A Profile of Mountain Bikers and Their Experience the Context of Adventure Tourism in Bukit Kiara, Malaysia

Transcription

1 A Profile of Mountain Bikers and Their Experience the Context of Adventure Tourism in Bukit Kiara, Malaysia Nur Syuhada C. I. 2, Syamsul Herman M.A. 1, 2,*, Zaiton S. 1, 2, Ahmad S. 2, 3 and Nurul Hikmah Z. 2 1 Faculty of Forestry, Universiti Putra Malaysia, UPM Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia 2 Institute of Tropical Forestry and Forest Products, Putra Infoport, Universiti Putra Malaysia UPM Serdang Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia 3 Institute of Agricultural and Food Policy Studies, Putra Infoport, Universiti Putra Malaysia UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia * Corresponding author: syamsulhma@putra.upm.edu.my, syamsulherman@gmail.com Abstract The growth of the adventure tourism industry has corresponded to the variety of user background. Mountain biking has becoming a browing adventure recreation in Malaysia. Using Bukit Kiara as the study site, the paper intended to investigate the profile of mountain bikers. This paper presents the results from a series of surveys among 137 mountain bikers at Bukit Kiara. The paper describes bikers backgrounds and participation characteristics. The result shows that mean for age of bikers (Years), monthly income (Ringgit Malaysia), frequency of participation in 12 month (Times) and years of MTB participation (Years) were 33 years old, RM , 27 times and 5 years respectively. This research identifies some key findings and makes some recommendations for future research and management. Keywords: Adventure tourism and recreation, Mountain Biking, Bukit Kiara, off-road cycling, Cyclist profile.

2 1. Introduction Tourism is already recognized as a dominant industry with the influence to transform economies around the world (Goeldner & Ritchie, 2005; Gartner, 1996; WTO, 2004). Within the tourism industry, adventure tourism has been acknowledged as a growing sector (Loverseed, 1997; Ewert, 1989; Sung, Morrison, & O Leary, 1997). It is widely acknowledged that activity and adventure tourism is one of the fastest growing segments of niche/special interest tourism (Hall & Weiler 1992, Loverseed 1997, Shephard & Evans 2005, Swarbrooke et al. 2003, Visit Scotland 2007). When assessing in adventure tourism, it is necessary to refer to adventure recreation since the vast majority of studies accept adventure recreation as its integral part of it (Christiansen 1990; Hall 1989; Johnston 1992). According to Whiriskey and McCarthy (2006), adventure tourism is an outdoor leisure activity that generally takes place in an unusual, exotic, remote or wilderness setting, sometimes involving some form of unconventional means of transportation and tending to be associated with low or high levels of physical activity. Adventure tourism activity can be divided into three categories as presented in Table 1. Table 1: Activities/Services in Adventure Tourism Category WET HIGH FASTER Surfing Flying Archery Canoeing, touring, rental and expedition services Gliding Karting Kite surfing Paragliding Mountain biking and expeditions Wakeboarding Ballooning Paintballing Skateboarding Rock climbing Land boarding White-water rafting High rope Rallying Caving Micro lighting Water-skiing Zorbing Diving Windsurfing Kayaking Source: Whiriskey and McCarthy (2006) On the other hand, adventure tourism also can be divided into two types which were soft adventure tourism and hard adventure tourism (Sung, Morrison and O Leary, 1997). Table 2 shows the examples of soft and hard adventure tourism. Table 2: Examples of Soft and Hard Adventure Tourism. Soft Adventure Wilderness jeep safaris Supervised and escorted trekking Cycling holidays Sailing holidays Learning to surf and to windsurf Camping Source: Sung et al. (1997) Hard Adventure Climbing and mountaineering Long distance back country trekking Downhill mountain biking Paragliding Heli-skiing holidays Canoeing and kayaking

