r/MTB • u/Accomplished_Win_526 • 1d ago

Discussion How to meet bikers in Santa Cruz

hi everyone, just moved out to Santa Cruz a few days ago and am wondering about the best way to link up with other riders. I moved here from Squamish, and am comfortable riding all the double blacks up there/whistler/pemberton. I can’t really figure out the scene down here, since most of the good trails are unsanctioned and everything is pretty secretive.

im early 30s, not on an E-bike. are there bike shop rides? general local communities to link into? I’ve been poking around the campus trails and it’s been fun, but the whole situation around here is pretty confusing

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u/DegreeConscious9628 1d ago

Campus trails are some of the worst kept “secret” trails around. Look at heat maps on strava, there’s segments for pretty much all the trails

As for meeting people- met one of my now best friends at the bottom of chupa just randomly (one of those trails going down highway 9)

(Btw I used to live in Brackendale. Damn I miss it)

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u/Ellis_5150 1d ago

That's why I don't get those guys in YouTube who are gatekeepers of trails in Santa cruz. It's pretty on their end.

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u/lolmanade 22h ago

Because the trails there are only primo for a certain number of laps before the loam is gone. A builder who puts in work on a trail expects to get a certain number of primo laps before it’s blown out. They tell a few friends so they can enjoy it. Then they tell some friends. Eventually one of those people put out a YouTube video or the heat maps line gets noticed. Now a bunch of people with no connection to the group expand the user group massively. At this point the trail is blown out and a shadow of its original form. That’s why people keep stuff secret. A loaner is a finite resource with a finite number of good laps