Epic Bikepark Leogang is Ready for The Summer Season!
Plenty of action, events and highlights are on the calendar for the 2022 bike season
As the last of the snow melts, the Pinzgau bike paradise will soon be conquered again by mountain bike enthusiasts. On 7 May 2022, the Epic Bikepark Leogang will open its gates for the season, looking forward to a promising mountain bike-filled calendar with top-class events and specials. The Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike World Cup will once again be held as a double header promising another year of tight Downhill and Cross-Country racing, with the latter including both Short Track and Olympic distance. Later this year, the bike community will once again come together for the BIKE Festival in September, giving young and old the opportunity to sample the latest models from numerous bike brands and put them through their paces. As a pioneer of sustainable trail building, Saalfelden Leogang is driven by sustainability and environmental protection. This year, the bike park will live up to ththat core value with an attractive special following the motto “Keep the Bikepark Leogang clean!”
Spring in Saalfelden Leogang means skis are replaced by bikes, the bike park comes to life and before the last snow has disappeared, the first shovel strokes can be heard scratching on the trails and shaping lines. The experienced shapers of the bike park and the singletrails in Saalfelden Leogang put in hard work weeks before the opening, meticulously maintaining the unique variety of the Epic Bikepark Leogang and the Saalfelden Leogang region. This season, mountain bikers will once again be able to enjoy trails such as “Vali’s Hölle” or the new trail start of the Hot Shots fired by GoPro Line.
Sustainable trail building and nature conservation
In Saalfelden Leogang, the operators of the bike park and singletrails have always kept a close eye on the nature that surrounds them. Already in 2019, local shapers Markus Hampl and Reini Unterberger were able to complete their flagship trails “Schwarzleo” and “Forsthof” Trail, ushering in a new era of singletrail building. These trails were created completely in harmony with nature, without using machines and with the builders only using hand-powered tools. The use of the existing terrain and the lines defined by the forest create a very special experience where you quickly ask yourself whether you are still on an established trail. The same applies to the “Knappentrail”, which meanders naturally through the forest and into the valley, with some added North Shore elements to spice up the action. In contrast to the bike park lines, the “Schwarzleo” and the “Knappen” Trail can already be ridden from the beginning of April and during the Easter holidays.
Completely in the spirit of environmental protection, the Epic Bikepark Leogang has not only established new rules, but also actively supports them with campaigns such as “Roll Off instead of Tear Off”. With 100% as one of their partners, on rainy days the Bikepark Leogang offers a free film for their goggle roll-off system, as well as a 20 % discount on a new 100% goggle with roll-off system from Sport Mitterer – leaving no excuses for bad weather rides!
World Cup, BIKE Festival and comeback of the treasure hunt
From 10-12 June, for the second time in a row, Leogang will host a double header World Cup. The season highlight which last year counted no less than 629 athletes from 44 nations, will once again bring together the world’s best mountain bike riders from the Downhill and Cross-Country disciplines. The breathtaking races on the “Speedster” Downhill course and the newly created Cross-Country course are sure to become a highlight of the season. Tickets for this all-weekend mountain bike party are already available and highly sought after, so you better be quick!
Of course, the BIKE Festival will also be back in 2022, from 16-19 September. Year after year, the well-known festival attracts a broad variety of bike brands, numerous test bikes, new models and products that haven’t been released yet. Whether young or old, beginner or professional, everyone will find the right bike for their riding style and can test it extensively on the wide range of trails at Bikepark Leogang, which is available to festival participants in its entirety. Of course, workshops and tours with the stars of the scene are again part of the program.
Besides the World Cup and the Festival, the Epic Bikepark Leogang offers another season highlight. From the start of the season, bike park visitors will once again have the chance to win a huge prize, as last year’s successful treasure hunt is making a comeback: a treasure map with tricky riddles provides clues to the locations of single letters, hidden around the park, which together make up the solution. This treasure map changes every two weeks and numerous solution words give visitors the opportunity to participate several times and increase their chances of winning. The prize-giving ceremony will take place during the BIKE Festival. The lucky winner can look forward to a big package with prizes from Scott, Maxxis, EVOC and many other well-known brands. The treasure hunt is open for participation until the end of August.
Kornel Grundner, Managing Director of Leoganger Bergbahnen, is already looking forward to the opening: “After two years marked by uncertainty, we are looking forward to returning to normality step by step in the 2022 season. With the renewed execution of the double header World Cup and the BIKE Festival, we look forward to welcoming numerous mountain bike riders, fans and spectators to our bike park again this year!”
More current news, dates and information about the tracks of the Epic Bikepark Leogang can be found at bikepark-leogang.com, instagram.com/BikeparkLeogang or facebook.com/BikeparkLeogang
Austria’s biggest bike region
The three resorts of Saalbach Hinterglemm, Saalfelden Leogang and Fieberbrunn joined forces as “The Skicircus” several winters ago. In 2020, they also came closer together for the summer, to offer mountain and gravel bikers almost unlimited possibilities on two-wheels. With over 80 kilometres of lines and trails, 9 lifts between 7 mountains and a joint bike pass offering almost unlimited gravel and asphalt options.
For a “well-rounded bike vacation” there are special bike hotels in Saalfelden Leogang such as the Hotel Bacher, the Lebe Frei Hotel Der Löwe, the mama thresl, the Good Life Resort Riederalm, the Ritzenhof – Hotel and Spa am See, the Biohotel Rupertus, the Hotel Salzburgerhof, the Hotel Krallerhof, the Hotel Stockinggut and the Hotel Puradies, as well as competent bike stores such as Sport Mitterer, Sport 2000 Simon, Bikepalast Saalfelden and the Bikepoint. To improve your own skills, for guided tours or for riding technique training, the Elements Outdoorsports bike school as well as Le-Guide bike school offer a wide range of services. A list of all bike-friendly accommodations in the Saalfelden Leogang region can be found here.
News and information about Saalfelden Leogang can be found on saalfelden-leogang.com, instagram.com/Saalfelden_Leogang or facebook.com/SaalfeldenLeogang
