What does a mountain bike trail cost?
What you will learn in this blog post
How to differentiate between types of mountain bike trails, how to assess the quality of trail construction and how to determine the cost of a trail. We also present a simple calculation tool that can be used to make an initial rough cost estimate.
Reading time
15 min.
An analogy from everyday life
A new car is needed! We've probably all found ourselves in this situation at some point. We want to use this example to illustrate the topic in a very striking way.
Fiat Panda or Toyota Hilux?
Which car is more likely to meet my individual needs, meets my price expectations and is therefore the better investment? What do I intend to do with the car in detail and what must it be able to do? In our example, let's just assume that this is the case: Off-road capability is a must - and the choice offered to us has narrowed down to the following two all-wheel-drives: a Toyota Hilux Xtracab SR5 pickup with an open loading area, a 22R-E engine, with suspension lift, polished 15-inch aluminum rims, air conditioning and Alpine stereo system and a Fiat Panda 45 4x4 with luggage compartment, selectable all-wheel drive and water-cooled 900 cc engine. Now - which of the two should it be? If I want to make a good decision here, I will have to proceed systematically and work out the specific requirements and differences clearly!
When buying a car, just as with any other investment, the following applies: The enlightened buyer knows his needs, researches before buying, compares prices and offers, pays attention to quality and sustainability, scrutinizes advertising promises, buys consciously and thoughtfully. The naive buyer buys impulsively and emotionally, falls for dubious offers, blindly trusts advertising, is influenced by status symbols, is susceptible to manipulation and often buys more or less than necessary!
These considerations are important not only when buying a car, but for every major purchase. However, when it ultimately comes to large investments for projects that must also make economic sense, a solid knowledge of the target groups and products, as well as a good overview of the market, is of fundamental importance.
Mountain bike trail" investment
The implementation of mountain bike trail projects usually involves high investment sums. The size of the investment is extremely variable and depends on many different factors, so pricing is often more complicated than expected. First of all, we have to decide whether we want a Fiat Panda or a Toyota Hilux - or, if we are talking about trails, whether it should be a cycle path or a flow trail, or even an enduro track or a jump line. And for this decision, we need to be clear about our specific requirements and needs.
We have written this article so that we can create the necessary conditions and come to a common basis to be able to talk about this topic with all interested parties in a meaningful way. Of course, we are also addressing all potential customers and interested parties who are in the preliminary or concept phase of a trail project: If you need advice on a planned project or details on the various trail building products (from planning to implementation and operation) or are interested in a detailed offer, we are always at your disposal (write to us at office@trailtech.at).
Goals & target groups
The question of price is always preceded by the question of the right product for the individual. The first step is to clarify this: What are the objectives and who is the target group of the planned system? Who should use this offer and what are the special requirements of the target group?
The possible objectives can be just as varied as the expected audience. The aim of a small trail facility, for example, may "only" be to improve the range of sports and recreational opportunities for a local community ("common good motive"), while a bike park project will certainly also have economic interests behind it. The spectrum of possible "products" ranges from a very simple singletrack for a local mountain bike club to a valley-spanning mega bike park for a huge tourist region.
If, for example, it is a small trail center close to the city, the user group will certainly have completely different demands and expectations than if it is a paid bike park with a tourist audience. In the one case, the factors "accessibility", "construction and maintenance costs", "variety of trails" will be particularly important, while in the other case "low threshold", "safety", "services" will be of immense importance!
Apples & pears
Once we have defined the target groups, it is important to get a good overview of the market - only those who know and understand products and providers will be able to make informed decisions later on. To do this, you not only need to know what characterizes the different types of mountain bike facilities and how they can be differentiated by means of qualitative and quantitative features, but also which providers excel in the planning and construction of the different trail types.
Unfortunately, we see far too often that when it comes to MTB trails, apples are compared with pears - and we want to remedy that here.
Which trails are we talking about?
When we talk about mountain bike trails, we should at least have a basic understanding of the different types of trails. These range from simple single tracks and flow trails to huge jump lines or asphalt pump tracks.
A flow trail, which is specially designed for mountain bike use and is usually machine-made, requires a lot of space and involves much more planning, construction and maintenance than a natural MTB trail or singletrack. A simple MTB trail is generally narrower and steeper than a flow trail, is easier to fit into the terrain and is usually constructed using hand tools. However, "natural trails" can also differ greatly from one another, just as the character of flow trails can be very different. This essentially depends on the design and frequency of special trail features. Flow trails differ from one another, for example, in terms of the dimensions, frequency and rhythm of the bumps and steep bends responsible for the "flow".
For all those who don't know what all these terms from the MTB world mean - here you will find a small glossarywith a brief explanation of the technical terms used and a few more.
How is the value or price of a mountain bike trail determined?
The basic price
Differences between mountain bike trails can be determined on the basis of several qualitative and quantitative criteria and are reflected in the value or price of professionally produced trails. Particularly relevant here is how well a planned trail fulfills general quality requirements, whether careful planning and good design can be guaranteed and whether a consistently professional structural implementation, with optimal design of the riding lines, a stable road structure, stable embankments and properly implemented re-vegetation measures, etc. is ensured. The best possible implementation of these criteria is not only crucial for the riding experience and safety on the trail, but also has a significant influence on the expected maintenance and repair costs.
