What do you do if you don't know exactly what your base wants from you? Right, ask them. That's what Swiss Cycling has been doing for a few weeks now with an online survey. It covers topics such as the preferred mountain bike area and satisfaction with infrastructure and public transport. Above all, Swiss Cycling wants to know what the association could do to make itself more attractive to the mountain bike community, i.e. what it would have to offer to encourage more female bikers to join.

Paloma del Mar Kilchenmann and Lisia Bürgi came up with the questions and will also carry out the evaluation. They jointly head the newly created Politics and Mobility department. "Our aim with the survey is to find out where bikers in Switzerland are feeling the pinch and which concerns are most pressing. We also wanted to know what role Swiss Cycling can play as the national cycling umbrella organization in improving the framework conditions for biking in Switzerland in the future," explains Paloma del Mar Kilchenmann at the request of Ride.

Swiss Cycling is therefore making another attempt to establish itself as a representative of the interests of the mountain bike community. In the mid-teens, the association hired Pete Stutz as its grassroots sports manager, who worked to network groups that were committed to providing local and regional access to single trails and mountain bike infrastructure. The commitment lasted just over a year.

"We are aiming to establish a new structure within Swiss Cycling that will serve the national coordination of the mountain bike movement in Switzerland," explains Paloma del Mar Kilchenmann. Back in November, Swiss Cycling announced on its own website that the association wanted to fill the vacuum that existed in the political representation of mountain bikers, "in cooperation with national, cantonal and regional organizations".

Is Swiss Cycling doing the same as Imba Switzerland?

That sounds pretty close to what Imba Switzerland has been doing for several years. After all, the Imba Switzerland website states that this organization is in regular contact with Swiss Cycling. So two organizations are positioning themselves to represent women mountain bikers politically at a national level. This is at a time when the cantons are integrating the national cycle path law into their cantonal laws. Imba Switzerland thrives on the commitment of Andy Stalder, who also rides Mountainbike Luzern. Compared to the other parties involved in the process, such as forestry and agriculture, hunting, nature conservation, administration and others, Imba Switzerland and Swiss Cycling together do not have a huge amount of manpower. The more skilfully the two organizations share the tasks, the better they will be able to represent the interests of the mountain bike community.

Swiss Cycling already has one USP up its sleeve: an interactive map of Switzerland that will show the legal situation regarding mountain biking on single trails in each location. It will be available on the Swiss Cycling website later this year, promises Paloma del Mar Kilchenmann. This tool will be useful for anyone who is interested in or involved in access to single trails, mountain bike infrastructure and the rights of female mountain bikers.

Women mountain bikers can request further valuable services in the Swiss Cycling survey.

To the Swiss Cycling mountain bike survey