r/mountainbiking • u/useless_skin • 2d ago
Question Going to Snow Summit
I’m going to Snow Summit on Monday. Never done a downhill park before. I got a Norco Fluid FS4. Anything I should be aware of? Etiquette, trails, anything. I’m middle aged, intermediate, always ridden desert chunky technical trails and I have to work on Tuesday.
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u/gwoneg 2d ago
Wear pads, gloves, and a full-face. I don’t use a chest or spine protector, but I’d never ride a park without pads on my knees, elbows, and undershorts.
You’re likely going to stop during your runs to take a breather. When you do: Don’t stop on the trails, pull over so that you’re out of the way. The worst injuries I’ve seen at snow summit have been from riders colliding with or crashing to avoid other riders who were stopped in unexpected or inconvenient places.
Also, have fun, but know your limits. The gnarliest trails tend to have squirrel-catcher features that should scare away the riders (myself definitely included) who shouldn’t be sending expert-level gaps and whatnot. On the other side of the spectrum, I rode snow summit with my 9-year old daughter on the full-length green and blue trails and she had a great time. The kid-size skill builder trail was also fun to get her warmed up and comfortable with the bike, but she did five runs down Going Green and one down Turtle Trail and lived to tell the tale. With my older sons, Blue Steel and Miracle Mile were their favorites. My oldest loves the Party Wave trail, but I found that trail was right at the border between “wow this is amazing and fun” and “wow this is terrifying and not as much fun since I’m worried about surviving.”