As part of the Lower Silesian MTB Skill Parks project, 18 skill parks were built across the entire voivodeship in the last 2 years. Some of them are great places to learn technique for riders at various levels, but several others are just wasted money. Where is it worth going and where not, who built them, and how much did it cost?
The facilities were financed by municipalities with co-funding from the Lower Silesian Voivodeship and the Ministry of Sport and Tourism. Obtaining the funding required ensuring that the skill park would be built according to established standards and meet the Program’s assumptions. You can read about them here: umwd.dolnyslask.pl/sport/dolnoslaskie-rowerowe-parki-umiejetnosci/. Among other things, there are guidelines on what obstacles should be in a bicycle skill park, the minimum number of obstacles, etc.
A few weeks ago, I sent requests for public information to all municipalities where a Lower Silesian MTB Skill Park (polish shortcut DRPU) was built to find out the cost of creating their facility and which companies were involved. Below, you’ll learn who rose to the occasion and who just wasted taxpayers’ money.
The order is geographical – from south to north.
- Bardo
- Srebrna Góra
- Ząbkowice Śląskie
- Bielawa
- Świdnica
- Szczawno-Zdrój
- Jelenia Góra
- Sobótka
- Jaworzyna Śląska
- Strzegom
- Siechnice
- Lubań
- Bolesławiec
- Brzeg Dolny
- Oborniki Śląskie
- Twardogóra
- Milicz
- Pęcław
Bardo
The MTB Skill Park in Bardo is a spot for beginner mountain bikers. Gentle berms and wide wooden bridges are obstacles that even a several-year-old child can handle. For those with some skills, there’s only one interesting obstacle – a kicker that allows for a jump of several meters.
Building this skill park cost 734,426 PLN.
The design was handled by Doktor Architekci Andrzej Doktor, execution by ARES Daniel Łopatyński, and supervision by Pracownia Projektowo Inżynierska Marcin Nowicki.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-bardzie/
Srebrna Góra
The Srebrna Góra MTB Skill Park is one of the worst, or perhaps the worst, facility in this Program. I think even beginners won’t have much fun there. There are no proper berms, just flat turns; the obstacle called “mini dirt jump” is a short gentle whoop, not a tabletop; and the landing from the drop is covered with small pebbles, on which it’s easy to slip, especially since there’s a turn right after landing.
The Stoszowice Municipality spent 721,800 PLN on this skill park – almost the same as Bardo, yet the facility is significantly smaller. Interestingly, the same company designed it – Doktor Architekci. I don’t know why they did it properly in Bardo but messed it up here. Or maybe the design was good, and the construction company failed – Zakład Usług Budowlanych Drogowych i Projektowych Ryszard Kędzior – and the one that supervised it – Pracownia projektowo-inżynierska Nowicki.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/srebrnogorski-rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci/
Ząbkowice Śląskie
In contrast, not far from Srebrna Góra is one of the best Lower Silesian MTB Skill Parks. The facility built as part of the Solar Loop (pl. Pętla Słoneczna) is a place where you can spend several hours without getting bored. It’s probably the largest skill park in this Program. Only Świdnica has a similarly large one.
You’ll find perfect berms, several drops including one really big one, a wallride, a dirt jump section, a steep descent over a rock garden, and many other obstacles. It’s a place where both beginners and more advanced riders will find something for themselves.
Applause to the company that designed this facility – Bike Expert Piotr Kurczab – and the one that built it – Arkadiusz Perin Arek Bike Camp(1). Investor supervision was handled by Budowa i utrzymanie dróg, Projektowanie, nadzory Maciej Haczkowski, and the investment cost was 643,219 PLN.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-z-bkowicach–l-skich/
Bielawa
Bielawa is one of those municipalities that wasted taxpayers’ money. As part of the DRPU Program, they created only a small area with a few obstacles, on which probably only young children have fun, and no one else.
And the worst part is that creating this facility cost as much as 1,415,738 PLN! Over twice as much as the skill park in Ząbkowice Śląskie, which is dozens of times larger!
The technical documentation and investor supervision were handled by Doktor Architekci, and execution by two companies: Quoos Sp. z o.o. and Przedsiębiorstwo Robót Drogowo Ziemnych i Transportowych „TOM-TRANS” Tomasz Mucha.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-bielawie/
Świdnica
Other municipalities could take an example from Świdnica! In Harcerski Park, a really good skill park was created. It’s large and contains a lot of diverse obstacles – drops of various sizes, rock gardens, narrow bridges, tabletops, berms… It’s a great place for beginners. More advanced riders will learn the most on the tabletops. There are several, the first smaller, and the last quite large.
