Coach Jespersen leads the charge for USU Eastern Mountain Biking

As of September, Utah had more mountain bike cyclists in the National Interscholastic Cycling Association than any other state, yet no university or college in Utah has a fully operational mountain biking team.

At the end of this year, Utah State University Eastern will be one of two schools in the state to launch not a mountain biking club, but a fully-sanctioned athletic program under the university’s athletics umbrella.

So, why USU Eastern?

“We’re surrounded by a trail system. We have a race course that’s NICA-approved right in our backyard,” said USU Eastern’s first mountain biking head coach Mark Jespersen. “It just kind of made sense on a number of levels.”

Starting the program hasn’t been easy — Jespersen has spent years developing mountain biking in Price.

After buying a bike shop and running what is now Altitude Cycle, Jespersen wanted more youth in the community to get involved in biking. Following announcements over the intercoms at the local high school, only three riders signed up for mountain biking.

With no prior experience in coaching mountain biking, Jespersen jumped all in. “There’s a real science behind coaching, and there’s also a real human side,” Jespersen said. “The good coaches can combine both and get their kids to perform at a high level. That’s what I try to do.”

Jespersen’s efforts to grow mountain biking in Price never stopped. Nine years later, he’s still coaching — not just a team of three, but a thriving team of 52 riders.

Jespersen’s involvement in the community goes beyond recruiting more riders. For years he has been working with USU Eastern to get a team — ­­­ program that keeps local talent local, aids in enrollment and develops riders who graduate high school and want to keep riding. 

Building an authorized race trail and establishing a team at USU Eastern has been a high-priority goal for Jespersen. After developing the course a few years ago on university property and now stepping in as head coach, it’s clear Jespersen is a man who achieves his goals.

Now, with a course, coach and potential, where is the team?

As of now, it’s just Coach Jespersen — an “old man” who simply “loves riding bikes,” as he puts it. The team is in its building phase, with plans for six to 10 riders by spring. Riders or no riders, Jespersen’s objective remains the same: “Give an opportunity to kids that they don’t normally have.”

As spring 2025 is rounding the corner, keep an eye out for the USU Eastern Mountain Biking team as they hit the trail.