3 2. Mountain biking Mountain biking (MTB) is generally classified as an adventure tourism segment (Ewert 1987, Hall 1992, Pomrfet 2006, Sung et al. 1997). According to Mountain Bike Hall of Fame (2008) and Worland (2003), mountain biking is believed to have originated in Marin County, California and it is widely acknowledged that Gary Fisher and Joe Breeze were its original founders. MTB is defined as a type of cycling taken primarily on off-paved roads, purpose-built single track trails, fire roads, access roads and multipurpose trails (FCS, 2005). Mountain Bikers of Santa Cruz (2007) defined MTB as cycling that is focused primarily on off-road travel and it is an environmentally sustainable and quiet activity that gives the rider a physical and enjoyable outdoor experience. The following definition of mountain biking is derived from the report Exploring the Market Potential for Yukon Mountain Bike Tourism (2005): Mountain biking may best be described as a segment of cycling that is focused primarily on off-pavement travel. Mountain bikes are designed with wider tyres, a more upright position, and lower gearing than their on-pavement counterparts, and can accommodate a wide variety of riding surfaces, including pavement, gravel, rock and most soils Based on the report of Mountain Bike Tourism Market Profile for Tasmania (2008), MTB tourism emerged largely as a result of the motivation of dedicated mountain bikers to experience new terrain but the participation has grown to include travel for competition, festivals and skills training, as well as the incorporation of MTB into other commercial tourism activities. MTB encompasses four main sub-disciplines which are cross country, downhill, dirt jumping and free riding (IMBA, 2010). Cessford (1995) asserted that cross-country remains the most popular category as it involves riding in the backcountry with the emphasis on endurance and skill. For this type of MTB, riders use lightweight bikes, designed for different types of terrain and the rides, lasting a few hours or longer, include climbs, downhill parts, technically challenging sections and a range of landscape. He also discussed that downhill riders concentrate more on the risk factor, descending steep and rough terrain at speed using heavy bikes with long-haul suspension. For that reason, it is necessary for them to wear body armour and fullface helmets. Nowadays, MTB is increasingly contributing to adventure tourism sector, with global levels of participation, noting substantial growth over the past twenty years (IMBA & Shimano 2008, Koepke 2005, Mintel 2005). This is supported by results of a study carried out in the paper entitle Exploring the Market potential for Yukon Mountain Bike Tourism by Koepke (2005) where participation levels of MTB increase by over 400 per cent between 1987 and Mountain Bikers Profile MTB is a vigorous activity, require special skill, involve high initial cost for equipments and potential high risk. Because of these reasons, not everyone is suitable for this adventure recreation. Despite all, there are still people who are keen on this adventure activity. These people have their own unique characteristics compared to other type of recreation. There are a number of past studies on socio-demographic and profile of mountain bikers. Below is the mountain bikers demographics summarized from a number of Australian and international

4 sources (Mountain Bike Tourism Market Profile for Tasmania, 2008). The majority of experienced mountain bikers: are male (up to 80 or 90%). have tertiary level education, and come from professional or technical backgrounds. have high incomes (e.g. $50,000 and above). range in age from mid 20 s to mid 40 s, with a high percentage in the mid 30 s age group. ride once to 2 to 3 times per week The report concludes that the majority of mountain bikers have above average annual income, willing to travel for quality experiences, experienced and well educated. It is important for management to know the background of the users in a recreational area for the purpose of improving the facilities or to promote the area according to the groups of users. The profiling of mountain biker is used by management for planning of new facilities, managing existence treks and designing of cycling programmes. characteristic hills. Despite rapid housing and commercial development in the area, the area is still known as an enigmatic and exclusive area of Kuala Lumpur. The area was once a rubber estate until it was acquired by the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur in Currently, BK is under the jurisdiction of the National Landscape Department. The trails of Bukit Kiara have attained a somewhat exalted status among the mountain bikers in Kuala Lumpur. It also a popular recreational spot in the middle of the city widely visited during weekdays and weekends. It is currently being developed in stages to be the "Hyde Park of Kuala Lumpur". It is also famous for its natural trails and fresh air especially for avid jungle trekkers and mountain bikers. BK is one of a prominent mountain biking spot in Kuala Lumpur. BK is known its network of trails for cycling and trekking. The cycling trek in BK ranging from 7 to 15km and the area is also known as venue for MTB competition. This study aimed to describe the profile of the mountain bikers at Bukit Kiara (BK) The findings from this study can provide baseline information for management of Bukit Kiara to improve their facilities and events in the area. 4. Study Area The study took place at Bukit Kiara (BK) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. BK (formerly known as 'West Valley Park') located at residential area and it is a popular site for jogging and recreational activities to both residents and outsiders. Bukit Kiara has often been described as the 'green lung' of Kuala Lumpur, boasting many jungle trails through its Figure 1: Trails of Bukit Kiara. Retrieved October 9, from ails-of-bukit-kiara

