Razor's Edge MX

Razor's Edge MX in Farragut is southwest Iowa's only full-time motocross practice facility, run by owners Doug and Barb Hays on their home place since 1997. It started as a private practice track, grew as local riders and kids rediscovered it, and has charged for practice since 2006 to cover the grooming and watering. In a region where riders usually drive hours hoping to find an open track, the Hays family has kept it going for more than two decades, and they love seeing riders from 3 to over 60 enjoying the sport in a family-friendly setting.

Safety drives the design: the jumps are not peaked and the landings are rounded, while the layouts still challenge riders of every level. The 3/4-mile main MX track runs doubles, rhythm sections, whoops, rollers, tabletops, step-ups and a triple. A second track, built in 2005 with local rider Nathan Gibilisco, emulates the Supercross and Arenacross layouts you see on TV for riders prepping for racing. A dedicated peewee track keeps the youngest riders on their own surface, away from big-bike traffic.

The amenities go well past the usual regional-track basics: an indoor restroom and changing room with a shower in the white office trailer, plus the option to lock your bike and gear in the shop if you are staying a few days, and shop access to wrench on your bike out of the weather.

Daily riding runs from noon to dusk on open days, and the open days vary with weather and staffing, so call (712) 385-8368 or (712) 520-0053 or check the Facebook page before you haul. The track's posted fee schedule lists un-prepped practice at $10 for riders 8 and up and $5 for 7 and under, $15 and $10 when one track is prepped, and $20 and $15 on announced full prep days on both tracks. An annual membership ($175 individual, or $250 for two family riders and $325 for three or more) covers seven-day access, weather permitting, plus the full prep sessions. Everyone signs an annual waiver and the daily sign-in sheet, riders need at least a helmet, gloves, long sleeves, long pants and boots, the first lap is a slow look-around with no doubling, and there is no alcohol on the property.

For riders in Fremont County and along the Nebraska border (Farragut, Sidney, Shenandoah, Clarinda, plus the Council Bluffs and Omaha metros), Razor's Edge is the closest full-time motocross option, no long haul required.