By TAKESHI AOSE/ Staff Writer
September 14, 2022 at 09:00 JST
YABU, Hyogo Prefecture--A strenuous mountain bike course has opened near the disused Akenobe mine here with the aim of luring city folk into the depopulated area.
Yabu Mountain Bikers Support, a group headed by Kobe bicycle shop operator Chiharu Murayama, and other entities opened two routes on July 31.
“I want to make efforts to attract more visitors from outside areas and revitalize the community,” said Murayama, 45, who is a fan of nature-rich Yabu.
The area, which once flourished as a mining community, is now faced with an aging and declining population.
The Akenobe Holy Ride route is designed for intermediate- and advanced-level cyclists.
The 430-meter-long descending trail boasts a grade difference of around 100 meters from the grounds of Wadajinja shrine to a torii gate.
The Akenobe Pump Track is a 70-meter circuit track with wave-like undulations for children and other beginners.
It is targeted at families visiting a nearby campground and others who might be interested in mountain biking.
The two routes have been developed since spring with the help of customers of Murayama’s bicycle shop.
Among them is Ryo Shirai, a first-year high school student in Kobe.
“I think advanced-level riders can enjoy (the Holy Ride route) because it offers both types of fun to go at high speed in the first half and use brakes and techniques in the last half,” he said.
Murayama, a mountain bike enthusiast, said he is grateful to Yabu residents who helped him create the routes.
While riders need to bring their own mountain bikes, the operators are preparing to introduce a rent-a-cycle system.
A usage fee of 500 yen ($3.50) is required per person per day. Payments are only accepted via the PayPay QR-code based payment service.
An explanation signboard showing the QR code and other information is set up at the entrance to each route.
Bicyclist hits the road to remove stigma of mental health issues
March 14, 2022
Special tour bus gives cyclists a lift to hilly routes in Tokushima
November 20, 2021
More tourists risking life and limb to reach Hokkaido shrine
December 1, 2021
Running trainer passes on tips learned from Bolt for faster times
May 24, 2021
NPA: 70% of students in bike accidents hit at intersections
March 24, 2022
Car automatic braking systems to cover cyclists under new rule
October 12, 2021
Stories about memories of cherry blossoms solicited from readers
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
A series on the death of a Japanese woman that sparked a debate about criminal justice policy in the United States
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
A mountain bike rider races down the Holy Ride route along an approach to Wadajinja shrine in Yabu, Hyogo Prefecture, on July 31. (Takeshi Aose)
