Things to Do in Pickerington

Lurking in the darkness of moisture-saturated topsoil, the mud ninja challenges only the toughest competitors to attempt his 5K obstacle-laden course. Serving the dual purpose of allowing entrants to live out their reality-show fantasies while helping to raise money for Autism Speaks, the Mud Ninja race requires participants to crawl through mud pits covered with barbed wire and scale steep walls before leaping onto multiple mounds that punish imbalanced racers with a splash. Throughout the 5K course, contestants splat into mud pits in front of hundreds of spectators. The Little Mud Ninja race scales the course for younger racers, and an after-party engages all with music and a plethora of food vendors.

Certified by The Association for Challenge Course Technology, the zipline course at Valley Zipline Tours speeds danglers over the scenic Northern Hocking Hills in spectacular fashion, whisking them along a series of lines that extend to more than 1 mile in total length. First, a friendly guide drives the zippers up to the top of the valley, where they don their safety equipment and then zoom down the first five lines as a warm-up to the following three, known collectively as the Valley Super Lines. Starting at line 6, the journey whips riders across the valley and lake for distances of nearly 1,000 feet each and at more than 100 feet off the ground, reaching speeds of 55 miles per hour. To cap off the high-speed trip, a valley swing awaits at the end of the tour attached to the edge of a tower, inviting participants to jump and swing over the valley while suspended at more than 50 feet.

Stretched across 77 acres, the Waco airfield launched in 1997 on the wings of the Waco Historical Society, a nonprofit organization on a mission to tote the Golden Age of Flight safely into the future. Today, continual upgrades and improvements, plus countless hours from volunteers, have packed the site with more information than ever before. Vintage Waco aircraft, displays, and the history of the Waco company pilot museum visitors through time inside the museum hangar, which joins forces with other buildings—such as a 150-year-old barn¬—to bridge the past and the present. An onsite gift shop stocked with mementos helps soup up memorabilia collections, and, instead of trying to squeeze information from the museum's tightlipped biplanes, visitors can attend the historical society's lectures and workshops throughout the year for extra doses of education.

The staff at Equestrian Ridge Farm has been tending to steeds and riders on its 200-acre estate for more than 10 years. During riding lessons in a medley of styles—including dressage, single driving, and trail riding—trainers educate equestrians of all levels at the facility’s two large, indoor arenas. The barn houses between 15–20 horses at any given time, a handful of which are reserved for lessons or reenactments of chase scenes from The Lone Ranger. Equestrian Ridge also offers under-saddle training for horses by an experienced instructor who tailors each session to the steed’s temperament and riding style.