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Sport Loop

Intermediate Intermediate
 4.5 (41)
  1. Areas
  2. AZ
  3. …Phoenix Metro
  4. …Fountain Hills
  5. McDowell Mountain Regional Park
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“A fast-rolling racetrack loop at McDowell Mountain Regional Park. ”

C R John
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Map Key

3.0

Miles

4.8

KM
Singletrack

1,780' 542 m

High

1,620' 494 m

Low

198' 60 m

Up

200' 61 m

Down

3%

Avg Grade (1°)

5%

Max Grade (3°)

Dogs Unknown

E-Bikes Allowed

There is a $6.00 per vehicle entry fee to get into the park.

Description

Built in 1998 for the Cactus Cup Race, The Sport Loop is the easiest of the three competitive loops. As with the other loops, this is considered a one-way race track, not to be ridden by those on a leisurely wildflower-sniffing spin through the desert. Dont let the competitive moniker scare you off. It's rarely crowded, so you wont be elbowing for position with other riders. The one-way flow makes it so there may be a dozen cars in the parking lot, yet you may not see anyone else on the trail.

It starts off with an easy uphill to get maybe 100 feet of elevation with a minor rocky patch here or there. From the Double Dip sign it's mostly a rolling, swooping ride through the Sonoran desert. There may be a wash or two to climb out of, but the loop is mostly a twisting, rollicking, roller coaster ride, even getting in a little half-pipe action on some of the wash runs.

After just a few rocks on the initial climb, the trail is about as smooth as you're going to find in the area, mostly hard-pack or crushed granite. It's well worn-in with banked corners and some washboarding. It is a good trail for competent beginners--even the energetic youngster--yet without real technical hazards to expose overconfidence. The loop is only three miles, so ride, grin, repeat.

Contacts

Land Manager: Maricopa County Parks

Shared By:

C R John
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.5 from 41 votes

#1

in McDowell Mountain Regional Park

#258

Overall
  4.5 from 41 votes
5 Star
56%
4 Star
37%
3 Star
7%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%
Trail Rankings

#1

in McDowell Mountain Regi…

#15

in Arizona

#258

Overall
45 Views Last Month
7,602 Since Mar 29, 2014
Intermediate Intermediate
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6%
89%
3%
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Photos

Technical Loop entrance: "Track is for high speeds, challenging one's skills, and racing."
Mar 29, 2014 near Fountai…, AZ
The Chunnel
Mar 29, 2014 near Fountai…, AZ

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Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 52 days ago
Add Your Check-In

Check-Ins

Apr 16, 2024
Jason Sprouse
Gassed out, weak legs 3.2mi — 0h 28m
Feb 26, 2024
Matt Bloomfield
3mi
Dec 9, 2023
Daniel Cashero
3mi — 20h 00m
Oct 23, 2023
Atsuko Ohtake
Feb 27, 2023
Will Day
0h 35m
Nov 26, 2022
Omar Rodriguez
Mar 2, 2022
Andrea Helmig
3mi — 0h 30m
Feb 27, 2021
Thomas Pyke

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