GEORGE POSTON PARK & PUMP TRACK
Mountain bikers looking for a great North Carolina mountain-biking destination near Charlotte are excited to discover Goerge Poston Park. Situated at the base of Spencer Mountain, one of Gaston County's "pop-up" mountains, this park features 13 miles of trails built by Piedmont Area Single Track Alliance. The park is also home to North Carolina's first asphalt pump track.
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Trails meander throughout the county-owned park, winding around a lake, a river, and a ball fields, and offering a climb up Spencer Mountain. Check out this summary from MTBprojec.com: "Poston has something for everybody - a nice mellow green loop for the beginner, lots of good climbs, some AWESOME downhill, rock gardens, some tight tree sections, plenty of roots, and some of the biggest and unique jumps in the Piedmont".
PUMP IT UP
The pump track is a big draw at George Poston Park. It's fast and fun - a 10,000-square-foot Velosolutions asphalt circuit featuring momentum-building berms and rollers to excite beginning, intermediate and advanced riders.
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Riders visit from as far away as the West Coast, and the track's accolades include hosting a Red Bull Pump Track World Championship qualifier, with the top fishers advancing to the world finals in Switzerland. The track is an awesome place for those looking to ride rad.
BUILT FOR RIDERS
To create the highest quality trails, Gaston County partnered with Piedmont Area Singletrack Alliance to design, build, and maintain the mountain-biking trail network at George Poston Park. PASA is a nonprofit group of passionate mountain bikers in the Charlotte area who secure public land for mountain biking and specialize in trail development. The 11 trails at George Poston Park follow specific routing, with directional arrows to keep riders in the same direction. Each trail has a color code and GPS coordinates to report your location in case of emergency. Trails follow the MBA Trail Difficulty Rating System, and the park has trails ranging from white circle (easiest) to black diamond (very difficult).
NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED
The National Park Service, in conjunction with the National Forest Service, designated the trail system at George Poston Park a National Recreation Trail. This designation recognizes trails that link communities to recreational opportunities on public lands and in local parks across the nation. Poston Park's stacked loop trail system features tight, technical climbs and quick descents with beautiful runs along creeks, rock gardens, and thick woods. The Kid's Bike Trail offers beginners a feel for the Poston woods with a flat trail and short mileage.
