Introduction
We at Blue Hills pride ourselves in saying that:- “We are privileged to be in a position to mix business with pleasure…”. We as a team recently took up mountain biking, a sport enjoyed by millions of people across the globe and a sport enjoyed by many South Africans specifically here in the Eden District. It goes without saying that more and more people are drawn to the sport, altho
ugh for many different reasons, but everyone will agree that they experience a sense of freedom in discovering and exploring new places, keeping fit and meeting new people whilst cycling. Mountain biking is not only a fantastic pastime that can be enjoyed by many people, but it can be enjoyed anywhere from single forest tracks, coastal paths, open jeep tracks to hills and mountainous terrain. In our personal endeavors to improve our own fitness as well as being very family orientated we found one flaw in the general approach to MTB courses and tracks:-
They do not cater for the extreme beginner nor do they cater for younger children wishing to learn the trade while having the holistic experience of riding in the “bush”. In this we saw an opportunity in which we can provide for this vacancy, in an area already well know throughout the country for its highly rated courses and tracks. The Course
The idea of the route or course is to provide an ideal riding ground for newcomers to the world of Mountain Biking but also a route, shorter than the average, which will still enhance any and all MTB rider’s “Off-Road” riding experience. This route will also assist to develop the confidence of novice riders and children while they simultaneously enjoy the ride, improve on some old skills and ensuring that they learn some new skills at their own leisure. The layout will be such that no previous “Off-Road” experience will be required and riders of all fitness levels will easily be able to spend some time out in the saddle. However the route will also challenge the experienced cycling enthusiast to stay on his toes or in this case on two wheels…
Benefits
As mentioned above, mountain biking is a pastime that can be enjoyed by many — regardless of their age or physical fitness. This route will in the business scheme of things add value in allowing for a vast increase in the annual visitors to the park. This in turn will result in boosting exposure to the public, not only for us at Blue Hills but also everyone involved with the project. Further and in light of the popularity of our annual festivals (Oyster Festival for example) as well as the influx of holidaymakers to this area, this novel opportunity introduces yet another marketing platform that we can utilize to the fullest.
