Expe­ri­ence the South­west in the com­pa­ny of like-mind­ed adven­tur­ers and wel­com­ing instruc­tors while enjoy­ing a heavy dose of well-deserved vaca­tion! Spend a week in a scenic moun­tain bik­er’s par­adise with a focus on mov­ing your rid­ing to the next level. 

Expe­ri­ence the breath­tak­ing beau­ty of south­west­ern Utah, one of the world’s best moun­tain bike des­ti­na­tions, on this 5‑day moun­tain bike get­away with some of North Amer­i­ca’s best instruc­tors. This Ride fea­tures a com­bi­na­tion of on-trail skill-build­ing and miles of fun rid­ing on world-famous singletrack.


From the sur­re­al desert sur­round­ing stretch­ing from the Spring Moun­tains fram­ing Las Vegas to the West to the South­west Col­orado Plateau, this itin­er­ary includes some of the most spec­tac­u­lar and unique geog­ra­phy on the plan­et. It also hap­pens to be home to some of the best moun­tain bik­ing any­where — a per­fect train­ing ground for this 5‑day trip!

Is This Ride For You?

Maybe you recent­ly start­ed moun­tain bik­ing and have the bug or have been rid­ing for a while but keep it on the tamer side of sin­gle­track. You already have the basics of rid­ing, but you haven’t found the groove or devel­oped the con­fi­dence to take it to the next lev­el. You might be a rid­er that has been rid­ing a moun­tain bike for years but have nev­er worked with instruc­tors to dial in your tech­nique and set you up for pre­dictable, repeat­able tech­ni­cal fea­tures on a trail. You are a rid­er look­ing to learn and grow. You want to spend your time in the com­pa­ny of like­mind­ed explores. You want to take pho­tos, iden­ti­fy wildlife or have a curios­i­ty about the pletho­ra of flow­ers, shrubs, trees and cac­ti. You want a great bike wait­ing ready for you or some­one to build and tune the one you arrived with. You want to know if some­thing goes wrong with your bike, your guides are ready to fix it on trail and are hap­py to use it as a learn­ing expe­ri­ence. You love to eat great food, sleep in a com­fort­able bed. You appre­ci­ate being on vaca­tion and hav­ing the details sort­ed out. You deserve a week of wor­ry-free moun­tain bik­ing in a beau­ti­ful and diverse paradise.

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Itinerary

DAY 1. Viva Las Vegas!

Every­one knows Las Vegas for “The Strip”, Elvis imper­son­ators, extrav­a­gant shows, bizarre archi­tec­ture, and seedy sub­cul­tures. But it is also cen­tral to stag­ger­ing moun­tain ranges in every direc­tion, each host­ing beau­ti­ful nat­ur­al dis­plays of geol­o­gy, flo­ra, and fauna.

On day 1 we will pick you up ear­ly and shut­tle to our set­up where we will build bikes for those that trav­eled with their own and fit for those using one of our sup­plied rentals (no extra fee!).


Every day will have engag­ing instruc­tion through­out the rides, cus­tom-tai­lored to indi­vid­ual skillsets. The first ride will begin with basics like ride posi­tion, brak­ing, and cor­ner­ing tech­nique and a glos­sary of terms we will use through­out the week.


Then we’ll ride! Your guides will pick out one of many trail net­works best suit­ed for the group and have a mel­low-paced intro ride giv­ing enough time and space to prac­tice the basics while expe­ri­enc­ing this unique landscape.

We will have lunch in Blue Dia­mond and then we will have a scenic 2‑hour dri­ve across a small sliv­er of Ari­zona before arriv­ing to our beau­ti­ful bou­tique accom­mo­da­tions in St. George.

Din­ner will be at the Red Fort Cui­sine Of India, serv­ing clas­sic Indi­an fare.


Time on Trail: approx. 2–3 hours

DAY 2.  Explore St. George

Wake up to a beau­ti­ful sun­rise on your own pri­vate bal­cony over­look­ing the town of St. George, dust­ed with a back­drop of the Pine Val­ley Moun­tains and the vibrant red rock of Snow Canyon State Park.


We will head direct­ly to the trail­head for the Green Val­ley trails where we will dis­cuss the game plan for the ride, and review the skills learned from the day before.


The ride in the Green Val­ley is an open land­scape with dry, sandy soil and a great playlist of trails at our dis­pos­al for the day. Lunch will be at a pop­u­lar cafe downtown.

After lunch, we will head over to the small town of Wash­ing­ton, Utah and explore the Church Rocks and Dino Cliff trails. 

Din­ner will be at the upscale-casu­al Cliff­side Restau­rant that offers New Amer­i­can fare.

Time on trail: approx. 4–5 hours

DAY 3. Deep into Zion Nation­al Park

After a hearty made to order break­fast, we will jump in the van for a scenic hour dri­ve to the quaint town of Spring­dale, where the streets are lit­tered with art gal­leries, cof­fee shops, out­door stores, and restaurants. 

In Zion Nation­al Park you will have options of sev­er­al hikes. Our favorites are Angel’s Land­ing and The Nar­rows. We will be pack­ing our lunch­es to go for this day. If you are look­ing for more of a relax­ing day you are wel­come to explore more of Spring­dale or walk around the Vis­i­tor Cen­ter. We will gath­er back up for an amaz­ing din­ner in Spring­dale before shut­tling back to our cozy beds. 

Din­ner will be at the Bit & Spur Restau­rant and Saloon, this place has been around since 1981 and for good rea­sons. It has a robust selec­tion of craft beers and tasty mar­gar­i­tas and serves up unique Mex­i­can and South­west dishes. 

