Lo-Fidelity: Snowmass — the bold new frontier for mountain e-bikes

When I heard https://www.aspentimes.com/news/snowmass-moves-forward-with-e-bike-trial-on-designated-trails/ about mountain e-bikes being allowed over at Snowmass on a trial basis, my ears perked up. My understanding is getting all of the stakeholders, partners and entities to work together to make this happen was an exemplary modern-day feat of civics.

Big, big thanks to Susan Cross, the VP of Mountain Ops at the Aspen Skiing Company. This e-bike trial-trail is her baby. If you want to see the skiing industry reacting to climate change by really leaning into on-mountain summer activities, go straight to Snowmass. 

I’ve been dying to get check out the new mountain e-bike trail setup all summer, but my 2017 Giant Full-E was in the shop for repairs — I’ve since noticed an odd correlation between my e-bike being broken and a sudden uptick in my physical fitness.

Monday, I finally got my chance. I rode my e-bike out to the Intercept Lot; deadlifted the 50-pound pedal-assist behemoth onto a RFTA bus and off I went. I checked in with the Four Mountain Sports at the bottom of the Elk Camp gondola to get a trail map and the low-down from the helpful staff. Basically, there’s an uphill e-bike route on Discovery Trail, and a downhill route on Village Bound Trail, with a more challenging descent spur option of the Luge Trail; all routes leading back to the top of Fanny Hill. 

For me, the new Snowmass e-bike single-track trail network is like a lifetime achievement award. This was the first time I’ve ever ridden a mountain e-bike on local single-track trails, because up until there and now it’s been illegal to do so. That hasn’t stopped numerous known scofflaws, but it has me. Sorry dude, the world’s not your oyster. Shuck-off. Some trails are still sacred. 

I’ve learned the hard (and embarrassing) way where you can, and cannot, go on an e-bike. Case in point: There was a ski patrol gathering for a fallen soldier several years back at Highlands Alehouse. I fortuitously timed a ride up the service road to the patrol headquarters and back down to the funeral where a grizzled throng of 30 some-odd patrollers holding beers watched me arrive, covered in dust, on my e-bike. One honcho sauntered up and informed me in no uncertain terms, “You know you’re not allowed up here on that thing.” Gulp. Now I know. The only mountain you’re allowed to ride an e-bike up to the top is Aspen Mountain because it’s a county road. Now you know. 

As I breezed up the Fanny Hill work road on my mountain e-bike, I was reminded of grunting uphill during numerous Aspen Cycling Club races from days gone by. Then I saw a sign for “Discovery Trail,” and “Weekend Brunch.” That’s where the real fun began. While piloting my e-bike uphill through the single-track switchbacks, I let-out a maniacal laugh at what little effort was required. 

The e-bike portion of Discovery Trail tops-out just below the bottom of Sam’s Knob lift. That’s where you pick up Village Bound; a single-track which ducks in and out of the fragrant spruce and aspen groves on the lower flanks of Snowmass. Incidentally, “Village Bound” was one of the first man-built mountain bike trails on Snowmass in the 90s. I like Village Bound because it’s a mature single-track which has the self-confidence to follow the natural contours of the mountain. The trail isn’t over-built, as in littered mindlessly with berms and whoopty-doos every 20-feet. 

The downhill was exciting, technical, challenging and equally rewarding as the relatively effortless climb — so much so that I did three laps on the new mountain e-bike trail network. I’d highly recommend anyone with a mountain e-bike looking for something new to go see for yourself, or go rent one and find out what the fuss is all about. If you’re “too cool” to go out to Snowmass and ski or mountain bike, you’re struggling. 

Sometimes, when you least expect it, you get affirmations what you’re doing is tragically hip. Proof: on the Village Bound Trail I saw my skiing idol Pat Sewell, and ran into my ol’ pal mountain bike patrol ranger “Beav.” I then met an Italian dude also named “Lorenzo,” who was here for the art fair. Monday (that’s my fun-day) was an exceptionally good day.

There’s been a lot of discourse, dismay and hand-wringing as to what to do with the undeniable menace of mountain e-bikes on our local single-track. I think Susan Cross just may’ve come up with a clever solution: keep mountain e-bikes contained to the four ski areas and their boundaries. Wouldn’t that be amusing if the answer was sitting in front of us the entire time, and the SkiCo was the one to employ it? Conceptually, it’s kind of like a zone “prevent defense,” or a dog-park-type-thing for decrepit, aging mountain bikers, recovering bike racers and notoriously lazy slobs like me. 

Potential new geriatric mountain e-bike trail names with lucrative corporate sponsorship opportunities: “Flow-max”, the “Depends-drop” and the “Viagra-vistas” trails. 

Contact Lorenzo via suityourself@sopris.net.