A new BMX track in the Black Isle has been ripped to shreds by vandals just days after major work came to an end.
Muir of Ord Community Council created the track last month to give youngsters in the region a place to go following great demand.
Councillors believe one or two people took to the track on their motorbikes causing extensive damage to its surface, costing in the region of around £500 to fix.
Mike Atkinson, chairman of Muir of Ord Community Council said they bypassed security measures to do the damage.
He said: “Contractors left the site a couple of days before Christmas. We left barriers over the tracks to stop people from riding on it and put signs up.
“Motorbikes are not supposed to be used on that bit of land. It’s leased by the community and motorbikes are prohibited on it. It makes a right old mess of the thing.
“We designed it to give the kids something to do as we hear people say there is ‘nothing for the kids to do’, but we just can’t seem to keep people off it.”
>> Keep up to date with the latest news with The P&J newsletter
In a bid to prevent further damage to the tracks and keep people off it until the weather improves, heavier barriers and tree trunks have since been lain across it.
The devastating blow comes just days after three weeks of major construction works on the site came to an end.
More than 600 tonnes of soil had been moved during the process to create the structure, which is expected to be ready by spring.
Mr Atkinson added: “The positive message here is we are doing things to provide things for the kids. People walked by yesterday as we were working on it saying how disappointed there were that the good work in the village is being undone by the odd individual. We have a lot of community support for it.
“People need to be patient. Due to the weather and the frost, it won’t be ready until early spring. We need people to be patient for a couple of months and then they can cycle round it. It’s not designed for motorbikes. Motorbikes will damage the surface and ruin it for everyone.”
