A new era for Moray mountain bikers began yesterday with the launch of a new £120,000 skills course in woods by Fochabers.
Cycling fanatics of all ages wasted little time in testing out the freshly created tracks – and performed some dazzling demonstrations to mark the occasion.
The course is part of the Moray Monster Trails biking track, roughly a mile east of Fochabers off the A98 road.
Six-year-old bicycle enthusiast Jacob Brown was among the first to put the new trails through their paces, accompanied by his dad Barry.
The Elgin youngster beamed with delight beneath his protective helmet as he navigated the course’s bumps and curves.
Forest Enterprise Scotland’s communities, recreation and tourism Manager, Calum Murray, has overseen the works across the past year.
Mr Murray said: “This is a fantastic new addition to the trails, it’s suitable for mountain bikes and for BMX bikes.
“It’s going to be a real asset for the area.
“The site has been settling down very well, with thanks to some of the local guys who’ve been testing it, and we’re ready to throw open the doors and welcome everybody who wants to come and challenge their mountain biking skills.”
The course is spread across four distinct areas, designed to cater to a range of abilities and offer riders the chance to progress as their skills improve.
A variety of different loops should allow visitors to come up with different circuits on every visit to the woods.
The skills trail features an off-trail jumps area, to help younger riders safely practice how to handle jumps without encroaching on other forest users.
There are three downhill slopes gauged to beginner, intermediate and expert ability levels.
Under the initiative, a maze of trails has been created through the 19th century gardens of the Duke of Gordon, with efforts being made to keep tree loss to a minimum.
The skills area, which was part funded by the Commonwealth legacy fund, was originally expected to open in January – but wet winter weather delayed work.