DAY 4. Time to Put it all Together

We’ve made it to day 4 and have been rid­ing a ton and build­ing on your tool­box of skills. For the last day before head­ing back to Neva­da, we are head­ed to Wire Mesa in the morn­ing and then Goose­ber­ry Mesa after lunch. This will like­ly be the most chal­leng­ing ride we wran­gle in the area, but the rewards are matched to the effort.

Wire Mesa will be a good morn­ing warm-up with a mix of fast and flowy, a few tech­ni­cal sec­tions, and unfor­get­table views. Lunch will be at the van. 

Goose­ber­ry is a total clas­sic trail. You can­not come to the St. George area and miss this epic net­work of trails.

From the trail­head, we will start with tame dou­ble track before get­ting to the rim of the mesa where we will leave the tame behind and ride the tech and feel some of the expo­sure the region is known for. We will work in small groups to sup­port the added chal­lenge and cheer on our co-rid­ers as we nav­i­gate Gooseberry.

The views from the ride will stop you in your tracks so we rec­om­mend keep­ing your cam­era close at hand.

Time on trail: approx. 4–6 hours

Day 5. Jem Trails on Hur­ri­cane Cliffs

Eat a big break­fast before a very short shut­tle to the trails. Our cen­ter­piece for the day will be the well-known Jem Trail. This flowy mas­ter­piece of a trail is a ton of fun. It’s a real Jem (sor­ry, we couldn’t resist).

While soak­ing in the stun­ning views of the sur­round­ing mesas and breath­ing the sweet air filled with the fra­grance of the mesquite and junipers, we will use the flowy nature of Jem to focus on cor­ner­ing techniques.

You will most like­ly be beg­ging for a sec­ond lap. No prob­lem! We’ll be right there with you!

Lunch will be in the town of Hur­ri­cane. We will then head back to Las Vegas to say our goodbyes.

Time on trail: approx. 2–3 hours

Photos & Videos

  • Woman riding mountain bike across desert rock under blue sky and sun
  • Overhead view of person riding a mountain bike on a red dirt trail surrounded by red sandstone cliffs
  • Three people riding mountain bikes over rocky desert terrain in Nevada, with bright blue sky overhead.

Book Viva Southwest—Co-Ed Now

Dates chosen: Nov. 22, 2021—Nov. 26, 2021
Skill Rating: Green Circle
Fitness Rating: Blue Square
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Skill Levels
Green Circle

Typically, green Rides are safe for beginners. Green Rides may have both avoidable and unavoidable obstacles. Trails are generally low grade, wide, consistent surface texture and have minimal features. You are likely to come across unavoidable obstacles 2-inches or shorter, which is small enough for mountain bike tires to simply roll over. More challenging than tarmac, but in general, a wonderful Ride for those riders new to mountain biking or looking for a casual experience.

Blue Square

In general, Blue trails are narrower than green trails, encounter unavoidable obstacles such as roots, rocks, and drops that are up to 8-inches tall. You will want to have a solid understanding of the fundamentals of mountain biking including body positions, powerful braking, cornering, riding on varied terrain, steep sections and experience riding trails that requires line choice. Airtime is not mandatory, but you will find yourself on trails with alternate lines giving you the option.

Black Diamond

The Black Diamond Rides are  suitable for riders looking for that edge. Maybe it’s the edge of a drop, the edge of a cliff, or singletrack requiring focus and fast reactions developed from extensive experience riding “the edge”. You will find yourself on steep trails of varied surfaces. In the Pacific North West that could be slick roots and loam, in Nepal you will find exposed granite in the Mustang Valley and in Guatemala it maybe narrow stairways through cliffside villages. While airtime is rarely required, the ability to find the backside or clean a tabletop should be comfortable or in a state of progress. Obstacles on Black rides are likely to be outside the range of your bikes ability to cover your goofs with its awesome suspension and grip.

Double Black Diamond

A Double Black ride is for those that already know they are looking for a Double Black. It’s going to be very hard and require advanced bike handling skills. You will find yourself on trails with sections most non-riders would look at and say, “that’s totally nuts!”. You will know how to look at a line and contemplate where it will work and where it won’t. Drops of a couple feet should be comfortable and getting your bike off the ground should feel predictable and fun.

Fitness Levels
Green Circle

You should be ready to spend 2-4 hours per day on the bike. Mileage may be up to 30km/20 miles and elevation gain will be under 500m/1500feet. On e-MTB tours, numbers will be higher, however the approximate effort would be considered similar to a standard Green Circle ride. If you get on your bike once a week, you will be just fine. However, when preparing for a Ride, you will benefit from more rides and time in the saddle.

Blue Square

Blue should be considered a good deal more effort than our Green Rides.  You should be able to handle 3 to 5 hours in the saddle covering up to 45km/30miles and be able to pull off a big day of 1000m/3000feet of elevation gain. Managing fuel is important as well.  You should have a good understanding how your body responds to multiple days on the bike. We will help with positive coaching, a manageable pace and plenty of trailside snacks.

Black Diamond

A Black Fitness ride will test you. Aside from needing to be able to manage up to 6 hours on the bike, day after day, including distance up to 50km/30miles and elevation gains up to 1750m/5000feet of climbing, you will be adding extra challenges along the route like periods of hike-a-bike and the extra effort required by the whole body to safely dance with your bike over technical terrain. Generally, riders who are up for a Black Fitness ride, likely spend time on the bike a couple times each week.

Double Black Diamond

A Double Black will be for those with the strength and endurance to get to the top of anything they want and understand the term “turning the screw”. Distance could be quite high on some routes and elevation gain numbers could hit 2000m/6000 feet+ in a day. You are likely riding multiple days a week during the dry periods and have a trainer or belong to a gym for the rest of the year.