The MTB centers They are free access spaces prepared for the practice of mountain biking (MTB or Mountain Bike) that have a network of signposted routes and a series of equipment and support services complementary to the use of the bicycle.
Generally, there is a tacit agreement that MTB Centers must have at least 100 kilometers of marked routes classified by levels. These levels usually use a color system like on the slopes of ski resorts.
They must have a reception point with the following services: map of all the routes, technical information on the routes, bicycle washing point, bicycle parking area, workshop space, changing rooms, toilets and showers.
BTT centers are created as infrastructures capable of attracting bicycle tourism and generate sustainable economic activity in the area of ​​influence. However, the reality today in Spain is not always that. There are centers that function and generate economic activity in their surroundings and many others do not.

There are currently 56 MTB Centers in Spain, a wide range of routes spread across a good part of the country.

There is no common standard that defines BTT Centers (the following is offered as an example: existing standard in Portugal managed by the Portuguese Cycling Federation (FPC)) and it is the management of the BTT Centers itself that determines, in most cases, the success of the projects.
In short, what is really important is that mountain bike centers perform various functions, both to attract tourists and to satisfy the needs of the local population: practicing sports, contact with nature, enhancing local resources, improving accessibility to the resources considered convenient, recovery of traditional paths, collaboration with the sustainability of the territory, etc.
In our country it is IMBA Spain which has the capacity to approve BTT Centers.

“Imba Spain is the assignee of the signaling system designed and registered by the French Cycling Federation (FFC), through the agreement signed by both parties in November 2007, so it is the recognized entity to carry out the implementation, signaling and homologation. and certification of BTT centers that may be established in Spain.”
The French Cycling Federation is the creator of the MTB Centers and establishes the difficulty and signage criteria. These are available in their technical materials: “Classification and balisage of VTT parks"
An important debate concerns the need for trails to be marked or not. A current of opinion is becoming stronger about the excess of marks in the natural environment and whether it makes sense, in a time like the current one, to continue carrying signals into nature when many users use tools such as GPS or smartphones equipped with GPS. where the routes to be taken lead (which are regularly shared on internet platforms, such as wikiloc, which offer great freedom, independence and security for users).

In fact, one of the best BTT Centers in the country, which has led the ranking of BTT Centers prepared by Wibikes, for several years, and which after losing the lead in 2014, has regained it again in 2015, has only a part of the marked routes and many more routes available to download on GPS, the Zero Zone BTT Center an exemplary proposal for how it was created and how dynamic its management has always been.

From here we want to thank and congratulate Wibikes for their excellent work, their blog is an inexhaustible source of information, thank you.
Furthermore, marked routes always face the great difficulties of maintenance and how to reduce the impact of vandalism, which means that it is very difficult to guarantee the continuity of many of the itineraries.

The MTB Centers: Without a doubt a great contribution to the development of bicycle tourism in our country.

A abrazo.