Cycling with a minty flavour

[Lite Beer]

LIFESTYLE
Cycling with a minty flavour
Kitchana Lersakvanitchakul
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- The new Peppermint Bike Park offers stretches of track to suit bikers of all levels

WITH MORE and more people taking to two wheels whether for their health, to assert their independence or simply to get from A to B in a shorter time, bicycle lanes as well as dedicated parks are popping up all over the country.

Latest figures show that more than two million Thais regularly cycle, mostly upcountry to be sure, though Bangkok and its suburbs now boast 150,000 biking enthusiasts, with the figure continuing to rise.

In recent months, the city has seen the launch of the green cycle track at Suvarnabhumi Airport and the technical single-track at Club 11 Bike Club as well as a bike lane under the expressway.

The latest to join the club is Peppermint Bike Park, a mountain-biking trail in Soi Yothin Phatthana in the Lat Phrao area.

"I had the idea for the bike park when I started riding a bike," says Suwanna Eiampikul, chief executive of Bertram Chemical (1982) and a second-generation member of the family that produces Siang Pure natural pain relief products in medicated oil, balm and inhaler form.

"I've been into sports since I was a child and love basketball, volleyball, tennis and golf. But whilst my favourites are still tennis and golf, they are not sports I can play with my staff because of the costs involved. Then I started riding a bike and it dawned on me that this was something everyone could enjoy. I wanted my staff to enjoy the freedom of cycling, of having the wind in their faces. Cycling is both a sport and a way of life."

Peppermint Bike Park is spread over 10 rai of land owned by Suwanna's father. It has cost Bt70 million to set up - Bt40 million for the bike park itself and Bt30 million for the facilities. These include a café, showers and restrooms as well as a parking lot for 100 cars.

"The land was originally slated for a kindergarten, a housing estate or a golf course. I'm using it to connect with my Peppermint Field brand," says Suwanna, who uses Peppermint Bike for morale-boosting bike trips and offers soft loans to her staff so they can buy their own two wheelers.

"We use this bike park as our meeting point. It helps us stay in touch with the nature."

The point-to-point trail takes its cue from Bangkok's Club 11 Bike Club as well as mountain-biking trails overseas. The initial paved trail with man-made ramps and pump tracks as well as some inclines and sharp curves has now been expanded to include a north shore trail and a sheer drop.

"Three weeks after the opening, I starting receiving calls from companies asking me to work as a consultant! But it's important to realise that a bike park isn't profitable. If you measure its index with a KPI (key performance indicator) in terms of money, it is impossible to earn a profit. But it scores high on happiness so it goes well with our brand," says Suwanna.

Peppermint Bike Park is advertising itself with the slogan "mountain biking for urbanites".

"Our target group is working people and young families, the kind of people who want something healthy to do after their working day finishes," she explains.

The trail is safe though caution is required especially through the rougher points. For the beginner, it offers a training course at four levels, priced at Bt500 an hour. There are 10 bicycles for rent for Bt100 per hour and helmets too at a reasonable Bt50.

Peppermint Bike Cafe, which is expected to open at the end of the year, will be on two levels. Food and drinks will be available on the first floor while the second floor will house a bike shop.

"My satisfaction from building and running the bike park comes from the happiness it gives to others. Many international schools are bringing their students here. I enjoy being able to give and I'm so happy to see more and more people turning to cycling.

"That's one of the reasons I keep the fees low, just Bt150 for daytime use and Bt200 for the night session. Right now, I have a group of foreign teenagers coming four days a week. If the fee were higher, it would be too expensive for them. I also see a mother with stage four cancer riding with her child and two young boys often come to ride for four or five hours at a stretch. Here we offer exercise and recreation. It's an index of happiness," says Suwanna.

So passionate is she about cycling that Suwanna is now looking for investors to help her build a new bike park outside Bangkok. If the quality is anywhere as good as at Peppermint, it should be a big success.



On two wheels

Peppermint Bike Park is on Soi Yothin Phatthana 3, Lat Phrao.

It's open daily except Monday. Operation hours Tuesday to Friday are from 2 to 5.30pm and from 6 to 10pm, while on Saturday and Sunday, it runs from 7am to 5.30pm and from 6 to 10pm.

The fee is Bt150 for daytime riding and Bt200 at night.

Call (090) 980 1368 or visit Facebook/PeppermintBikePark.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/Cycling-with-a-minty-flavour-30263091.html

-- The Nation 2015-06-27

[woozlewuzzle]

Great idea - It just would be nice if people would think a little more in to safety aspects for their customers, he has the hay if you fall, which won't last long, nevermind there are plenty of nice rocks to smash your face into if you make an error and come off the elevated route....

