Whats a fair charge for riding a trail?

[Mojoman]

..for what is there now, how much maintenance will the place need? This is where they will need justification if ever asked why that price. R30 is not much but if the 4x4's are driving the same trails, I would expect that they should be making a contribution to the upkeep of the MTB trails.. in that case I would say R20, taking into account hassle factor in getting there. The price needs to attract riders too.

 

If it is to be a success, the trails should have SOME smooth fun sections to get the guys out there.. you know, the promise of good riding..

There are possibilities of some single track (game paths) that could be cleared and made smoother and enticing but I think the owner needs to see a larger picture (the difficult bit as they are not cyclists), I have already told them they will not get rich doing cycling trails and it should be considered an additonal activity for their lodge residents as well as walk in trade. As mentioned I would like to get just get one venue involved and interested and then we may have a bit more clout with other farmers and venue owners in the area and be able to create a decent trail with good fun routes and some distance too.

[GLuvsMtb]

Whether I pay R20 or R30, it makes little difference in real terms. Especially if I have to drive for an hour or 2 to get to the trails. What is far more important is the total experience. You mentioned some ameneties. These need to be mtb-er friendly. We all would like a nice cup of coffee and a bite to eat afterwards, a place where the wife and kids can relax if they are not riding. The trip from most places in Gauteng to Magalies turns out to be an all day affair, so keep that in mind. A basic restaurant/coffee shop is also where the owner can put his margin on.

Another important factor is what is being offered to the riders and how the trail evolves. The owner must understand that to get riders back onto his property he'll have to put some work into the trails. If he has a working farm, he may have labour that are not always busy during the year. Get a trail building consultant to identify some areas that he can work on in a environmentally friendly way to minimise erosion and use labour that may be otherwise redundant to do some trail work. If he has game, there would be some game paths that he can work with.

Invest in decent signage.

Sell annual permits at a discount. This means revenue upfront for trail work and more or less a captive market.

Think of providing some basic accommodation (camp site with showers and toilets).

Get into discussion with neighbours on a trail network throughout the region.

[GLuvsMtb]

 

There are possibilities of some single track (game paths) that could be cleared and made smoother and enticing but I think the owner needs to see a larger picture (the difficult bit as they are not cyclists), I have already told them they will not get rich doing cycling trails and it should be considered an additonal activity for their lodge residents as well as walk in trade. As mentioned I would like to get just get one venue involved and interested and then we may have a bit more clout with other farmers and venue owners in the area and be able to create a decent trail with good fun routes and some distance too.

Covered just about all I was busy typing before seeing your reply

[Zook]

Opinions aren't really important in these things, because many will try to push you down. If you want to make it a sustainable business, then you ideally want to maximise profit. That's your long-term pricing goal. It usually means charging a price where demand doesn't drop off too much but you're making enough per rider to be worth your while.

 

Complications:

- Short-term you might want to go for a price-penetration strategy - make it cheap enough that you attract people. Problem is, if you raise it later you'll get terrible whining.

- Competitors are other bike parks. People will compare your offering and price to other bike parks, and they might feel e.g. "I can get lots more great riding at only 5 bucks more", or "ag, it's 20 bucks less, let's go there". You might have to market a bit, which means you need cash to market, which means you better have a plan to make money.

- Distance is also a cost. Van Gaalens is awesome, but I don't go often because it's a mission. If it were down the road I'd be there now. Make sure e.g. harties weekenders know about your spot.

- You could try e.g. R15 during the week, R30 on the weekend, with special student rates on proof of a student card.

 

Check out what other comparable bike parks charge, ask riders why they go to the different ones, what they like and what they don't. For a great morning, R30 bucks is nothing. Compete on experience, not price.

[Mojoman]

Whether I pay R20 or R30, it makes little difference in real terms. Especially if I have to drive for an hour or 2 to get to the trails. What is far more important is the total experience. You mentioned some ameneties. These need to be mtb-er friendly. We all would like a nice cup of coffee and a bite to eat afterwards, a place where the wife and kids can relax if they are not riding. The trip from most places in Gauteng to Magalies turns out to be an all day affair, so keep that in mind. A basic restaurant/coffee shop is also where the owner can put his margin on.

Another important factor is what is being offered to the riders and how the trail evolves. The owner must understand that to get riders back onto his property he'll have to put some work into the trails. If he has a working farm, he may have labour that are not always busy during the year. Get a trail building consultant to identify some areas that he can work on in a environmentally friendly way to minimise erosion and use labour that may be otherwise redundant to do some trail work. If he has game, there would be some game paths that he can work with.

Invest in decent signage.

Sell annual permits at a discount. This means revenue upfront for trail work and more or less a captive market.

Think of providing some basic accommodation (camp site with showers and toilets).

Get into discussion with neighbours on a trail network throughout the region.

