I spent the better part of February 2021 in Arizona and here is one of the rad places I rode while in the desert, the Desert Trails Bike Park in Mesa.
The design of this place is well done but the build execution could've been better. All the lips, including the green line are way too steep for mountain bikes. I'm sure it's a lot better on a BMX but it seems more aimed at MTB riders. There's a green, blue and black line with two pumptracks although both pumptracks are really just some shapes for kids to screw around on which is totally fine. All the lines are fun and true to there rating. With how steep the lips are though it doesn't really allow beginners to practice proper jumping practices and I'm sure a lot of people are getting bucked there. The black line is serous with some big jumps and gaps. It was super windy on the day and it was really blowing me around especially on this line as it's higher up the hill. I tried getting through the line a couple of times but I just wasn't feeling the last jumps and decided it wasn't worth it with the wind.
The riding surface was almost like cement. I'm not sure what they did but they must have mixed something in with the dirt to make it. Seems to be holding up well and it created a nice surface for all bikes and tires while having low maintenance needs.
There isn't many jumps in Arizona, the trails are very raw and rocky. The jumps that I did come across though were all pretty steep and bucky. I think this is because most of the people building jumplines there are actually BMX riders. That's just what it seems like to me.
It's snowing here in MN and making this video really made me want to get back to the desert and soak up that sun. Maybe soon...
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