Don't make mountain biking Utah's awesome trails one of those things you know you ought to do but never get around to. (See also "Spiral Jetty," "Natural History Museum of Utah," and “Capitol Reef.") Every part of the state has unique trails - red rock and single track and downhill and low rollers - so ride the one closest to home and then plan a trip to one or two others.
Mountain Biking at Snowbird
Mountains Built Like Castles. Utah.com just invented a mnemonic to help you memorize Salt Lake's canyons, from north to south - Millcreek, Big Cottonwood, Little Cottonwood, Corner Canyon. Now bike them. Bike them all. Great ski mountains make for great riding in the summer, and you don't get so many resorts this close together anywhere else in the country.
Weird, salty and desolate. There are about nine reasons no one ever settled Antelope Island, but it makes for a fun ride. Breeze across the utterly flat 7-mile causeway and climb to the island's bony crest for a saline panorama. Good for families and casual riders. Don't pet the buffalo.
Chris Akrigg riding trails at Deer Valley, Utah.
More ski resort biking, but these trails are about 10 degrees cooler than the ones in Salt Lake. See when the chairlifts are running and practice not breaking your neck riding downhill all day. Park City has 150 miles of public trails so if you can't find a ride that suits you, maybe take up a different hobby.
Mark Field mountain biking the slickrock of Bartlett Wash, Moab, Utah, United States
It's important that everyone rides Slickrock.
Brendan Gecik rides the North Rim Trail on Gooseberry Mesa just west of Zion National Park, Utah
Marking an evolution (or sub-genre) of mountain biking, Gooseberry Mesa is the new hot spot for trick riding and extreme maneuvers. Riders dress up in riot gear and treat the buttes, tubs, basins, and ledges more like a skate park than a traditional bike trail. This may not be the place to start if you're dusting off your bike to see if you still know how to ride.
Here's the low-hanging fruit of bike safety/prep. And if you forget, there's nothing like carrying your bike with a flat tire back to the car to help you remember the next time.