies to take the plunge into the foam pit for the ultimate challenge of the day. Dropping into a 10-foot roll-in and then hitting a 4-foot lip into a pool of foam had ladies scared at first, but stoked as they threw their hands into the air once they landed.
If you are reading this feeling like you missed out on a coaching experience of a lifetime — you should trust your instincts! This weekend inspired, motivated, and educated ladies from all cycling disciplines. We redesigned this year’s event based on the feedback given to us last year: ladies asked for fewer riders, more personal instruction, and to have the park closed for more comfort. As the ladies were leaving the park with their goodie bags, challenge prizes, and brains full of six hours of education each day, they all agreed that this years event was the best yet.
UPCOMING EVENTS
PHOTOS
Photos from the weekend were provided by The Wheel Mill staff Michael Potoczny and Chris Squier. We also had a passionate father by the name of James Pennucci who captured some amazing moments throughout the weekend — his photos are available for purchase. Please visit his Facebook page to view (Day 1 & Day 2). James was kind enough to put this rad video of the girls together — please check it out on the Ride Like A Girl YouTube Channel.
ABOUT THE COACHES
We would also like to thank Hannah Roberts for coming out to be a guest coach and build the stoke of the more advanced girls. Hannah Roberts is the first UCI Women’s BMX Freestyle Park World Cup Title winner. While some were conquering fears of just trying new things, girls like Hannah were getting riders to throw barspins and try backflips and tailwhips into the foam pit.
THANKS
We would like to thank The Wheel Mill for being supportive of women on bikes by closing the park to the general public on a busy weekend. Thanks to Harry Geyer and Michael Potoczny for their efforts to make the Ride Like A Girl Weekend a successful event. Thanks to all of our sponsors who helped market and promote, and who donated prizes and cash. Without a strong support system events like this are not possible. Sponsors include: The Wheel Mill, Ride Like A Girl, Aero Tech Designs, G-Form, Ink Division, Shadow Conspiracy, Subrosa, Dan’s Comp, Over The Bar Cafe, Fischer Nutrition, Profile Racing, Spawn Cycles, Jaunt, Pro Bikes, Fox Head Inc., Empire, Dirt Rag, Answer BMX, The Herbal Athlete.
Our BMX Gate Practice will start this Wednesday, November 16th and run through the end of Winter. Gate nights will be on Wednesdays 7:00pm-8:00pm and Sundays 2:00pm-3:00pm. We have cancelled our Saturday Gate Practices for 2017. Regular riding rates apply for Gate Practice. Last gate practice of the year it March 29th. Thanks to Dan’s Comp and South Park BMX for making our gate practice possible.
We have a ton of great Black Friday deals! We will be open from 10am-10pm for you to get as much riding in as you’d like! While at the park, pick up one of our great deals:
– First 20 riders that are 18 or older get a free can of Red Bull!
– First 10 riders in the door get their day pass for just $10.50!
– Season Pass holders save 25% off all regular priced parts, protective gear, clothing and tools in stock in our shop.
– All guests save 20% off all regular priced parts, protective gear, clothing and tools in stock in our shop.
– The Wheel Mill Gift Pack is just $50! Get a hoodie, sticker pack and a $25 gift card for friends and family. Hoodies and stickers are while supplies last and cannot be combined with any other discount.
– Bargain Table with savings up to 50% off items including select protective gear, select grips and select parts . Bargain Table cannot be combined with any other discount.
*Discounts cannot be combined with any other offer and are only good on current stock. Deals are only good for 11/25/16.
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