Edited June 27, 2015 by woozlewuzzle

[h90]

Great idea - It just would be nice if people would think a little more in to safety aspects for their customers, he has the hay if you fall, which won't last long, nevermind there are plenty of nice rocks to smash your face into if you make an error and come off the elevated route....

On the picture the wood doesn't look like it lasts long...

yes the rocks aren't a good idea.....The should plant some cactus and roses between to slow you down before you hit the stones.....

Seriously some soft vegetation (bamboo?, corn?, sure there are better things) would be good

[CNXBKKMAN]

A big investment to create the park. Not my style though but i live in Chiang Mai. I think the safety aspect especially for wobbly young children is very valid. Rammed earth like a BMX track may have been better than the raised wooden planks. If you did make a mistake on a corner you could still ride down the slope.

[h90]

A big investment to create the park. Not my style though but i live in Chiang Mai. I think the safety aspect especially for wobbly young children is very valid. Rammed earth like a BMX track may have been better than the raised wooden planks. If you did make a mistake on a corner you could still ride down the slope.

After thinking a bit of it, it looks wonderful but in fact it is complete junk......Imagine an accident.....

[moonoi]

A big investment to create the park. Not my style though but i live in Chiang Mai. I think the safety aspect especially for wobbly young children is very valid. Rammed earth like a BMX track may have been better than the raised wooden planks. If you did make a mistake on a corner you could still ride down the slope.

After thinking a bit of it, it looks wonderful but in fact it is complete junk......Imagine an accident.....

Probably should reserve judgement until riding it yourself. I'm hoping to get a chance once the dr gives me the ok to ride again, as it's only a 10 min ride from my house.

[h90]

A big investment to create the park. Not my style though but i live in Chiang Mai. I think the safety aspect especially for wobbly young children is very valid. Rammed earth like a BMX track may have been better than the raised wooden planks. If you did make a mistake on a corner you could still ride down the slope.

After thinking a bit of it, it looks wonderful but in fact it is complete junk......Imagine an accident.....

Probably should reserve judgement until riding it yourself. I'm hoping to get a chance once the dr gives me the ok to ride again, as it's only a 10 min ride from my house.

please let us know....if I imagine an accident on the track I see on the picture, I am horrified

[moonoi]

Got the all clear from the Dr today to ride again, so been down to take a look. Looks pretty safe to me, with plenty of staff on hand in case of difficulties. I paid 200 baht for a membership that gives me 50 baht off each visit, so will pay for itself in just 4 visits.

Will ride it tomorrow morning and if my old GoPro still works, will try to video the lap and post it here.

[chiangmaiexpat]

yes the rocks aren't a good idea.....The should plant some cactus and roses between to slow you down before you hit the stones.....

Seriously some soft vegetation (bamboo?, corn?, sure there are better things) would be good

Come on guys, this looks quite mellow compared to the average DH track here in Chiang Mai. Just imagine twice the gradient with lots of roots spread all out and a a few tree stems and rocks strategically placed.

Cheers, CM-Expat

[moonoi]

Well tried it out, will post video later, but not really dangerous at all. The only thing that would make it unsafe is people riding beyond their capabilities, and then the only person they are going to injure is themselves.

Found it to be quite fun, but also discovered how much fitness I've lost with 2 months off the bike!

Edited July 6, 2015 by moonoi

[moonoi]

[moonoi]

And here's the video of the track, where you can also see my lack of skill :-)

Edited July 6, 2015 by moonoi

[CNXBKKMAN]

After watching the video i like the pump track parts. The raised bits with the wooden planks would still be better if made from rammed earth. The fence could then be removed allowing the full width of the track to be used. It could be landscaped with some nice plants too. Thanks for uploading the video Moonoi. How long did it take to upload? I just uploaded a 2 min video to youtube. "Hoopoes in Padaet" and it took forever. I was expecting a 2 min vid to upload pretty fast.

[moonoi]

After watching the video i like the pump track parts. The raised bits with the wooden planks would still be better if made from rammed earth. The fence could then be removed allowing the full width of the track to be used. It could be landscaped with some nice plants too. Thanks for uploading the video Moonoi. How long did it take to upload? I just uploaded a 2 min video to youtube. "Hoopoes in Padaet" and it took forever. I was expecting a 2 min vid to upload pretty fast.

About 15-20min, seemed quite fast to me, took longer for you tube to process the video!

[h90]

After watching the video i like the pump track parts. The raised bits with the wooden planks would still be better if made from rammed earth. The fence could then be removed allowing the full width of the track to be used. It could be landscaped with some nice plants too. Thanks for uploading the video Moonoi. How long did it take to upload? I just uploaded a 2 min video to youtube. "Hoopoes in Padaet" and it took forever. I was expecting a 2 min vid to upload pretty fast.

