Riding Enduro in United States

Legal dirt-bike riding in the United States starts with public land. Two federal agencies set the rules for riders:

• The US Forest Service designates roads, trails and areas open to motor vehicles and prints them on a motor vehicle use map (MVUM) (36 CFR 212.56).
• The Bureau of Land Management designates all its public lands as open, limited or closed to off-road vehicles (43 CFR 8342.1).

On top of the federal network, states run their own riding areas. California alone has nine state vehicular recreation areas (California State Parks OHMVR). West Virginia's Hatfield–McCoy Trails opened in 2000 with 300 miles of trail and reached 500 miles by 2004.

The country's world championship hard enduro round runs on a ski mountain in Idaho.

Idaho: Silver Mountain Resort, Kellogg

Silver Kings Hard Enduro runs at Silver Mountain Resort in Kellogg. It was round 3 of the 2026 FIM Hard Enduro World Championship. The pro main event, the Thunder Bowl Finale, starts with a blast up the ski hill and finishes on the "King Slayer" hill climb (Cycle News). Entry details are on the official site.

California: state vehicular recreation areas

California's nine SVRAs are Carnegie, Clay Pit, Eastern Kern County Onyx Ranch, Heber Dunes, Hollister Hills, Hungry Valley, Oceano Dunes, Ocotillo Wells and Prairie City. They are purpose-built public riding areas.

West Virginia: Hatfield–McCoy Trails

A trail system for ATVs, UTVs and dirt bikes across nine southern West Virginia counties. It is run as a public–private partnership between private landowners and a state-created recreation authority (Wikipedia).

National Forests and BLM land

Every National Forest ranger district publishes its MVUM. BLM rules require land to be designated open, limited or closed.

Silver Kings Hard Enduro (Idaho)

2026: 18–20 June, Silver Mountain Resort, Kellogg. Trystan Hart passed Mitch Brightmore within sight of the finish arch, and Brightmore passed straight back to win by about five seconds after more than two hours. It was Brightmore's first world championship round win. Manuel Lettenbichler was third (Cycle News; Silver Kings).

The format:

Day	Race
Thursday	Prologue on an endurocross-style course, then the SuperKings head-to-head final. Jonny Walker set the fastest time, 38.46 seconds, and won the final.
Friday	Full Mountain Course. Hart won in 1 hour 51 minutes.
Saturday	Pro main event, the Thunder Bowl Finale, on a lap of about 21 minutes for the fastest riders.

More than 500 amateur riders raced a long course on Friday and Saturday, with harder sections added on day two.

GNCC

The Grand National Cross Country series grew from Dave Coombs's Blackwater 100, first run in 1975, into a series from 1984. It is sanctioned by the AMA. Courses run 8 to 12 miles, races last up to three hours, and fields reach up to 2,200 riders.

The ISDE in the USA

The International Six Days came to Dalton, Massachusetts, in 1973, its first edition outside Europe. It returned to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1994 (ISDE records).

• American Motorcyclist Association (AMA). Sanctions national off-road series including the GNCC.
• State OHV programs. California State Parks' Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation program runs the state's nine SVRAs.
• Riders. Cody Webb, born in Watsonville, California, was the 2010 US NATC trials champion and won the AMA EnduroCross Championship in 2014, 2015 and 2017 (Wikipedia).
• World Trophy teams. The USA won the ISDE World Trophy in 2016, 2019 and 2023.

National Forests: ride what the map shows

Once a ranger district has designated its roads, trails and areas and published them on a motor vehicle use map, it is prohibited to operate a motor vehicle on that land except in line with those designations (36 CFR 261.13). The map specifies vehicle classes and, where needed, the times of year each route is open (36 CFR 212.56). MVUMs are available at ranger district offices and on the forest's website.

BLM land: open, limited or closed

The BLM must designate all its public lands as open, limited or closed to off-road vehicles. Trails and areas are not placed in designated wilderness or primitive areas (43 CFR 8342.1).

California: registration and spark arresters

• Every vehicle ridden off-highway on public land in California must be street-licensed or registered as an OHV (green or red sticker).
• Visitors whose bike lacks current registration from their home state must buy a California Nonresident OHV Use Permit. So must riders from states that charge Californians a nonresident permit, and Arizona riders on street-licensed OHVs (California State Parks).
• Off-highway vehicles on forest-, brush- or grass-covered land need a working spark arrester, under California Vehicle Code 38366 (California State Parks). A qualifying arrester removes particles over 0.0232 inch, or is qualified by the US Forest Service.

Other states

Every state sets its own OHV registration rules. Check before you trailer across a state line.

The US is too big for one season. Use the tools the law gives you:

• Read the MVUM. It shows the times of year each National Forest route is open.
• Plan around events. Silver Kings ran 18–20 June in 2026.
• Watch fire rules. In California, a spark arrester is mandatory on forest, brush and grass land.

Maps first. Get the MVUM for every ranger district you plan to ride, from the district office or the forest's website.

Registration. Check whether you need a California Nonresident OHV Use Permit before riding public land there. The rules depend on your home state and your bike's registration.

Riding areas with facilities. California's nine SVRAs and West Virginia's Hatfield–McCoy Trails are purpose-built riding areas.

Silver Kings. The event runs at Silver Mountain Resort in Kellogg, Idaho. Check the official site for regulations; it states there are no class changes and no refunds.

Guided tours. For the tour operators we list in the US, with prices, licence and insurance terms side by side, see enduro tours in the US.

• No map, no ride. On National Forest land, the MVUM is the law.
• Fit a spark arrester. Mandatory on California forest, brush and grass land.
• Carry proof of registration or your nonresident permit in California.
• Wilderness is off-limits. BLM trails are not placed in designated wilderness areas.
• Train for mountain racing. Silver Kings finishes on a hill climb. See hill climbs and descents.
• Know your bike's market. US-market KTMs differ from European ones. See KTM EXC vs XC-W.

American off-road riding has deep roots in the Six Days.

Year	Milestone
1964	First US team at the International Six Days, organised by John Penton. Steve McQueen and Bud Ekins ride.
1973	Dalton, Massachusetts, hosts the first Six Days outside Europe.
1975	Dave Coombs runs the first Blackwater 100, the root of the GNCC series (from 1984).
1994	Tulsa, Oklahoma, hosts the Six Days.
2000	Hatfield–McCoy Trails open in West Virginia.
2016	USA wins the ISDE World Trophy in Spain.
2019	USA wins the World Trophy in Portugal.
2023	USA wins the World Trophy in Argentina.

Sources: ISDE records, GNCC, Hatfield–McCoy Trails.

• Public land built for riding. MVUMs and BLM designations tell you exactly where you can go.
• State riding areas. Nine SVRAs in California alone.
• A world championship round on a ski mountain. Silver Kings at Silver Mountain Resort.
• Six Days pioneers. The first Six Days outside Europe was in Massachusetts in 1973.

The 2026 world championship ends at the 24MX Hixpania Hard Enduro in Spain, 23–25 October (FIM).