BIKE PARKS

HIGHS

Trail centres or bike parks provide a safe place to ride all year round. Think of them as indoor climbing arenas. They usually have a changing room and a cafe (although whether they’re open at the moment is another matter), are clearly waymarked and open in all weathers. Many of us visit bike parks to refine our technique so we can take a stronger game to the ‘real’ thing, but equally, for plenty of riders, parks the real thing. They are also a great way of getting new riders into mountain biking and allow safe, quantifiable progression through their easy grading system.

LOWS

They have the potential to be a little generic and can be very busy. If you’re looking to get away from the hustle and bustle and escape to the solitude of the hills, then standing in a queue for your next uplift is probably not going to appeal to you.