Yes but it looks better than on the photo...obviously just a small section is with these wooden planks.

Landscaped: than the Thais would be afraid that a rat or snake is hiding in the vegetation....

[richard_smith237]

I wonder how slippery the wooden planks would be when wet?....

Anyway - the video is excellent... the area looks great... something like this could get me into (soft) mountain biking as a form of exercise... (now that damaged disks (spine) prevent me from Wakeboarding)....

[h90]

I wonder how slippery the wooden planks would be when wet?....

Anyway - the video is excellent... the area looks great... something like this could get me into (soft) mountain biking as a form of exercise... (now that damaged disks (spine) prevent me from Wakeboarding)....

If not for the wood planks it would be nice for the road bicycle....

[moonoi]

I wonder how slippery the wooden planks would be when wet?....

Anyway - the video is excellent... the area looks great... something like this could get me into (soft) mountain biking as a form of exercise... (now that damaged disks (spine) prevent me from Wakeboarding)....

If not for the wood planks it would be nice for the road bicycle....

Surprisingly enough there were plenty of people attempting the wooden plank parts of it on road bikes and hybrids, so it is possible.

[chiangmaiexpat]

Thanks, @moonoi, for the video. I have to be honest and say that it looks a little less exciting than I hoped for, but I'd still like to try it out. The long blue line at the beginning looks a bit boring unless you're on a track bicycle. The bumps starting at 3:21 look like one could get some decent air with gravity-assisted acceleration. The drop at 3:59 is utterly weird and stands out considering the overall level of difficulty, which is probably why they closed it. The "wall ride" at 4:26 also appears like a design error to me, because the angle doesn't lead into the turn, but probably lands you in the grass if you take it at speed. Not sure about it, but that's what it looks like on the video. Likewise the turn at 5:21... the switchback forces you to brake and loose momentum... weird. Why not put a berm there rather than at 4:43? The rollers starting at 6:51 are promising a lot of fun and I am sure you could work up some good speed by pumping, but you probably have to brake again when you reach the end. Anyway, it's an interesting clip, thanks again for uploading.

Cheers, CM-Expat

Edited July 8, 2015 by chiangmaiexpat

[moonoi]

Thanks, @moonoi, for the video. I have to be honest and say that it looks a little less exciting than I hoped for, but I'd still like to try it out. The long blue line at the beginning looks a bit boring unless you're on a track bicycle. The bumps starting at 3:21 look like one could get some decent air with gravity-assisted acceleration. The drop at 3:59 is utterly weird and stands out considering the overall level of difficulty, which is probably why they closed it. The "wall ride" at 4:26 also appears like a design error to me, because the angle doesn't lead into the turn, but probably lands you in the grass if you take it at speed. Not sure about it, but that's what it looks like on the video. Likewise the turn at 5:21... the switchback forces you to brake and loose momentum... weird. Why not put a berm there rather than at 4:43? The rollers starting at 6:51 are promising a lot of fun and I am sure you could work up some good speed by pumping, but you probably have to brake again when you reach the end. Anyway, it's an interesting clip, thanks again for uploading.

Cheers, CM-Expat

The blue track is supposed to be for road bikes/track bikes and to use for a bit of recovery between laps of the "MTB" course.

Agree about the "wall ride" no matter how I tried to approach it, I couldn't work out how to use it without crashing, thought it might just be me, as I'm something of a novice to mountain biking.

They told me the drop is there for more advanced riders, but it's closed most of the time. In time they will be running skills courses as well, which was the other reason for it being there.

The rollers are a lot of fun, but you've identified the exact problem with them, they are too close to the turn and should have been installed further back so out can carry the speed instead of having to slam to brakes on to make the turn.

Overall I enjoyed it though, I plan to swap between here and the Club 11 Army MTB track a few kilometers away to keep things interesting in the city ;-)

[chiangmaiexpat]

They told me the drop is there for more advanced riders, but it's closed most of the time. In time they will be running skills courses as well, which was the other reason for it being there.

Even for an advanced rider this drop isn't small and considering the concrete and almost flat landing, there are harsh penalties for casing it.

Looks to me like the designers do not have much experience with track design, for example, the northshore sections aren't inclined in the turns, which again means unnecessary braking.

On the positive side, I like that they made the northshore wider and fenced it so that inexperienced riders can use them.

I hope they will continue to maintain and develop it.

Cheers, CM-Expat

[moonoi]

Bicycle Thailand just posted an updated review of the bike park http://bicyclethailand.com/peppermint-bike-park/p