The immediate future of the Alyth Bike Park has been secured thanks to a grant from ADT’s Community Projects Fund.
The Bike Park is a network of trails and jumps built especially for mountain bikes on the slopes of Alyth Hill, with different sections suited to different levels of ability. It is currently operated by the Alyth Hill Users Group (AHUG) through a lease agreement with landowners Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS).
The lease agreement requires AHUG to have insurance in place, but raising enough money to cover the annual premium has always been a challenge. The £1500 grant from ADT will take care of insurance for another year from June, and help AHUG to ensure ongoing maintenance with the help of volunteers. ADT is also giving AHUG an additional £322 for equipment to help with path maintenance.
Without insurance and maintenance, FLS would require the Park to be dismantled, depriving cycling enthusiasts of all ages from Alyth and beyond a much-loved venue for their sport and leisure pursuits.
Marcus Brown of AHUG said: “The Bike Park is used by families, children and adults, who are encouraged to get fit and spend time outdoors. It is an established venue (tourism), attracting not just locals but visitors to Alyth as well. In the past, an active bike club in Alyth ran dedicated events and competitions, but these relied on volunteer organisers and haven’t taken place for some time.
“We hope that getting the insurance and maintenance secured for another year will provide a basis on which to develop more organised activities and fund-raising for the Park, if we can attract more volunteers. We’re very grateful to ADT for the grant which is a big boost to our plans.”
ADT’s Community Projects Fund disperses community benefit funds which come to the community of Alyth from the operators of the Tullymurdoch windfarm north the town.
Caption – Kenny Moyes of the Explorer Scouts (left) with Marcus Brown of AHUG, together with some Explorer Scouts helping with maintenance on the Bike Park.