How much weight is given to quality (sustainable creative concepts, professional design & planning, professional implementation, etc.) by the various providers - the respective reference projects of the various applicants provide the best information about this. We therefore recommend that all interested parties take a look at as many projects as possible that have already been implemented and read the various testimonials from users and operators.
A professional construction company will provide a construction team for a smaller trail construction project, consisting of at least one trail construction specialist (this specialist is also the excavator operator) and one to several assistants. An excavator (machine size varies depending on the project) as well as machines for soil compaction (vibratory plate, roller) and various trail construction tools are also offered. For a very simple, earth-bound trail that fulfills all of the above quality characteristics, but whose sole purpose is to get people on bikes from A to B, i.e. a trail that does not need any fixtures such as jumps, drops or steep turns, different providers will offer different basic running meter prices. In our experience, this price ranges between 15 and 25 euros.
>>> Calculator: Basis running meter price
Concept & Planning
However, our ultimate goal is to create a wide variety of riding experiences with our MTB trails - e.g. a nature experience, an experience of action & adventure or an experience of sporting challenge. Such experiences can only be made possible with a clever concept, optimal planning and creative trail design. Variety, safety and compliance with technical standards play a central role in this, in particular the avoidance of erosion damage (impairment of the riding experience and consequently shorter service life and profitability of a trail!
Depending on the individual situation, the planning of an MTB trail will be simple or complicated and this will be reflected in the price accordingly. In our experience, the planning costs amount to around 5-15% of the construction costs. The most important price-determining factors are Bureaucratic hurdles (depending on the situation, various official permits and requirements!), landowner situation (several owners not only bring additional communication effort but also require more complex contractual solutions!), topography and natural environment (difficult or easy to build on?) and nature conservation issues (avoidance and compensation of negative effects on plants and animal habitats!).
>>> Calculator: "Planning & approval" factor
Environmental conditions
If a planned trail construction project is finally implemented, various external factors can have a drastic effect on the actual amount of work required and therefore on the price. The work processes can be complicated and slowed down by numerous restrictions - including dense vegetation with shrubs and trees, difficult terrain situations or difficult geological starting conditions, existing infrastructure to be taken into account (e.g. roads, paths, above/below-ground lines, snowmaking systems, etc.) - but can also entail additional work - such as slope stabilization or slope protection.
>>> Calculator: Factor "Natural restrictions"
>>> Calculator: Factor "Slope inclination, slope stabilization & stabilization measures"
The individual design
Depending on the objectives of our trail, not only qualitative standards will have to be met, but also special user requirements (nature experience, action, sporting challenge, etc.). While a straightforward, smooth trail without special objectives and requirements (e.g. a simple transfer route or a simple cycle path) can be realized by any construction company, the craftsmanship of the trail builder will be indispensable for a sophisticated and creative design, such as is necessary for a flow trail. The necessary know-how for the special techniques required for this can only be provided by a specialist with many years of experience in trail construction and well-trained specialist staff.
Professional trail building turns a straightforward, boring trail into an unforgettable experience. On a really good MTB trail, you no longer just roll along blandly, but glide through breathtaking landscapes as if by magic, feel the wind in your face and experience a perfect interplay of speed, ease and pure riding fun, a rush of waves, bends and jumps! And you understand that all the features that bring you so much fun not only have to be built safely, but also placed and dimensioned harmoniously! All the banked turns, waves, tables, doubles and drops must not be too big or too small, riding speeds, distances and angles, radii, longitudinal and transverse gradients must match each other - camber areas, entrances, exits, intersections - all of this must be well thought out, planned in detail and implemented so that everything works as it should, brings pleasure and does not pose any unnecessary risks or dangers!
>>> Calculator: Factor "Frequency and dimensioning of fixtures"
>>> Calculator: Factor "Surface course import & paving"
Summary
Concept!
What are the objectives and who is the target group of the planned project? Who should use this offer and what are the special requirements of the target group? These are the most important questions before every project!
Planning!
In order to be able to estimate the costs for the implementation of a trail construction project, it must first of all be clear what type of trail, for what type of users, i.e. in what form and in what quality a project is to be implemented. This requires a solid concept on the basis of which these determinations can be made. Once such a concept is in place, it is then possible to determine how much planning effort is required, how many bureaucratic hurdles there are and how many nature conservation restrictions apply.
"Concept and planning are the be-all and end-all of every trail building project - if you plan badly, you'll regret it later!"
Implementation!
In the next step - the implementation - the individual requirements for the design of the trail are the decisive price factors in addition to the situation-dependent external conditions. Difficult construction conditions increase the price - and the more complex the design has to be in order to meet the requirements of a target group, the more cost-intensive the implementation will understandably be.
"Always set the amount of your investment in relation to what you expect to get back! Balance quality and quantity on this basis!"
Calculator
The calculator that we would like to present to you is primarily intended to illustrate the basic considerations and logic of pricing. The figures we use are based on a broad overview of the market. However, we would like to point out that these figures have wide ranges and can differ greatly depending on the geographical region, country or other varying conditions and are therefore not reliable or can be guaranteed in any way! However, it is essential that the pricing is made transparent and understandable using our calculator and the underlying calculation scheme! What is particularly important is the fact that this scheme enables a transparent and reproducible cross-comparison between different providers, even if criteria, figures and percentages are changed or adjusted!
