Staging and Category Updates

PICL has grown tremendously since our first season, but we’re still evolving. As part of our commitment to improvement, we took a deep dive this off-season into Category Placement and Staging.

Category Placement determines which race category a student-athlete competes in. For our high school riders, the goal is to group riders of similar ability together. Historically, cumulative points from the previous season were used to determine placement for the upcoming season, with only the top percentage of points earners moving up. Instead, in 2025 we’ll use a standardized score—backed by solid data—to sort riders into categories. This method will create tighter competition and better racing experiences for both our novice and experienced high school student-athletes.

For middle school riders in 2025, we’ll continue grouping by grade for Category Placement, however we're aiming to introduce ability-based middle school categories by 2026!

Staging sets a student-athlete’s race starting position within their category. The goal is to stage riders in an order that limits passing in the start chute, creating a safer race start. The standardized score will be employed here, as well, and utilized for staging both middle and high school student-athletes. The score will be calculated after each race and used to determine the start order for the next race.

Team leadership will be notified once all category updates are complete in Pit Zone.

For more information, such as criteria used to define each category, see the PA Handbook.