“Steep is awesome”: What gets your lactate and adrenaline pumping on the trail is currently driving Ride’s server statistics as well. Over the past two years, traffic figures have skyrocketed: While the platform recorded 4.4 million page views in 2024, the annual volume for 2026 is now heading toward the 9-million mark. The number of annual unique visitors also climbed from 270,000 to a whopping 475,000.

Ride’s traffic figures also saw a noticeable decline following the wild, exceptional hype surrounding the pandemic around 2020. However, Ride has now put the COVID hangover behind it and turned the tide toward strong, organic growth.

Relevance and Visibility in AI and Search Engines

Ride’s ability to achieve this growth is largely attributable to two strategic decisions. First, its continuous investment in independent and robust journalism is paying off. In an era of automated content floods, this editorial depth gives the platform a strong standing with traditional search engines like Google as well as with modern AI information services. Ride is now regarded as a primary source in this regard. In other words, well-researched, expert sources are given priority in coverage and citations.

The second catalyst was the strategic realignment. By switching from the Swiss country-code domain ride.ch to ride-mtb.com, Ride shed its image as a purely domestic product. At the same time, the editorial focus was consistently expanded to encompass the entire German-speaking Alpine region, which significantly increased its relevance in Germany and Austria and led to much more engaging content.

The bilingual format, which Ride introduced in January 2026 and has since been available online entirely in German and English, is still of minor significance. English-language web traffic currently accounts for only 7 percent of all visits.

Mountain biking is alive and well!

These record figures are particularly striking in light of the regular complaints about mountain biking. Numerous manufacturers and retailers have been lamenting sluggish sales in the mountain bike segment for quite some time. In industry circles, as well as in the tourism sector, the skeptical question keeps cropping up as to whether the sport has passed its peak.

The latest figures from Ride—a platform uncompromisingly and exclusively dedicated to mountain biking—refute this notion of the sport’s decline. Growth in reach on this scale cannot be achieved through short-term effects; it requires a loyal, active, and still highly engaged target audience. You don’t double your traffic numbers with a sport that’s on the decline.    

Ride Emphasizes Transparency

Ride takes a deliberately proactive and transparent approach to its traffic figures and publishes them in great detail. They can be downloaded in a clearly organized format at www.ride-mtb.com/mediadata