Published in Scotland Magazine Issue 26 on 21/04/2006.

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Get on your bikes

Scotland is adapting rapidly in to one of the best outdoor and dangerous sport destinations in the world. It’s right up there with the best for mountain biking, for instance. Lewis Eckett took a crash course

Think of the best mountain biking sites in the world. Where would you go? Maybe you’d visit the Moab desert in Utah, Whistler in British Columbia or even the fabled North Shore, Vancouver. Think Europe and you might opt for Morzine or Les Deaux Alps in France - all, of course, great destinations.

Where else? One of the top five mountain biking locations on the planet is inside the United Kingdom?

The answer is of course Scotland.

Yes Scotland – described as "one of the hottest places to ride in the world", according to an independent report card on mountain biking.

For the past seven years, the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) has been collecting data on the best places to go in the world for mountain biking, and rating the information each year in the form of league tables. Scotland is in the top five and the best outside North America.

But the real bonus for Scottish mountain biking is being voted ‘Global Superstar’ which puts the country even above British Columbia, often seen as the mecca for mountain bikers.

It shouldn’t be any surprise: Scotland was made for mountain biking. From the rolling hills of the Borders to the wild, craggy places of the Highlands and Nevis region, Scotland has got everything to offer. And the weather’s not as bad as it’s cracked up to be either.

The popularity of Scotland as a top biking destination has been mainly attributed to the work by Forestry Commission Scotland (FCS) to build seven mountain bike centres across .....

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By Lewis Eckett

Section : Scotland Sport

Page number : 68