Pirate Club Rides & Practices
Rides and Practices are typically 1 to 3 days a week at 360 Parks. We begin riding in late February (typically on Saturdays), and then expand the schedule to more days as daylight and weather allows...
For FY23, our first official ride (the Meet the League Ride), will take place on Saturday, March 11, from 10am-12pm, at 360 Parks. Email keypenmtb@gmail.com with questions!
RACING SERIES:
The KeyPen Pirate's #1 priority is that our youth have fun while developing the competency to mountain bike safely. Our race culture is very supportive, focused less on competition and more on opportunities to learn within the company of friends and under the watchful eyes of coaches. On race selection, we focus on youth and family-friendly races - those that are highly supportive of youth rider development and safety! For parents new to racing, jump below for more information >
Cross Country, Youth & Adults
BuDu West Side Mountain Bike Series
The West Side Mountain Bike Series has been going on for over 15 years! It has grown each year, and we get excited for each new series. Come on out and have some fun!!! BuDu is a Key Pen Pirates sponsor, and the WSMTB Series is great for beginner and veteran riders, very kid friendly, and many of our riders began with Budu races! We highly recommend it.
For race info including updated schedules, registration, directions, etc...., click here »
Cross Country, Youth Only
Washington Student Cycling League (WSCL)
For race info including updated schedules, registration, directions, etc...., click here »
Enduro, Youth & Adults
Cascadia Dirt Cup (CDC) & Youth Enduro Series (YES!)
Contact us if interested. Enduro requires advanced mountain biking skills on rigorous terrain; including an appropriate bike, safety gear, and a fitness level of riding at least of 15 miles and 3,000ft elevation.
For race info including updated schedules, registration, directions, etc...., click here »
For Parents who may wonder how MTB racing works:
(1) The Pirates compete in 2 primary "types" of races, cross-country (XC) and Enduro.
XC racing simply is timed from start to finish, and while the trails have technical features they're typically a bit 'easier' than most trails. The XC challenge is more stamina of racing downhill and uphill "singletrack", again start to finish (1 time for the race)....
Enduro is different in that there are 3-5 timed "stages" of downhill "gravity-fed" singletrack, and so basically you have non-race time when riding between each stage. In the Northwest, Enduro can be more technically challenging than XC - stamina is needed, but you're really focused on the technical challenges of riding downhill as fast as safely possible.
(2) Series v. Individual Races: simply, each individual race is timed with best times reaching the "podium"; whereas each 'Series' has different formulas for how one performs across multiple races, and awards are given to those who perform well overall (across several races). And, there are team kudos as well for both individual races and series.
Overall, we encourage student riders and families to join races that are convenient to them. You definitely don't have to commit to ALL the races in a series! All of our coaches are parents too - trust we understand! There are many local area opportunities as well as travel races.... That said, many of the travel races can be extraordinary learning opportunities - cool & fun places that often many never consider visiting. Typically there are both camping and hotel accommodations at each, and the team communicates/coordinates depending on who/how many people are going.