The same towering 11,000-foot-plus peaks, deep forests and wide open expanses that make Utah a recognized destination for resort and back-country skiing and snowboarding help to deliver prime mountain biking once all the powder melts. More than half of Utah's ski resorts power their lifts back up in the summer to serve up a drier, rockier form of vertical sport fit for knobby tires.
Resorts
All three Park City, Utah, resorts have lift-served biking in the summer. Snowbasin, Solitude, Brian Head and Sundance also host mountain biking. Park City is the most famous of the those areas for its biking, and the town's Mid Mountain Trail is the only Utah-based trail to appear on the International Mountain Bicycling Association's "Epics" list.
Season
The mountain bike season varies at Utah's resorts, both by resort and by year. Typically, resorts re-open for the summer season in mid to late June, but snow can last into July at higher elevations and may push mountain biking season back. Sundance opens a little earlier, in late May. The season runs until September or October.
Hours
Lift hours vary by resort. Since Park City is more of a summer destination town, the town's three resorts, Park City Mountain Resort, The Canyons and Deer Valley, are open daily during the summer. Sundance also offers daily lift service during the summer. Brian Head and Solitude are open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and Snowbasin is open on Saturdays and Sundays. Lift hours run later than the ski season with lifts running into the evening between 5 and 8. Resorts may run shorter schedules after Labor Day, so check with the individual resort.
Shuttles
In addition to lift-served terrain, Snowbasin and Brian Head offer shuttle services. Snowbasin's shuttle service allows mountain bikers to continue their ride into neighboring forest lands, bringing them back to the resort base after an extended downhill trek. Similarly, Brian Head's shuttle system provides service to and from local trail heads. Shuttles expand the amount of downhill terrain that you can access on any given day.
Events
Utah's resorts host a variety of local and national mountain biking events during the summer months. Events throughout the summer include the Sundance Showdown in May, the Flyin' Brian Gravity Festival in August, the Xterra U.S. Championship at Snowbasin in September and the Park City Tour de Suds in September. Check with the individual resorts for other mountain bike races and events throughout the summer.
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