No cycling discipline relies as heavily on voluntary commitment as mountain biking. It cannot be emphasised enough just how much time and effort trail builders worldwide put into a project such as ‘Legale Trails’. The planning permission process often takes months or even years and is incredibly nerve-wracking. Then there’s the construction itself, but above all, the regular maintenance of the trails is immensely labour-intensive and costly. If there isn’t a dedicated team behind it that’s willing to donate, a project like this can quickly become overgrown again – and all that effort will have been in vain.
Nina Hoffmann is donating her racing bike
This makes it all the more important that, on 17 June at the Mountain Bike Forum in Aalen, an award was presented for the very first time to recognise precisely this kind of voluntary trail work. It was all made possible by professional downhill rider Nina Hoffmann. In June, she auctioned her race bike (a Santa Cruz 5010 CC MX) on eBay and donated the proceeds of just over 7,000 euros as the prize money for the award.
From among the projects submitted from across the country, an interdisciplinary panel of experts selected three finalists in each category; a community vote by members of the scene also accounted for 50 per cent of the decision.
The winners of the BIKE SPIRIT AWARDS 2026
On Wednesday evening, in front of 140 participants at the Mountain Bike Forum, the moment had finally arrived. The awards in the three categories – trail building, diversity and cycling experience – were presented at a ceremony at the Kulturbahnhof in Aalen:
Award in the Trail Construction category
The Community Award for Trail Building recognises voluntary projects that promote legal trail building – in a way that is environmentally friendly, collaborative and sustainable. The first-place prize consists of 1,500 euros in prize money and a VAUDE voucher worth 1,000 euros. The winner will also receive a personal visit from patron Jasper Jauch, as well as professional trail-building training from Schneestern.
- 1st place went to the DIMB IG Rems-Murr For the project ‘Solutions before bans – Rems-Murr MTB Trail Network’: 70 legal singletrack trails, 48 kilometres, eleven local authorities – and an approach that is now regarded as a model for collaborative trail development in Germany.
- 2nd place earned the Weitnau Mountaineering Club e.V., who transformed a ski lift in Ostallgäu that was due to be demolished into a year-round bike park – almost entirely through his own efforts, with the help of 50 fellow volunteers.
- 3rd place Third place was secured by the Trail mentors at the Eberbach Canoe Club, who have established sustainable trail maintenance in a sensitive protected area through data-driven monitoring and extensive cooperation with the authorities.
Award in the Diversity category
The Community Award for Diversity is presented to initiatives that break down barriers and attract new groups of people to mountain biking. The winners received the same prize money as for the Trail Building Award.
- 1st place was occupied by the Schwäbischer Albtrauf Adventure Region Association with their project ‘Inclusion on the Albtrauf’ – an initiative that enables people with physical disabilities to access the Albtrauf landscape via electric-assisted tricycles and wheelchair-accessible bikes.
- 2nd place went to the RSC Waldkirchen, whose well-organised youth work, with 120 active participants and a remarkable 50/50 gender split, stood out from the large number of applications.
- 3rd place the DIMB IG Fünf Seen Land near Gauting was awarded Germany’s first Adaptive MTB trail ‘Würmflow’ – a non-commercial flow trail designed from the outset for adaptive mountain bikers. Funded with support from SRAM and Shimano: inclusion as a design principle, not an afterthought.
Award in the ‘Cycling Experience’ category
The Bike Experience Award is aimed at operators and destinations that combine trails, cycling culture and environmental sustainability to create a harmonious overall experience.
- 1st place: First place in this category went to the Pfälzerwald Mountain Bike Park Association – A top spot for trail SUP since 2005, it has since expanded to include over 20 tours across eleven local authorities in the heart of the Pfälzerwald UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. It holds DIMB certification and has over 80 partner accommodation providers.
- 2nd place: went to the Trans Bayerwald According to the East Bavaria Tourism Association: 700 kilometres, 17,000 metres of elevation gain and over 12,000 starter packs sent out represent a multi-day MTB experience with measurable regional economic benefits.
- 3rd place: The town of Eberbach came third with the Eberbach – A Cycling Paradise – a destination that has consistently leveraged its status as the sixth-largest municipal forest owner in Baden-Württemberg to develop its own independent network of trails.
The Patrons
Nina Hoffmann, professional downhill rider and co-host of the Freilauf podcast:
An incredible amount is achieved in our MTB community through voluntary work. This is exactly what needs to be highlighted and recognised, so that the next generation can also find great places to ride.
Jasper Jauch, a professional MTB rider and riding technique coach, will visit the winning project in the Trail Building Award in person:
No trails, no mountain biking. We need more people to roll up their sleeves and tackle the hurdles involved in getting trails legalised. These awards promote and honour that work – I love it!
The BIKE SPIRIT AWARDS are supported by VAUDE (prizes in kind and prize money vouchers), Snow Star (Trail-building training for the winner of the Trail-building Award) and Bosch eBike Systems.
Further information: www.kongress.bike/awards
Gitta Beimfohr
Editor
