It’s back! REGISTER for the 2025 Quantico Epic!
Over the course of the past few months Quantico Mountain Bike Club (QMTB) Volunteers have been working hard to get the trails aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico (MCBQ) ready for another Epic event. On Saturday, April 26th, 2025, riders will converge once again at LeJeune lot to tackle one of four carefully planned and highly demanding courses along the Main Side, OCS, and Geiger trail networks. The rides include the 18 mile Main Side Mini-Mayhem, the 30 mile Main Side Singletrack Mayhem, the 35 mile Give me Some PT - OCS Style loop, and the Montezuma’s Revenge 50 miler.
Riders who have ridden the Quantico trails in the past can attest that even the Mini-Mayhem, at 18 miles, is a highly demanding, yet rewarding ride.
New for this year is a revamped Northbank Boardwalk. Last year the QMTB financed the replacement of the boardwalk and worked in partnership with Quantico’s Natural Resources & Environmental Affairs (NREA) volunteers to completely replace the decking over a single weekend.
-
Deconstruction
QMTB and NREA volunteers work to remove the old rotted out decking.
-
Construction
QMTB volunteers work to attach the new decking to the existing, still solid, structure.
-
Finishing Touches
QMTB Volunteers put on the finishing touches on the new decking, including adding toe kicks and trimming the edges.
The QMTB and NREA volunteer team takes a break during day two of the project to pose for a photo.
For many riders the Quantico Epic is the only time they get to access the classic Main Side trails. Quantico’s system is maintained by volunteers from the Quantico Mountain Bike Club, and, over the past several years, many of the trails have been improved. The club has submitted a multi-year plan to fix several unsustainable trail sections and possibly build additional singletrack corridors to improve future events; the plan is currently under review by NREA.
Members of the club are composed of active duty personnel assigned to MCBQ, DoD affiliated individuals and a select number of sponsored members of the local mountain bike community. The club is allocated a certain number of non DoD affiliated spots based on the number of DoD attached members.
Michael Mullins, QMTB’s event coordinator, began planning the 2025 event months in advance, “it is a full load throughout the year, but it really takes all the volunteers to clear trails, mark the courses, setup the start/finish and execute the event. Seeing all the smiles on the riders faces definitely makes it worth the effort. We expect at least 250 riders in 2025, if you have not registered yet, please register now so that we can meet that mark.”
QMTB members also work throughout the year to ensure the trails are in great shape and coordinate efforts with the base’s Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs branch to ensure any re-routes or re-alignments are done in accordance with base regulations.
April 2025
All images Copyright Bruce Buckley.