Autun: Heart of Bourgogne - Video

At the moment, we talk a lot about the opening of big ski resorts for the mountain bike season, but we forget to mention the lesser known bike parks or trail centers. It is not because it is small that there is less quality. On the contrary, if it is less known and less ridden, there are less braking bumps. So, I will tell you about a small bike park. A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to discover the bike park of Autun with some friends, Jeffrey, Cedric, and Vince. It was a pleasant discovery. Here is the detail of our weekend.


Arriving in Autun we were welcomed by Raphael. Raphael is the local of the trip. He takes care of the kids in Autun MTB club. He also works in kayak and outdoor sports on the nautical base. He also is the one to maintain the MTB trails, he's the bike patrol. He was our guide for the weekend. He explained that, here, there is no mechanical lift since it is not a mountainous region but the town organizes shuttles with minibuses and trailers. The shuttles leave from the town center at the arrival of the tracks and deposits at the Cross of Liberation, the highest point, which is also the departure of the tracks.

The bike park is divided into 4 tracks of different levels:

- The green track Le Riveret
- The blue track La Rivault
- The red track La St-Sébastien
- The black track La Chicolle

There are also cross country trails like the GTM, a 300 kilometers itinerary. We found ourselves in the loaded shuttle, on our way to the bike park. Our guide tells us that we have come during the right season because the new track had just opened and the trace is still fresh. It is called La Chicolle and it's described as an air track that needed a huge digging and building work. We were eager to discover it.


At the top, the view we oversee the town, an opportunity for us to immortalize the moment

.
The four tracks have the starting point, in a clearing before plunging into the forest.


The green track and the blue track are playful with lots of turns that allow to slow down without using too much brake. The two tracks meet at the bottom. The red track is a bit complicated with the jumping construction. It is shorter and faster.


The black runway is aerial with wooden drops, a step up, step down and many jumps before finishing on a jumpy BMX line.



To conclude, we've enjoyed ourselves on the downhill tracks of Autun. We must know how to appreciate and discover lesser known bike parks, the discovery is often positive.


Enduro riders or cross country riders everybody is smiling.

Mentions: @Autun
Riders: Vince, Jean-roch Vecten , Jeffrey Fleury, Cédric Fleureton