Usery Mountain Park
Usery Mountain Regional Park
is a fun place to ride. It’s not technical or steep or so narrow that you rub cactus with your elbows…sure doesn’t sound very fun yet does it? It’s not at all my favorite place to ride, but it does have it’s shining moments.
For the serious rider there is always Pass Mountain. The one true singletrack trail in the Park that will give you a thrilling ride. But say you’ve been out of the saddle a few months, nursing a broken ankle, collar bone, or you’ve just been too lazy to get up at 4 am to ride when it’s not 120 degrees…you need some training rides. For whatever reason you may have to take it easy on your bike for a few weeks, Usery will be your best friend.
The Usery trail system is wide and forgiving with just enough elevation gain to keep you pedaling. The bulk of the trails below Pass Mountain are wide, fast, and fun. I avoid the trails that have “wash” in their name… lots of sand. Example: Amigo Wash, not my friend.
Moon Rock is the closest trail to singletrack in the system. Not technical, but windy and fast. Cat Peaks and Cat Peaks Pass are the most technical but nothing too sketchy at all. I like to ride two loops around the Peaks, clockwise and counter clockwise, just for fun.
If you get bored with the Usery trails, try riding them full throttle as long as you can. Speed brings out the tech in the trail and makes for great endurance training. I like to ride Moon Rock to Blevins to Cat Peaks in the big chain ring, I drop to the middle to get to the Peak but it sure is fun going so fast.
So if your brother, your best friend, or your aunt comes to town and you want to take them for little taste of Arizona desert riding, Usery is for them.
Trails: Noso, Moon Rock, Meridian, Levee, Cat Peaks, Cat Peaks Pass, Blevins Trail, Spillway, Ruidoso, County Line.
Maricopa County Usery Mountain Biking Page
