The trail building lineup in southwest Utah looks interesting. In 2024, TASU built Hell Hole, which is a five mile downhill trail in the Revenant system near St. George. Now, they are planning a new expert or double black downhill trail parallel to Hell Hole that should be about four miles long. This new project will include a bypass around its toughest upper section.
It is great to see the network expanding. They also completed Pillow Fight at Cliffrose, an intermediate rated three mile trail that descends over 700 feet. TASU hopes to finish the new Revenant trails by next summer, weather permitting, and they hope to finish Cliffrose by spring. There is also approval for about 20 miles of new trail in Pine Valley, though that still needs funding.
As the Revenant system grows with more high consequence terrain, it raises a question about how these trails should be accessed. Some riders prefer the physical effort of earning their descent, while others prefer shuttle friendly layouts that maximize the number of laps. Should new expert downhill trails require a climb to reach the gnarliest terrain, or should descent only trails be built to start at the top?
Since these systems often involve shuttle operations, I also wonder if there is a risk of overcrowding the trailheads when the most difficult sections are the easiest to access. Does the ability to shuttle directly to the top change the way a trail is ridden compared to when a rider has to pedal up to it?