Where the business elite are on stage at the WEF, mountain bikers have dominated the Davos Congress Center over the past few days. The Ride Congress, which has been taking place since 2013, addressed current topics in a high-quality manner, allowing experts to have their say and the audience to express their opinions. How mountain railroads can earn money from mountain bikers was one of the topics raised. Or how to organize major events such as the World Championships in Lenzerheide in an ecologically and economically sustainable way. Are Asians our new trail users? Of course, e-bikes also have their place in the congress line-up: Where is the journey going with motorized mountain bikes?

Interestingly, self-critical voices were heard again and again this year. Mountain lift specialist Roland Zegg used a calculation example to show how challenging it is to handle mountain bikers profitably. Later, in expert panels, organizers, conservationists and scientists controversially discussed the sustainability of events that attract 25,000 spectators and more to an area. And finally, it was also Swiss mountain biking doyen Bene Luginbühl who called on the stage to return to the roots of mountain biking more often.

Where are mountain bikers heading? Towards children, for example. Karl Morgenbesser gave an impressive demonstration of how to fully align your infrastructure with families. But also in the direction of globalization, for example: Danny McAskill is responsible for this, and his manager Tarek Rasouli demonstrated on stage how this works. Or in the direction of electrification, where Sissi Pärsch, one of the driving forces behind the "E-MTB Study Days", was on stage at the Ride Congress.

With 200 participants, the Ride Congress in Davos is the most important and highest-quality specialist event for mountain bike tourism in the Alpine region. Tourism experts, trail builders, authorities and tour organizers exchange important experience and support each other with specialist knowledge in order to advance the sport in a sustainable and well-founded manner. The event is considered an important pillar of Alpine mountain bike tourism and will take place again next time on 19 and 20 September 2019 at the Congress Center in Davos.