Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland

Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland

HIGHLANDS CLUSTER STUDY

Final Report

(Centre for Recreation and Tourism Research)

21st MARCH 2012

Executive Summary

The Centre for Recreation and Tourism Research was commissioned by Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland to undertake a desk-based research exercise that sought to map the current provision of mountain biking in the Highlands, identify the principal gaps in that provision, quantify the economic benefits of Highlands mountain biking, and make recommendations for its future development.

Current Provision

The exercise to map mountain biking provision identified:

Vast number of natural trails in all areas of the Highlands and a number of purpose built trail centres across the region

A reasonable support network for mountain biking tourism in the Highlands with some areas being especially well equipped with bike-friendly accommodation and bike shops. Fantastic events, including the UCI Downhill World Cup at Fort William and endurance events such as Strathpuffer and 10 Under the Ben.

Supporting participation and sport development across the Highlands there was a busy programme within schools, led by Active Schools, and a number of mountain biking clubs which are at various degrees of maturity.

Gaps in Provision

A series of general gaps in the provision were also identified:

Navigation - issues with signage and mapping;

Lifecycle issues, a lack of promoted beginner and family trails and underdeveloped youth provision in some areas;

Sustainability - issues of liability, responsibility and maintenance;

Networking and integration - the lack of an identifiable brand and integrated marketing and promotion for Highlands mountain biking.

Economic Value of Mountain Biking in the Highlands

Using an established methodology and figures, the value of mountain biking as being the main reason to visit, the Highlands is estimated at:

An annual expenditure of 8.14m;

Employment of 238 FTEs;

Gross Value Added of 4.65m.

It was projected that growth of 30% over the next five years could be achieved, which would see the value of the Highlands mountain biking sector rise in value to:

An annual expenditure of 10.58m;

Employ another 71 FTEs:

Gross Value Added of 6.06m.

A parallel exercise for the Cairngorms NPA suggests that a full growth scenario would see the sector rise in value from 1.86m to 2.42m, employment rise from 54 FTEs to make a total of 70 FTEs, and have a GVA of 1.38m.

It was also identified the value mountain biking can make within communities to achieve health outcomes. This was especially relevant where communities have considerable assets such as facilities and facilitators. The report identifies there is great potential to increase participation especially in and around Fort William, Aviemore, Grantown and Eastern Cairngorms and, with development, in and around Inverness.

Recommendations

A number of key suggestions were made to enable appropriate levels of sectoral growth to be achieved, split into practical and more strategic recommendations. Strategic recommendations include:

Greater use of volunteer groups for trail maintenance (modelled on good practice elsewhere),

The redefinition of paths as multi-use,

The creation and promotion of easier routes, perhaps linking attractions and facilities, to encourage family use;

The more formal designation of mountain biking centres or hubs.

In order to achieve the full growth potential, however, it is proposed that a number of key short-term recommendations need to be implemented:

Lack of an identifiable brand for mountain biking for the Highlands, one that can be as evocative to existing mountain bikers as the 7Stanes, whilst also actively promoting mountain biking to the family market;

In tandem a single Highlands web portal for information related to all things mountain biking, from trails to bike shops and cafes.

More comprehensive signage to and around trails and trail centres needs to be developed, while better trail guides, and improved trail provision for family markets, would help to both broaden the market and encourage more tourists to undertake rides.

The Highlands has a wealth of iconic landscapes and names from Loch Ness to the Isle of Skye and wild landscapes unparalleled in the UK. The mountain biking sector needs to capitalise on these assets in a range of ways to ensure its sustainable future.

CONTENTS

Executive Summary

1. Introduction1

2. Methodology1

3. Mountain Biking in the Highlands: Provision and Gaps4

4. Quantifying the Value of Highlands Mountain Biking13

5. Mountain Biking in the Cairngorms National Park: Provision, Gaps and

Economic Quantification17

6. Recommendations27

7. Conclusions53

8. Further Research55

9. Acknowledgements57

1. Introduction

In December 2011 the Centre for Recreation and Tourism Research (CRTR) was commissioned by Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland (DMBinS) to undertake a desk-based research exercise that had four principal aims:

To map the current provision of mountain biking in the Highlands;

To identify the principal gaps in that provision;

To quantify the potential economic benefits of Highlands mountain biking; and

To make recommendations for its future development.

This two-month long study was focussed on the Highlands, Moray, Eilean Siar, the islands of Skye, Rum and Eigg and part of the Cairngorms National Park. For the sake of simplicity this area is referred to, in the rest of the report, simply as the Highlands. The study area, and the principal mountain biking provision, is illustrated in Figure One overleaf. An adjunct study, which forms Section Five of the report, was undertaken to consider the same issues as the principal project within the Cairngorms National Park as a whole.

The study was led by Peter Varley and Steve Taylor at CRTR, in partnership with Nicki Diggins at Inverness College UHI, and Fiona Beattie and Ben Cortis: undergraduates on the BA(Hons) in Adventure Tourism Management at West Highland College UHI in Fort William.

After a brief outline of the methodology, this report is structured to examine: the gaps in mountain biking provision trails and associated supply chain elements in the study area; and an economic quantification of mountain biking in the Highlands. Section Five relates specifically to mountain biking in the Cairngorms National Park, following the same methodology as the main study. The recommendations for the future development of the sector forms Section Six, and Section Seven and Eight conclude the report and outline potential future research respectively.

2. Methodology

The development of the study was naturally structured to create an understanding of the provision of mountain biking in the Highlands (and the Cairngorms), as a tool to identify the gaps in that provision. For the purposes of this study mountain biking was defined in terms of both what may be traditionally perceived as such exemplified by riding challenging singletrack trails as well as what may be defined as off-road riding, encompassing less challenging terrain, often on dirt tracks, that may appeal to a more beginner- or family-oriented market.

The consequent recommendations within the report were explored as means of attempting to overcome those gaps in provision. A general quantification of the current and potential value of Highlands mountain biking, using an adopted methodology, was undertaken as a separate exercise, albeit taking cognisance of the other elements of the study.

This study was commissioned as a desktop investigation and analysis. To this end, the work undertaken to identify the gaps in provision was largely based on the provision of information available over the Internet. This was supplemented by the interrogation of maps, guide books and magazines as appropriate, along with the study teams personal knowledge of the sector. This baseline information was augmented by wide-ranging e-mails to, and telephone conversations with, relevant individuals and organisations. Although not a requirement of the study, a number of face-to-face meetings with key stakeholders were also held.

2.1Mapping Mountain Biking Provision

In order to map mountain bike-related provision the study team discussed the different categories that would be required under which the information would be categorised. This related to obvious tangible provision, as well as supporting infrastructure. The categories were delineated as:

Communities

Population size

Known trails

Trail type

Trail network size

Trail grade

Bike shops

Signage

Maintenance

Mapped route

Eateries

Accommodation

Clubs

Accessibility

Parking

Events

Published guides

Available guides

Issues of conflict

The study area was geographically delineated to aid this process, split into 12 areas (see Section Three), plus another for Cairngorms National Park south (Section Five). A spreadsheet page for mapping provision was created for each area, and populated using the methods described above. Due to the physical size of the spreadsheets they have not been appended to the report, but will be made available electronically.

2.2Identifying Gaps in Mountain Biking Provision

As a paral