This is what I would like to see at the end of the day, I am fortunate to be able to ride in a lot of places that are fenced and locked off thanks to living here for many years and knowing most farmers and being friends of friends. But I think as a tourism driven town and community we should be trying to open the area up to the wealth that cyclists can bring as well as allowing visitors to see the beauty the area has to offer. But sadly properties in Magalies are getting smaller and more fences are going up with land owners not being too happy about letting hordes of people pass through. It seems us mountain bikers are tarred with the same brush as quad bikers!

[kandui]

Going in on price is not going to make it sustainable. If the tracks are used a lot, then upkeep will cost money. I can't imagine that even out of town you are going to get such cheap labour that R20 per rider will bring in anything significant to cover maintenance costs. Your land owner friend would have to consider the trails a labour of love. Since they are not cyclists, that will most likely never be the case.

 

Approach this project from the other side. Forget about the money, because charging for trail access won't make you any decent money. It's the add-ons like a restaurant or coffee shop which bring in the cash.

Build a trail network which people want to come and ride and you don't even need to start looking over the fence to the next farmer at this early stage. You have nothing to entice him with. He will come knocking when he sees all the cyclist's cars queuing to get in over the weekend.

Make the whole package attractive: trails, facilities and food. There are enough examples out there, one doesn't need to reinvent the wheel.

 

I wouldn't be so mad on sharing the trails with 4x4 vehicles, so your friends will definitely have to develop other trails. Just riding jeep tracks, as others have said, is not going to make me rush out of town. In the end your friends are going to have to build Mountain Bike trails because they want to and not for the money.

Either way, Good Luck.

Edited June 25, 2012 by kandui

[Joe Low]

Modderfontein R40

Rietvlei R25

Thaba - cant remember

 

The problems arent the price they are location and attraction.

 

You havent given anything that makes me think "ooh yeah, would like to go there".

 

Travel costs over R1/km so the entrance fee is secondary. Its cheaper for me to go to Modderfontein than Rietvlei.

[Danger Dassie]

The thing of living in Jhb is that for really proper riding, we have to drive. It's a given.

Even Thaba, Modders, Rietvlei, Kings Kloof etc are quite a drive for people from other parts of town.

 

Being based in Magalies you should perhaps speak to Erik from van Gaalen. Over 8 years he's developed those trails around there into a mecca of riding and is always approachable for input/assistance.

 

30 rand isn't too bad, but it does need to be tied into some kind of value system.

Trails take time and continuous effort, start with what you have and perhaps build in one two sections. There's been some good suggestions on the forum already.

 

What the Magalies area offers, is great wide open riding. As close as is possible to wilderness trails, this is one of the appeals of van Gaalen and Chicken Pie, for me.

In fact that on it's own is worth the drive, which really isn't that bad.

[StumpJumPer]

R30 is fair.

 

30 is Fair,

But 20 will be Great!!!!

[Mojoman]

Thanks everyone for your valued input, I will see the owner this weekend and will have a chat to her and see if they would like to continue with the idea or just leave it as it is and charge just a small fee for people to ride and do their thing. Please remember that the idea is not to get rich from this but rather gain the knock on effects, such as the venue(s) having better occupancies on weekends and a greater promotion of the area.

 

I dont mind giving up some time over weekends to assist with this but ultimately the venue is responsible for the development,upkeep and promotion of their trail and they will have to decide on the way forward. Lets hope they see a bigger picture for all cyclists as well as venue and business owners in the area.

Edited June 25, 2012 by Mojoman

[The Search]

Jonkershoek R25 or R30.

Welvanpas R30.

Both got lots of singletrack and jeeptrack.

[Zac.A]

I head to Welvenpas when I get the chance.

entry fee is R30, but it's a long way away.

 

the reason I go is because the riding is superb! makes it worth it.

[martinsnyman]

maybe get a nice group of riders together to go ride the track, get input from different guys that have actually seen/ridden the track, difficult on only a description?

[GLuvsMtb]

I head to Welvenpas when I get the chance.

entry fee is R30, but it's a long way away.

 

the reason I go is because the riding is superb! makes it worth it.

They also have showers at Welvanpas and better service at the coffee shop than at Jonkershoek. If I ordered a muffin at Jonkershoek 2 weeks ago, I would probably be getting it when I finish my ride this Saturday.

[Frosty]

Modderfontein R40

Rietvlei R25

Thaba - cant remember It's R30

 

The problems aren't the price they are location and attraction.

 

You haven't given anything that makes me think "ooh yeah, would like to go there".

 

Travel costs over R1/km so the entrance fee is secondary. Its cheaper for me to go to Modderfontein than Rietvlei.

For me it's location... Rietvlei and Thaba are both less than 13Km from home, and they're the best value for money (excluding an out-ride in the Souf).

Not to mention the good relationship with Wendell too.