{"id":1856288,"date":"2026-03-31T10:02:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T07:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1856288"},"modified":"2026-03-31T10:02:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T07:02:00","slug":"7-miles-of-professionally-built-flow-trails-added-to-popular-mtb-trail-system-in-farmington-nm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1856288","title":{"rendered":"7 miles of professionally-built flow trails added to popular MTB trail system in Farmington, NM"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Biff trail. All photos: Greg Heil<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The small city of Farmington, New Mexico, has long been known for oil and gas extraction, the proximity of its medical infrastructure to the Navajo Nation, and very little else. But in recent years, Farmington has quietly been making a name for itself as a mountain biking hub in the Four Corners area<\/a>, and that trend is only accelerating.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the past year, almost seven miles of professionally-built singletrack have been added to a burgeoning trail system just north of the city. Some of these new trails, such as a downhill flow trail known as \u201cBiff,\u201d are quickly becoming Farmington\u2019s new favorite trails.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The trail system, known as \u201cGlade Run Recreation Area<\/a>,\u201d \u201cEast Glade,\u201d or \u201cRoad Apple Rally,\u201d is already home to over 60 miles of bike-legal singletrack. Plus, it connects to about 10 miles of additional singletrack to the north, an urban network with 16+ miles of singletrack near San Juan College, and plenty of unmarked social trails.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Add in other trails like Boneyard<\/a>, and Alien Run<\/a> and Mountain View<\/a> in nearby Aztec, and there\u2019s well over a hundred miles of quality riding in the region.<\/p>\n

All of which makes the immediate popularity of these new trails all the more impressive.<\/p>\n

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Trail development in Farmington is spearheaded by San Juan County<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I spoke with Chris Conley, President of Farmington Area Single Track<\/a> (FAST), and Nick Porell, Public Works Director for San Juan County, about the rapid pace of local trail development. FAST plays an important role in the local trail systems by developing and maintaining the trails at San Juan College, helping maintain the Glade Run trails, and building the occasional singletrack segment in places like the Boneyard. But when it comes to the bulk of the modern trail development in the region, that has largely been spearheaded by Porell, with encouragement from the BLM.<\/p>\n

As Porell tells it, the local BLM recreation planner approached him and told him about the federal RTP grants, which \u201cfolks rarely apply for.\u201d The grants are federally funded, administered by the state, and require a 15% local match. While the BLM was happy to manage the infrastructure once it was built on their land, the rec planner wanted Porell to be the local agent to apply for the grant and to manage the projects. \u201cI\u2019m a mountain biker, so it piqued my interest,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Building more mountain bike trails also aligned with the county\u2019s ongoing shift from resource extraction to a recreation-based economy<\/a>. \u201cOur most recent strategic plan takes into account declining revenues from extractive industries, be that oil and gas or coal and coal power,\u201d said Porell. \u201cSo [there\u2019s a] big push on recreation amenities as an economic development driver, but also a quality of life initiative here locally.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

To date, San Juan County has been awarded four RTP grants, the third of which funded the most recent seven miles of singletrack. At roughly $330,000 with a $47,000 local match, this third grant is actually the smallest of the RTP grants they\u2019ve received. And yet, they built an incredible amount of fresh singletrack.<\/p>\n

New trails at East Glade<\/strong><\/h2>\n

All the new singletrack segments are located in the East Glade area, close to what\u2019s known as either the \u201cEast Glade Bike Park\u201d or the \u201cCalle Norte Bike Park.\u201d (Why there\u2019s a disconnect between maps, signage, and local vernacular when it comes to trail names in this area is unclear.) The five new trails are:<\/p>\n

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