Bad news for downhill mountain bikers, as Park City Resort announced they will tear down the bike park at Canyons Village this summer.
Why is the Bike Park being Torn Down?
According to the Park City Mountain website, the resort will no longer offer a summer bike park at the Canyons side. While there was no official reason given, insiders say that the reason is because Vail Resorts is regrading the area where the bike park is located to create a larger beginner ski zone. That area goes from High Meadow at the Snowdancer trees, all the way over to the Lower Mainline ski trails. The resort is also installing a new High Meadow ski lift. As a result, all the the wood features will be torn down. Word is the park will not be rebuilt.
While this is a bummer for downhill riders, what about cross-country mountain bikers? Park City says they will continue to provide lift-served bike haul with the Red Pine Gondola and the Crescent Lift on the Canyons and PCMR sides, respectively. The downhill-only trails at Canyons will lose the man-made features and jumps, but the trails will be returned to their “natural state.”
The trails affected by this decision include Rally Cat, Flying Salmon, Wild Mouse, White Rabbit, Dropkick, Double Down, and Split Decision. With the amount of construction that will be happening this summer, all cross country trails, including Mid Mountain, will likely be temporarily affected this season.
Where can Downhill Mountain Bikers Go Now?
Deer Valley will now be the only gravity MTB game in town, so riders can expect a lot more happening there this year. With the recent installation of Tsunami, as well as Tidal Wave and Holy Roller, Deer Valley has shown a commitment to summer operations and focusing on mountain biking and have no plans to stop in the future.
Of course the mountain bike community is saddened by this news. There is talk of a petition to ask the resort to reconsider their decision. Also, there is talk about eventually building a new bike park on the Park City side of the resort. You can stay updated by following #longlivethecanyons on social media.
Recommended Reading: Mountain Biking Tidal Wave at Deer Valley
Vail got it wrong, too bad. It’s a big FU to us Utah DH RIDERS.
MOVING ON, AND NOT TO DV.