The skill park was created thanks to the same companies that worked in Ząbkowice. Design and bicycle supervision by Bike Expert Piotr Kurczab, and construction by Arek Bike Camp Arkadiusz Perin. Investor supervision was by Tomasz Drożdż, and the investment cost was 838,497 PLN.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/dolno-l-ski-park-umiej-tno-ci-w–widnicy/
Szczawno-Zdrój
Szczawno-Zdrój didn’t shine. On Słoneczna Glade, they created an MTB XC trail that elicits laughter or embarrassment from anyone who knows anything about mountain biking. The “best” is the pumptrack. High steep whoops, described on the legend as pump jump, meaning you’re supposed to take off on one and land behind the other :) Plus a drop right after a steep climb and a 90-degree turn, whoops that pop up and are dangerous for beginners… I don’t recommend it. Moreover, only part of the trail is covered with aggregate. Part is simply led through forest litter. It looks like they wanted to make the longest possible trail but spend as little money as possible on it. But they didn’t spend little at all!
Szczawno-Zdrój spent 747,166 PLN on this investment. The design was done by Przedsiębiorstwo INWESTBUD, execution by LucBud Łukasz Pitura, and the inspector of supervision was Przedsiębiorstwo Budowlane Andrzeja Lemparta.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-szczawnozdroj/
Jelenia Góra
Jelenia Góra can boast a facility called Bike Park Czarne. It’s a great place where you’ll find lines with obstacles like on red flow trails in bike parks, i.e., large tabletops and large berms. Plus drops of various sizes, rock gardens, a pumptrack, and a few obstacles for beginners. I recommend it!
The investment cost was 1,062,451 PLN. Design and construction supervision by Bike Expert Piotr Kurczab, and construction by EM Janikowscy Marek Janikowski.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-jeleniej-gorze/
Sobótka
At the foot of Ślęża, as part of the DRPU Program, MTB Trails Janosik were created. The facility consists of two main lines and a few obstacles for beginners. One line consists of tabletops and berms, and on the other, besides a tabletop and berms, there’s a rock garden and stairs/drops. I recommend this place to those who already have pretty good tabletop jumping and berm-riding skills. Those just learning can also get a lot out of it, but I recommend Strzegom, Świdnica, or Jelenia Góra more for them.
Building this bicycle skill park cost 1,043,212 PLN. The design was by Mr. Andrzej Doktor, construction by PPHU Krzeszowski, and investor supervision by Mr. Rafał Andrzejczak(2).
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/trasy-mtb-janosik-sobotka/
Jaworzyna Śląska
I would classify the MTB Skill Park in Jaworzyna Śląska as one of the less successful investments. I definitely don’t recommend it to advanced mountain bikers. Beginners will find something – gentle berms, rock garden, small drop. Although that drop, despite being quite small, may be difficult for beginners because there’s little space to gain speed. There’s also an obstacle called “pump jump,” similar to the one in Szczawno ;) True, the whoops are a bit gentler, but there’s also nowhere to gain speed.
The investment cost as much as 1,084,214 PLN. That’s almost the same as the skill parks in Sobótka and Jelenia Góra, where you can see a lot of work was put in. I don’t see that in Jaworzyna, and it was built by the same company as in Sobótka – PPHU Krzeszowski. The design was by Bimfrax Sp. z o.o., and supervision by Zakład Usługowo Produkcyjno Handlowy “Invest-Bud” Wiktor Dynowski.
Location: maps.app.goo.gl/9SCauF3RbqrokfZP7
Strzegom
In Strzegom is definitely one of the best Lower Silesian MTB Skill Parks. This is a place where you can practice jumps on small and quite large tabletops, dropping from drops of various sizes, riding berms, whoops, rock gardens, and other obstacles. Everything is done very well. On the line with several drops, you don’t need to pedal or brake. Just start at the top, and the speed is perfect. The same with tabletops. Perfect approach and long safe landing. I think this is the best skill park for learning tabletop jumps.
The facility was created thanks to the same companies involved in building the skill park in Jelenia Góra, i.e., design and supervision by Bike Expert Piotr Kurczab, and construction by EM Janikowscy. The investment cost was 1,044,288 PLN.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-strzegom/
Siechnice
In Siechnice near Wrocław, a small skill park, an asphalt pumptrack, and a small skatepark were built. The pumptrack is quite nice – I was even able to gain good speed on it with a full-suspension bike – but on the skill park, only the kicker interested me. Besides that, there are narrow bridges, teeter totters, a small drop, and some rocks. Considering the very small area, it turned out not so bad.
The investment cost was 719,664 PLN. Construction work was performed by BT Project Sp. z o.o., the design by Sinergia Urbana Małgorzata Czaban, and investor supervision by Przedsiębiorstwo Budowlane PRO-DS Daniel Simm.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-siechnice/
Lubań
The bicycle skill park in Lubań was built on a very gentle hill. So gentle that you mostly ride on flat ground. Among the obstacles are a wooden tabletop, several small drops, rock gardens. Beginners will find something there.
