New action-packed mountain bike trail opens in Harrogate

10 September 2013

A new and exciting mountain bike trail in North Yorkshire is now open to the public, offering riders of all abilities the opportunity to test and develop their riding skills.

Yorkshire Water has spent approximately £20,000 to create the action-packed 1.2km route at its Beecroft Plantation, next to Fewston reservoir, near Harrogate.

Local-rider-Mike-Sing-checks-out-some-of-the-bumps-and-jumpsThe course, which features bumps and jumps of varying degrees of difficulty – along with ‘chicken runs’ for those who want to avoid theobstacles – was designed using input from local moutain bikers to ensure that there is something for everyone, regardless of their level of ability, and is part of the wider 9km cycle network in the Washburn Valley. What’s more, it’s completely free to use.

Geoff Lomas, Catchment and Recreation Manager for Yorkshire Water, said:

We’re always looking at new ways to ensure that there’s something for everyone at our reservoir sites, whether that be breathtaking walks, horseriding, fishing or wildlife spotting.

Mountain biking is one of the fastest growing spots in the world, so it made sense to look at what we could do to support those customers who have an interest in the sport. We used experienced mountain bikers to help us develop the action-packed trail, which offers something for everyone, regardless of your ability on a mountain bike.

 

It’s the first mountain bike trail the company has created at one of its reservoir sites and the company is not ruling out creating more in the future.

David Sokald, who is a tutor at Bewerley Park Outdoor Education Centre and the Head of Mountain Biking praised the new route:

The climb is made interesting by frequent rock features and I liked the mix of natural and paved surfaces. I really like how it flows and the fact there are loads of fun features to make the most of the gradient.

Firstly all the features have options for challenge meaning I can take a mixed ability group without anyone feeling left out. Having a series of the same features together allows me to coach an individual skill and the student can repeat it several times until the skill is learned.

The most important thing about the trail is it’s fun to ride. Kids will see that the effort of the up is rewarded by the downhill. I spoke to some kids after they had been on it and they were all buzzing from the experience.

Yorkshire Water operates 72,000 acres of land in Yorkshire, spanning the North York Moors, the Wolds, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and some of the best national parks in the country, spending thousands of pounds each year to maintain and enhance such sites for all to enjoy.

To encourage more people to explore the company’s reservoir sites, Yorkshire Water has created a downloadable walking guide which highlights the sites available to customers, as well as providing detailed walking routes which cater for ramblers of all abilities.

The walks can be found at www.yorkshirewater.com/yorkshirewalks

1 Comment

  1. Were abouts is this cycling track because I have been there today I found beecroft plantation but no signs for the cycling track. On 1 of the signs says follow the red dots around the track but could not see any, then on the other signs it was black. Would be good if a sign was up for the cycle track to help people find this & enjoy this experience.

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