A Mountain Bikers Perspective Michael Cowan Chain Reaction Cycles - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Sep 07, 2022 309 likes •404 views

A Mountain Bikers Perspective Michael Cowan Chain Reaction Cycles Hello Michael Cowan Michael Cowan Brand Director Chain Reaction Cycles Director at Chain Reaction Cycles Been mountain biking in NI for over 25 years - racing Downhill,

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A Mountain Biker’s Perspective

Michael Cowan

Chain Reaction Cycles

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Hello Michael Cowan Director at Chain Reaction Cycles Been mountain biking in NI for over 25 years - racing Downhill, XC, Enduro and also actively involved in race organisation

Michael Cowan Brand Director Chain Reaction Cycles

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“Why informal trails are important to mountain bikers?”

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The pure essence of Mountain Biking is how the combination of man and machine can tackle a vast variety of terrain

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DEVELOPED PATH/ANIMAL TRACK TRAIL WITH USE OF NATURAL FEATURE

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MACHINE BUILT TRAIL VS ROOTS DIRT NATURAL FEATURES

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OLYMPIC XC DOWNHILL ENDURO

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Moving Forward

 Listen to rider feedback to improve the network of official trails - the better they suit what riders are asking for, the more time riders will spend on official trails as opposed to natural trails  Work with race organisers to run events on existing natural trails, and use this as an

pportunity to improve the quality of these trails, rather than a lever to close them

 Encourage/publicise responsible trail building  Re-think the current ‘trail closure’ approach to some informal trails - I don’t think it works, riders will simply clear the blockages, or build a new trail often making the situation worse - much better to identify and engage with local groups and work to improve high risk areas (path crossing etc)