The facility cost 916,072 PLN, was designed by Ko-Projekty Katarzyna Chojnacka, and built by ALE Sp. komandytowa. I didn’t receive information on who supervised the investment.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-luba/
Bolesławiec
In Bolesławiec, as part of the DRPU project, forest paths on Bolesławiec Hill were expanded. Loops were created that, according to the map, are 3–4 km long. In practice, these are mainly forest paths, only intersected with specially prepared singletracks and technical elements. Among them are interesting obstacles, not just for complete beginners, for example a several-meter tabletop that you approach from a bridge, which can also be used as a drop.
The trail signage could be a bit better. I tried several times to ride the entire red loop and always got lost somewhere because there was no arrow at an intersection or arrows of the same color in different directions.
The bike park in Bolesławiec can be treated as trails for XC training. A few steep climbs should satisfy those who want to build fitness. You can also practice technique along the way, but for those focused only on technical training, it’s not ideal because the technical elements are scattered over a large area.
The investment cost was 1,085,400 PLN. Design and supervision by Doktor Architekci, and execution by Pumpit Sp. z o.o.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/boles-awiecki-rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci/
Brzeg Dolny
The MTB Skill Park in Brzeg Dolny, like in Lubań, was built on a very small hill, so you have to pedal hard in some places. However, it’s full of diverse obstacles. Berms, whoops, drops, kicker, narrow bridges, teeter totter, pumptrack… A lot is happening there. Most obstacles are for beginners, so I especially recommend it to them.
The designing company and investor supervision was Piotr Kurczab’s Bike Expert, and construction was handled by PUMPIT Sp. z o.o. The investment cost was 888,820 PLN.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-brzeg-dolny/
Oborniki Śląskie
In Oborniki Śląskie, the MTB Skill Park “Grzybek” was created, which actually isn’t a skill park but an XC trail. If you want to practice fitness on an interval winding trail, I recommend it, but there are much better places for learning MTB technique. I didn’t even film a ride on this trail because I think it would be such a boring video that no one would watch it ;) The “drops” there are two tree stumps, besides that there are low berms, some covered with stones, a few whoops, and flat turns. I don’t recommend it to advanced riders because it’ll be boring for you, nor to children or people with weaker fitness because you won’t manage the steep climbs.
The investment cost 540,789 PLN. The design was by Doktor Architekci, and execution by WB TECH Wiesław Burek.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-obornikach–l-skich/
Twardogóra
I visited the MTB Skill Park in Twardogóra while passing through on a trekking bike, so I didn’t test all the obstacles ;) But I enjoyed riding, and everything looked pretty good. The largest loop is about 2–3 km with gentle berms, small tabletops, and narrow bridges. There’s also a drop, a teeter totter, and one very difficult obstacle – a gap over a stream. On the trail, there’s no way to gain speed for it because it’s a few meters after a sharp flat turn, so you’d probably have to go up the hill and cut across the trail for speed. But I probably wouldn’t dare anyway, even on an MTB.
I didn’t receive a response from the municipality about the costs and which companies were involved in creating this skill park.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-twardogora/
Milicz
I haven’t visited the skill park in Milicz yet. I only saw on Google Maps that it’s a small flat area with a few obstacles. I also didn’t receive a response to my public information request.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-miliczu/
Pęcław
The Pęcław Municipality near Głogów created the MTB Skill Park in Droglowice. It’s a small skill park on flat ground next to an asphalt pumptrack. Good for learning jumps on small tabletops where you gain speed from a ramp. The narrow bridges I think can also be a good challenge for children and other beginners. There’s also a small drop and kicker, but it was hard for me to gain speed on them because they’re right after a 90-degree turn.
About 300 m further is a CX (cyclocross) trail, apparently rarely used.
The investment cost was 979,400 PLN. Design and supervision by Bike Expert Piotr Kurczab, and construction by Bike Universe Sp. z o.o.
Location: www.trailforks.com/skillpark/rowerowy-park-umiej-tno-ci-w-droglowicach/
Summary
It’s great that such a Program was created in Lower Silesia. 18 skill parks across the voivodeship is quite a lot, and neither the Silesian nor Lesser Poland voivodeships can boast such facilities.
It’s a pity, though, that some municipalities chose companies as contractors that clearly had no idea how to do it properly. Moreover, these weren’t even the cheapest companies, which raises questions about whether there were any irregularities.
Jelenia Góra, Sobótka, Strzegom, Świdnica, Ząbkowice Śląskie – these are especially worth visiting, and these cities can serve as models for others on how to properly use taxpayers’ money.
(1) After publishing this article, I learned from Marek Janikowski that the skill park in Ząbkowice was built in two stages. Arek Bike Camp built it in the second stage, while EM Janikowscy in the first.
(2) I didn’t get this information from the municipality, but I know from a reliable source that the construction of the park in Sobótka was supervised by Piotr “Szwed” Szwedowski, who has been involved in BMX and MTB for many years. That’s probably why it turned out so well, despite being built by a regular construction company.
Thank you :)
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