Indoor bike park in SLC? Hope their plans come together!

[catch22]

https://www.facebook.com/#!/switchbackbikepark

[Live2rideUtah]

That would be sweet for the winter, do it!

[cman8]

Where can I buy a season pass!!!!!? Im In. If you build it they will come.

[rideut]

This is great news! Anyone know where it is located?
Would like to see some pics of the construction so far or a proposed floor plan.

[evasive]

Subscribed. Could be of interest to us here on our travels, too.

[zebrahum]

Can't find any good details yet, but a quote from one of their postings says "The park will be in Salt Lake, close to down town." I was living near Ray's for the first few years of their existence and I can say that having a place like this nearby could be really fun.

[While At Rome]

Saw this on facebook a few days ago. Excited to see what the do with it!

[Switchback Bike Park]

Hey all. Thanks for talking about Switchback! To answer your questions, yes we're opening an indoor bike park in Salt Lake City. We're looking at multiple buildings in the SLC area, both downtown and farther west in the industrial area. And we're hoping (cross your fingers) for a January (ish) timeframe for opening.

To help us better suit the needs of our riders, what features would you want to see in the park?

[ronnyg801]

Never been to rays or anything like that, so dunno how those go, Ive been to plenty of skate parks in my life so things like that are more common for me to think of but by no means the limit.

In no particular order

A foam pit? Air bag? something.

Resi

Dirt... jumps, pump track?

Drops?

Wood quarters, ramps, tables

Trials area?!

Skate park type features to get BMXers enticed too?

I know that ladders, balance beams etc are popular and good skill builders for certain people, to me these things take up precious space that cool things could be on haha. I guess that depends on the space you have available too.

What kind of things do you guys (switchback bike park) have in mind?

It sounded like initially you were working on a very large building, how much "room for progress" do you plan to have left over after your opening date? When I saw the first mention of building size, you would have to have an army of amigos to have that kind of square footage with built features by January.

Regardless, good luck! I want a place to ride during the winter!

[Tystevens]

I've never been to one of these places, either, so I'm having a hard time envisioning it.

That said, don't forget to create some lines with some drops, ladders, etc. It seems to me that whenever someone says 'bike park' they are usually talking about repetitive jump/table lines. I'm a big fan of built (wooden, rock, etc) features. Of course, they are usually built into a steep hillside, a la Arcylon or Black Rock (Oregon), so I don't know how well features work indoors.

Good luck!

[Err]

First off, STOKED on this project. This has been a long time comming. I was was riding the foam pit at Snowgression regularly before it was closed to bikes. I'd really like to see a lot of opportunity for the progression of learning tricks at your place.

Specifically: Foam Pit or Air Bag to Resi-ramp to dirt

Also, an indoor pump track and possibly an indoor trail sound pretty cool. Especially to add broad appeal and cater to those who are more interesting in flowing/riding than working on specific tricks.

Summary:
Foam Pit or Air Bag
Resi Ramp
Dirt or wood/dirt jumps
Pump Track
Stunt Trail

[YRG]

Awesome news!
I would like to put in a vote for volume. More room means more variety options, more progression options and better crowd mitigation. Would also like to second a vote for pump track, foam pit.
And also high on the list: little to nothing in a straight line please.

[KThaxton]

Lift served downhill FTW!

Seriously, how about a tribute to Moab/St.George with some simulated slickrock sections (i.e.formed concrete), unless of course, it is cost prohibitive.

[SprungShoulders]

I second ronnyg's suggestion of a trials area. You could pack a lot of good stuff, for all skill levels, in a very small area. Check out the OTN forums for ideas. A lot of trials riders have setup some fairly amazing private courses in their backyards and even garages.

[Thor Lord of Thunder]

I really hate to be cynical...there's nothing more I'd love to have in SLC than a sick place to ride indoors in the winter (grew up riding at Ray's). But, my understanding is that similar ventures around the country (there are really only a few other than the 2 Ray's locations) take years to come to fruition. If this park doesn't have a building and we're being asked in mid-November what kind of riding and park design we want, it doesn't seem likely to be a reality anytime soon.

Hope I'm wrong, though...would be a fantastic way to keep bike stoke going year round! Best of luck to those planning this.

[bikeboardorblade]

Switchback people, tell me when and where and I'll be buying a pass. If you're still looking for a location, have you looked in the Ogden area? From what I understand there's plenty of empty buildings, a city government that would likely be supportive, plus QBP has a distribution center there.

As a side note, its closer to me Hope it can happen soon!

[rossluzz]

Switchback Facebook page is down, did it fizzle out or are they still looking for a location?

[Live2rideUtah]

Probably went in the dumps