5 5. Methodology Instruments are essential in acquiring information, analyzing data and recording the findings and therefore are imperative in any research work (Sulaiman, 2004). For this research, questionnaire survey was used and it was a self-administrated survey. The data for this research were obtained from a series of onsite surveys conducted at BK from April 2012 until June The target group for the survey was those who participate in Mountain Biking (MTB) and likely to be using tracks and facilities at BK. The survey was conducted by the researcher herself with the help of field assistants. Convenience sampling was applied and the sampling period was on Saturday and Sunday starting from 8.00 am to 3.00 pm. There is no prior information on the population of mountain bikers at BK. Hence, the sampling was based on the availability and willingness of mountain bikers to participate during the survey sessions. The total final count of the usable sample was 137. Data collected were analyzed using SPSS version Result and Discussion followed by 21 to 30 years old (27.7%) (n= 38) supported by the mean of years old with the maximum and minimum age were 56 years old and 16 years old respectively. This is consistent with the previous studies where most bikers were in their mid-20s to mid-40s (Green, 2003; Koepke, 2005; Reiter and Blahna, 2002). It was found that most of the bikers (62.8%), attained university or college education (n= 86). In another research, it was also found that mountain bikers were highly educated, with as many as two-thirds having at least college education (Koepke 2005, Reiter and Blahna 2002) while their incomes were consistently high (FCS 2005, Greens 2003, Koepke 2005, Reiter and Blahna 2002). This study shows that mountain bikers income was mostly in the range of RM5001 and above (29.2%) (n= 40) and supported by the mean of RM with the highest and lowest income were RM100, and RM respectively. Majority of them (89.1%) (n=122) were full time employee and it was identified by Reiter and Blahna (2002) that most of mountain bikers are fairly affluent, young to middle-aged professional. This section provides the results of this study. This section consist of two parts which were bikers socio- demographic profile and experience of bikers in MTB 6.1 Demographic and Socio-Economic Profile This section provides the results on sociodemographic of bikers as presented in Table 3. The study reveals that most of the bikers (97.1%) were male (n=133) while the remaining (2.9%) were female (n= 4). It is generally accepted that mountain bikers are predominantly male (Cessford, 1995; FCS, 2005; Green, 2003; Reiter and Blahna, 2002). In regards to mountain bikers age, most bikers (54.7%) were in the age group of 31 to 40 years old (n= 75)

6 Table 3: Socio-Demographic Characteristics Socio-demographic characteristics N % Gender Male Female Age group 20 and below to to to Over Education level Primary school Secondary school University/college Occupation Full Time Part Time Student Retired Income group RM1000 and below RM1001 to RM2001 to RM3001 to RM4001 to RM5001 and above the MTB is very active and this show BK used as MTB site is very high. Based on the mean (26.66 times) frequency of participation in one year, most of the bikers engaged in MTB activities almost every weekend of the year. Result of bikers experience is summarized in Table 4. Table 4: Experience of bikers in MTB Years of Riding a Mountain Bike n % 1 year and less Between 1-2 years Between 2-3 years Between 3-4 years Between 4-5 years More than 5 years Experience of Bikers in MTB Mountain biker experience was addressed directly by the number of years they had been riding mountain bikes and their usual number of hours spent riding at the BK. The study confers that most of the bikers (28.5%) had been participating in MTB for more than 5 years (Table 4). The average participation in MTB was found to be 5 years (Table 5). The result indicates that the bikers in BK were knowledgeable and have experience in MTB. Based on the results of this study, most of the MTB bikers are those experienced by the average years of involvement in MTB shown (5.10 years). Their involvement in

7 Table 5 shows the summary of the bikers socio-demographic characteristics statistics which consist of mean, standard deviation and median. Table 5: Bikers and Trip Characteristic Statistic Variable Age (Years) Monthly Income (RM) Frequency of participatio n in one year Years of MTB participatio n (Years) Mean Std. Deviation Median Variation in age and gender by experience Changes in rider age and gender did occur across different experience levels (Table 6). In age, the proportion of riders aged were the highest numbers (25 bikers) for participation more than 5 years. The table also shows that there was about 39 mountain bikers were participated in MTB more than 5 years which indicates that majority of the bikers were already experienced in MTB. Level of participation by women was indicated by their low proportion amongst all the mountain bikers which was only 4 female bikers. However, this may not reflect a stable pattern, as the activity is very new trend in this country. Table 6: Descriptive characteristics by Experience levels Profile Characteristics Age Category (Years) Gender 20 and Below 1 Year And Less Between 1-2 Years Years of Participation (Years) Between 2-3 Years Between 3-4 Years Between 4-5 Years More Than 5 Years Total to to to Over Male Female Total

8 7. Conclusion This study provided information on mountain bikers background and their participation characteristics at Bukit Kiara (BK). Based on the findings, most of the bikers are male, in the range of 31 to 40 years old and those of receiving university or college education with the high income. They were also experienced bikers as they have been involved in MTB for 5 years. They were also educated, full time working and they have their own experience in MTB. The information outlined in this paper will form the basis for the long term planning for management of the site especially for the management of BK in terms of management and planning for the future programmes or events. The information from this study can be an input for other study area such as economic valuation of the site, marketing strategies and also study about perception and expenditures of the mountain bikers at the site. 8. Research recommendations 1. Complementary studies of other mountain bikers would assist in the definition of different mountain biker categories and their setting and experience preferences. Consequently, the management of BK has to prioritize attracting a higher number of entry level markets to participate in mountain biking. 2. Research to identify trends of mountain biker characteristics, preferences and behavior in order to assist in prediction of mountain biker demand for settings and experiences in MTB. As regards to develop and improve facilities and services at BK, there is a need for management of BK offering various types of terrain and levels of difficulty, numerous trails and attractive setting. 3. The nature of hazard perceptions and the actual risks associated with mountain biking participation need to be investigated. This will help the management of the site (BK) identify where the real hazards occur.

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