Mountain bikers show solidarity to fellow riders

Saracens mountain riders in solidarity for road colleagues.

Saracens Cycle club members prepare for their 15km ride. Reem Mohammed / The National

ABU DHABI // They may prefer dirt over pavement, but a group of mountain bikers and other cyclists took to the asphalt to show solidarity with #cycletoworkuae.

The group of nine cyclists on four different types of bike took a 15-kilometre loop, starting from Zayed Cricket Stadium to Sas Al Nakhl and past Al Forsan International Sport Resort.

Brett Bowie, owner and director of Saracens Cycle Eco-Gym in Abu Dhabi, organised the trip despite mountain cycling being his primary passion.

The ride was symbolic, Mr Bowie said. “It was actually kind of fun.”

The cyclists had an escort car following from behind for safety on the road. Motorists yielded to the group and one sounded its horn in support.

Mr Bowie, 47, from New Zealand, hopes to see more infrastructure for cyclists in the capital, particularly for experienced mountain bike riders.

“There’s lots of opportunities to create trails here,” he said.

“They don’t have to be quite as pristine.”

Cycling paths are a good start, but more could be done to make Abu Dhabi a haven for cyclists, he said.

First, the bike routes need to be linked up.

Abu Dhabi can look at cities such as Portland in the US, or European capitals in making the city more cycle-friendly, Mr Bowie said.

“They just need to look at best practice and bring it to Abu Dhabi,” he said.

His wife, Melanie van den Hoven, a Canadian teacher trainer and life-long cyclist, rode on Tuesday morning from their home in Khalidiya.

The direct distance is about 14km, but it took her longer than usual.

While on the route with the Saracens on Tuesday, Ms van den Hoven, 44, pointed out the sudden point where the bike path stopped before a sandy area.

“This is why it took me two hours to cycle to work,” she said.

The bike path signs could be confusing in some areas and some parts were under construction, with workers’ tools in the pathway or tall curbs to surpass, Ms van den Hoven said.

It also took time at her work to find a place to store her bike and change clothes. She saw three other cyclists on her commute between 8am and 10am.

Bike parking areas and sloped curbs are the two main additions that could help cyclists, she said, as was addressing confusing spots in the bike path.

Motorists also need education on sharing the road with bicycles for cycling on Abu Dhabi’s roads to be safe, said Mr Bowie.

Public promotional literature in Arabic could help encourage motorists to be aware of cyclists, he said.

He added that there should be major consequences for hitting pedestrians or people cyclists.