View American Fork Canyon Trails in a larger map

We called it the Sheepherders trail back in the mid 90s. This is the trail that sowed the seeds of my addiction to mountain biking. Riding the ridge trail is all I could think about at work or school.

During the summers I had a 6 – 2:30 construction job, which left plenty of time for long rides in the evenings. I only had a handful of local rides keeping me pedaling. The Ridge Trail, Wasatch Race Loops and Pipeline, Bennie Creek cutoff trail in Payson, Cascade Springs out-n-back, the Spirit of the Y trail and Rock Canyon to Squaw Peak. I can’t really remember what else I rode, other than the many trips to Moab…

There are so many more trails now, 14 years later…If I moved back to the place of my cycling birth, it would be new to me.

I loved riding the Ridge Trail so much back then I would ride solo even when my friends couldn’t ride. Usually I’d park at the bottom of the road to Tibble Fork and ride the road to the summit. A sweet climb. I still to this day have not climbed it on a road bike. If I was impatient to hit the mountains I’d park at the top and finish the ride with the six mile road climb.

My ride last fall down Tibble.

Fall Colors Down Tibble from MTBikeAZ on Vimeo.

The last mile of Tibble Fork trail in AFC. Beautiful fall colors..

Here is Tibble in all its glory thanks to Fatty. Words can’t say what helmet cam can do…

Big Tibble from Fat Cyclist on Vimeo.

The trail beginning at Tibble Fork Reservoir in American Fork Canyon (Alpine, UT) is widely considered to be the best mountain biking trail in the whole world.

And by “widely” I of course mean “by me.”