Cedar City earns IMBA Trail Town honor, boosting mountain biking appeal

Cedar City just got a stronger claim on riders heading into southern Utah. IMBA named it a 2026 Trail Town on April 12, putting it in the inaugural class of 28 communities across 20 states, and making it the only Utah city on that first list.

For mountain bikers, the recognition matters because it points to a place where the trail scene is already built out, not just promised. IMBA says Trail Towns are communities that value trails and the people who ride them, and that the designation is meant to spotlight places where trail investment has helped create vibrant, connected communities. In Cedar City, that work has been rolling forward for more than a decade with help from the Bureau of Land Management, Iron Trailcraft and the visitor’s bureau.

Iron Trailcraft, the nonprofit volunteer group that plans, builds and maintains Cedar City and Iron County trail systems, has been part of that push from the start. Mac Urie, the group’s president, has been one of the local faces of that effort as the riding community has worked through planning, funding, design and construction. IMBA’s own Cedar City coverage points to years of access and education work behind the scenes, not just dirt being moved on a single project.

That history shows up in the trail options now on the map. Visit Cedar City says the Iron Hills Trail System has more than 30 miles of trails for nearly every skill level. The Three Peaks Non-Motorized Trail System adds more than 30 miles on 6,500 acres, with routes that range from beginner to advanced. Between Cedar City and Brian Head, riders can also tap the Brian Head Resort Mountain Bike Park, Thunderbird Gardens, Parowan, forest-service trails, chairlift-accessed trails and bike-shuttle-accessed trails.

The backbone of that network has been developing for years. IMBA notes that the 2017 completion of the Highlands trail connected the pre-existing C-Trail with the Iron Hills Trail System, added 2 miles to the shuttle descent of Green Hollow and Lava Flow, and created a loop of more than 10 miles. That kind of link-up is exactly what turns a scattered set of trails into a weekend plan.

Moab still owns the bigger name in Utah bike travel, but Cedar City now has the trail stack, community support and close-to-home riding culture to make a serious case for itself. With IMBA’s two-year Trail Town designation running from 2026 to 2028, Cedar City is no longer just a stop on the way south. It is a destination riders can build a trip around.