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    Greece

    The Best Mountain Bike Location You Have NEVER Heard Of



    Rich Payne heads to Athens, Greece, to discover a side of the city that tourists rarely see: a world-class mountain bike playground just minutes from the Acropolis. From the marble steps of the Panathenaic Stadium to the rugged, technical singletrack of Mount Imitos, this 40km loop blends 5th-century history with modern-day shredding.

    ⏱ Timestamps ⏱
    00:00 – Intro: Athens, the Cradle of MTB?
    01:24 – Starting at the Acropolis
    02:23 – The Marble Olympic Stadium
    03:41 – Climbing Mount Imitos
    06:43 – Hidden Jump Heaven
    08:10 – Exploring the 11th Century Monastery
    11:13 – Natural Greek Singletrack
    14:15 – The Ultimate Post-Ride Greek Feast

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    Athens really surprised us with how quickly you can go from the city center to absolute wilderness! If you could ride your bike through any ancient city in the world, where would you go next? Let us know in the comments! 👇

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    View 45 Comments

    45 Comments

    1. @gmbn on

      Athens really surprised us with how quickly you can go from the city center to absolute wilderness! If you could ride your bike through any ancient city in the world, where would you go next? Let us know in the comments! 👇

    2. @georgios3298 on

      Mountain Hymettus is very easy to access by athenians. Hikers visit its designated trails every weekend. These are trails for hiking, not to be used by mt bikers. Be extremely careful! Laws do exist.

    5. @TexoFlashbacksDK on

      Wow! First ride on Imittos and you shredded one of Athens’ most technical dh trails??? 😁
      Thanks for visiting our country. Please stay some longer and ride mt. Parnitha as well, way larger with loads of long trails.

    10. @georgeg.5779 on

      I started my adult cycling 20yrs ago in the trails of Imittos and Parnitha. Unfortunately most of Parnitha has been destroyed by fires. Also huge sections of Imittos as well in order to build houses. Like most stuff in Greece, trail access in unorganized. These downhill trails are multiuse trails. In Parnitha we were struggling with enduro bikers riding illegally on trails. That being said these trails are beautiful and technical. Hope Kessariani area doeant get burned as well.

    22. @algirdasstrioga9249 on

      Got me so stoked, this kind of approach feels true, thanks for sharing it with the world, respect! It would be so incredible to do similar video in my home town Vilnius, Lithuania. It`s another Europe's hidden gem! Best city of the Baltic region – Spring, Summer, Autumn, its a perfect here, unique culture, peace, greenness, lakes, forests, hills, trails, unique vibrance… let`s @emtb_vilnius maybe?

    24. @VictorElGreco on

      Thank you kindly for visiting my hometown! My family has lived on the foothills of Imittós for 5 generations. In fact, I ride the very same trails you took each and every time I’m in town. 🇬🇷😍

    25. @DGU_27 on

      Greece is great for riding, but the terrain is really rough. I ride XC bikes, with fast tires, and it's far from ideal.

    27. @mechgranical2422 on

      @gmbn
      It's a pleasure to see you riding in Greece!!!. After your experience riding in Ymitous mountain what full sus bike travel do you believe its perfect ? Did you feel with your bike that you would like to have a little more travel? And what bike do you use?
      Thanks for visiting Greece!!!!

    28. @tsops22 on

      Rich and GMBN, thank you for being so respectful, warm and generous in my country’s history, culture and hidden gems through your channel.

      I live in the UK (Surrey) for the past 15 years and thoroughly enjoy our trails and quiet roads for cycling. But Greece and Athens is a whole different ballgame. Man, the fun you can have with all these hidden trails bundled with all the history (and food!) you can eat, is absolutely mind boggling.

      I visit Greece frequently and enjoy all of them (MTB, Gravel and road). I am so lucky to have UK and Greece available to me to still ride in my 50s.

      Thank you all, more content like this please! 🙏👏🙌🤛

    31. @michaelpapadopoulos4957 on

      Great video – thanks for being so respectful and objective.
      Athens is built in a basin (called Lekanopedio) surrounded by 4 mountains: Ymittos, Penteli, Parnitha, and Egaleo.
      Besides turtles you (most possibly) will see foxes, hawks of many kinds, wild boars, deers and wolves and also springs, streams, small waterfalls, caves, you name it!
      Imagine the fun and the infrastructure we could have if outdoors was a popular thing for Greeks. Anyway, lots of trail running, hiking and MTB happen for few of us.
      For me Ymittos is my trail running backyard.
      Come back any time of the year especially spring.

    34. @XeseKaiPese on

      Thanks for the video mate! As a Greek(cyclist) that left the country for a better life this made me emotional😭
      Ps I was a bit scared when I saw you in traffic 😂

    35. @Lizard7AR on

      Remember that in July & August the most trails in Athens are closed when it’s to hot 🥵🥵🥵🥵 because of the fear of fire 🔥🔥🔥🔥 best time on Spring or Autumn 🤟🏽🫶🏽🚵🏽 shred the trails 🫶🏽🤟🏽🚵🏽

    40. @GiorgosLiapis-k8e on

      Hello!!! Great video! But I think you should talk with a professional mountain biking guide here in Greece like Blessed Peaks! Because there are more and better trails and mountains in Athens!Maybe next time!

    41. @hurricane1641 on

      Thanks for this video, GMBN – very enjoyable! I love walking around up there but this video has inspired me to leave my roadie behind on the next trip and take my hardtail.

    44. @bertkreft9689 on

      Great video. Good mix between MTB action and culture. Many of us enjoy both together. Very interesting monastir.

      9:13 You are judged by those who know. It is better to take off the hat in church. 🤷‍♀️

    45. @kennethcampbell7263 on

      I believe the GOC also used the 1896 stadium in 2004, when Athens held the modern Olympic Games, for only the second time. Which is where the Olympic Rings came from, as they were not used to represent the five inhabited continents, the nations of which, and now many island nations, sent athletes to participate in the Olympics until the 1920 Antwerp games. The Berlin 1916 games, which would have been their first presentation, were cancelled due to WW1. With less clothing than Male swimmers today. I have to ask that about Kiwi Fruits in New Zealand being just fruit.

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