AS E-BIKE USE INCREASES, THIS WILL LIKELY CHANGE THE WAY WE LOOK AT TRAILS
some sense. Attempts to create one, certainly in England, have in the past been met with resistance and stalled. In Scotland, where the right to ride comes heavily caveated with responsible behaviour, Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland has managed to gain the trust and cooperation of riders to become an organisation that most feel speaks on their behalf. With the success of the Trails For Wales campaign, opening up more trails across Wales to mountain bikers, and NRW actively mapping and engaging with mountain bikers on its land, it’s likely we’ll see a Welsh DMBINS equivalent in the near future.
THE NEXT CHAPTER
Trail centres will continue to be popular but there’ll be pressure to update trails to keep up with riders’ changing expectations. Catering to the demand for ever-more challenging trails, we can expect to see more privately owned bike parks opening. With a business model that depends on keeping trails in good working order and creating new trails to keep riders returning, bike parks might be the best example of sustainable trail growth we have.
Paying to ride, along with travel, represent barriers to increasing access to the sport. As councils discover the positive impact pump tracks can have, for relatively little money, we can expect to see more of them appearing – pointing the way for further urban mountain bike developments down the line.
The interplay between bike technology and trails will continue. As e-bike use increases, this will likely change the way we look at trails. As riding uphill on an e-bike is almost as fun as riding one downhill, we could see more technical uphill singletrack trails being built in place of direct fire-road climbs. Trail centres could repurpose descents that have fallen from favour, flipping them into climbs and building new, contemporaryfeeling descents.
Mountain biking is a much more diverse sport, in many ways, than it was when mbr first graced the newstand. Whether you’re into sending huge jump lines in the desert, multi-day rides in the wilderness or just goofing about on two wheels in the local woods, it’s all mountain biking. It’s this diversity and choice that has prolonged the sport’s popularity and the same goes for the trails we enjoy. The UK is a small and crowded place, but the quality and diversity of trails we enjoy is no accident. Much of it is down to us as riders, who have built, paid and fought for them. Now it’s time to make sure the next 25 years are as successful as the last.