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PARK CITY — More often than not, people who make a name for themselves in the wide world of sports often start playing and training soon after they fully master walking.
So it is with four Utah groms — a nickname for youngins who excel in any given action sport — who expertly ride the Canyons Bike Park tails in this video.
Seven-year-old twins Luke and Alex Mallen are the youngest of the quartet. They live in Sandy and have been riding in Canyons since they were 4. Their good friend, 8-year-old Finley Kirschenmann, lives on the same street as the twins, and has been riding at the park for two years. Last, but not least, 11-year-old Jonah Brinkerhoff has been riding since the park opened. All of the boys are "some of the youngest kids in the state who participate in the budding sport of downhill freeride mountain biking," according to Liz Mallen, mother of the twins.
To at least one pair of non-expert eyes, the boys ride the trail like experts, smoothly maneuvering through turns, drops and jumps with confidence and ease. It's easy to envision their successful future in action sports, especially after comparing the boys' skills to the more experienced riders seen here.
In fact they are so good, the boys are partially sponsored by Orem company Demon Dirt, Sandy company Salt Cycles and Salt Lake company Go-Ride, according to Mallen.
Canyons Bike Park is a gravity, flow trail park that is built and groomed for downhill freeride mountain biking. There are at least 11 trails with different degrees of difficulty that all include several man-made obstacles. Unfortunately, the boys made the video with WorldBikeParks.com in anticipation of the park closing for the season on Sept. 27.
You can learn more about the park at its website, and you can read a new review of the park at the "ultimate bike park guide," WorldBikeParks.com.
