Moto-Anonymous wrote:
I am new to the Phoenix area and I'd love to gain some insight on the Moto scene. I did some searching on the vital forums but I am still left with some questions.
Some searching online has led me to all of the private motocross tracks in the area. Is there a local forum for the Moto scene here? For example in Ohio we have pitracer.com which allows everyone to connect.
Furthermore, I am quite interested in finding areas to legally freeride. I hear these tales of legit areas to ride where people go out in groups and tear shit up. I'm looking for anything to expand. I'm talking trails, mountains, planes, dunes, you name it!
Anyone out there that can give me some insight? Thanks in advance!!
Where are you located in the Phoenix area?
As mentioned above, there are a lot of places to ride here in AZ. Don't be scared of riding in the summer. It's hot, brutally hot - just take lots of water and get used to it. You're getting here at a nice time of the year. My favorite tracks are:
ACP, Motoland, and Canyon in that order. ET is only open in the winter and they aren't catering to MX much these days (more focused on sprint cars, etc). When ET is open, it is a fun track. Canyon is nice in the summer because they have lights for night riding and are located a little higher up in elevation thus making it 5-10 degrees cooler than the valley.
As far as trails, just make sure you have your bike registered and plated for AZ. Go to a title agency (Desert Title) and pay them. It costs $25 per year plus the title agency fee which is like $5. If you ride in any of the forest locations, you will need a day pass which are easy to get.
Our favorite laces to desert ride are: Wildcat staging area off of Bartlett lake damn road. The trails in this location are fantastic. This is the area where they filmed Destry Abbott and Taylor Robert ripping up the AZ desert in Moto the movie (Moto 6, I think?). Anyway, this area is completely badass. Good mix of super tight trails, some large rocks (trials type stuff), wide open sand washes, tight turn sand washes, technical hill climbs, whoops, and just about everything. There is a reason they filmed those guys riding in that area. We also like Sycamore creek (upper and lower) and the Rolls OHV area. These are both on the 87 north (Beeline highway) going from Mesa to Payson. The Rolls OHV area is on your right when you pass the Bush highway exit. The Lower sycamore creek area is on the left off of the Bush Highway exit. This area has a little bit of everything as well - sand washes, tight trails, hill climbs, etc. Same goes for Rolls OHV.
There are other areas like Queen Valley, Box Canyon, Middle mountain, White tanks area. These areas are decent, but the ones I listed above are the best in my opinion. There are so many trails in these areas, you can ride for hours and never be on the same trail twice.
Take water, lots and lots of water. It's dry out here (except for July and August during monsoon season) and every breath you take, the dry air evaporates water from your lungs. You lose fluids just by breathing, not to mention being very active. I've been dehydrated before and it sucks.
Good luck, be safe, and have fun!
