ABU DHABI // New Zealander Brett Bowie has a vision – he wants to create a mountain biking trail under tree canopies in Abu Dhabi.
Mountain biking fanatic Mr Bowie, 47, was walking under the shade of trees near his indoor cycling and circuit gym when it dawned on him that it would be make the ideal location for Abu Dhabi’s first official mountain bike trail.
“These are beautiful, undeveloped tree canopies that I wish to build trails under,” says Mr Bowie, who is also a freelance corporate trainer. “I look out at them from my gym, and walk among them regularly. When I rode my bike there, it was heavy going in places. But it has great potential.”
His track would be laid under five rows of mature trees that run along both sides of Airport Road, from the airport to Maqta Bridge.
“There’s an overwhelming push towards nice flat, pristine, tar-sealed road cycling trails. This is commendable, but mountain-bikers are left out in the cold. We like bumpy. We like trees. There are zero off-road trails for us in Abu Dhabi, except the five that we have so far created ourselves,” he says.
Bowie and his fellow mountain biking enthusiasts have created these trails along Khalifa Pipeline, near Yas Tunnel, in a loop around Abu Dhabi’s Kite Beach, by the Reem Island Canal and in Al Reef.
“The circuit trail could be enjoyed by dog walkers and off-road runners too. But I would want the tracks to be rough and ready, unidirectional and policed by Mawaqif men on cycles. Thus people would go one way only, with signs showing correct usage.”
Mr Bowie also suggests creating a further 11 to 13km loop around Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
He estimates his initial project would cost Dh1 million, which he hopes to cover through sponsorship. Five months ago he approached his employer at the time, Emirates Steel, seeking sponsorship for the endeavour.
“The track could be created using slag, which is leftover residue of the steel making process”, says Mr Bowie. “But although initial discussions and costings were conducted, I left the company to move back into freelance corporate training before discussions could progress to the next level.”
He says the Urban Planning Council has also expressed enthusiasm for the scheme, but he wants to find a corporate sponsor before seeking the backing of the municipality.
“Emirates Steel is one of many companies looking to get involved in corporate social responsibility projects. There’s an interest in cycling now, and it’s relatively low cost to do this.”
Mr Bowie formed Abu Dhabi’s first public mountain biking club four months ago, which has 52 Facebook members. “We’re looking for more trails around Abu Dhabi. I believe Jebel Hafeet’s lower reaches and valleys are descendible by bike,” says Mr Bowie.
In Showka, trails have been well used by mountain bikers for the past eight years. And mountain biking enthusiast Andy Whitaker and a team of riders have just raked out a set of new trails in Hatta.
As new trails are formed, new mountain biking groups are springing up to use them; as well as Mr Whitaker’s Hot-Cog Club and his wife Angelika’s women’s group Dirt Skirts, at least six other Facebook groups bring bikers together.
It is not the first time Mr Bowie’s passion for the sport has led him to develop trails. Before moving to Abu Dhabi eight years ago, he spent 10 years in South Korea where he helped to mark out 120km of new trails near Seoul.
“I’ve ridden the most beautiful places with the coolest and craziest bike people on the planet”, he says. “However, when I came to Abu Dhabi, I thought the mountains were too far away and too rocky. There were no forests I could see, and excessive heat for much of the year. So I substituted by participating in the co-founding of the Abu Dhabi Saracens Rugby Club four years ago and committing to indoor cycling.”
On Tuesday, Mr Bowie’s indoor cycling and circuit gym, Saracens Cycle, will reward those who ride to their morning classes with a week’s free membership.
Saracens Cycle mountain bikers will also ride around Abu Dhabi Golf Club together: #cycletoworkOUT.
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