Road to Arcylon (No Lycra spelled backwards) is known in mountain biking-circles for being an expert-only downhiller’s domain. Located above Gorgoza Park in the Pineview area of Park City, Road to Arcylon features big jumps, huge drops, giant berms, rock gardens and massive gaps that would be a ticket to the emergency room if you didn’t clear them.
Despite how scary that all sounds (and it is scary for mountain bikers like me) every intermediate-level rider should go try it anyway. How is this possible? Because you don’t actually have to hit those obstacles.
To be clear, Road to Arcylon is definitely technical, whether you’re hitting gap jumps or not. But the biggest features all have work-arounds that are more than just bypasses – they are fun in their own right. Not only that, warning signs clue in lower-level riders that a big feature is coming up. That way you can plan ahead on whether or not you want to hit it, or forget it.
In reality, there are only four or five features that are expert-only: like full-face helmet, body armor suggested technical stuff. But the rest is doable for upper-level, intermediate mountain bikers. The last time I was up there, a women’s-only mountain biking skills class was in session. Guides were teaching less-skilled riders how to jump, hit berms at speed, and negotiate drops and rocks.
As I write this, construction at Gorgoza Park has eliminated the usual parking area and access trail. Instead, park where you can find a place nearby and ride the paved Millennium bike path to the new Gorgoza Park trailhead. Trailforks has this new ascent route marked as, “Yes, Lycra.”
Follow the 2-mile uphill singletrack all the way to Road to Arcylon. You can make multiple laps while there, (about a 2 mile loop) which is recommended because you should take the first lap slowly to get a sense of trail and feature conditions. After you pre-ride it, open ‘er up for a fast, flowing, fun descent that you can ride again and again.
In short, Road to Arcylon is a great place to learn and improve upper-level mountain bike skills. No full-face helmet required.
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