Expanding the Global ITRS Network: New Certified Trail Raters Trained in Visp

An International Gathering in the Swiss Alps

From May 20–23, 2025, the picturesque alpine town of Visp, Switzerland once again hosted a key moment in the evolution of mountain biking trail management: the latest ITRS Level 3 (CTR – Certified Trail Rater) training. This four-day intensive session brought together eight experienced professionals from across Switzerland, Spain, Czech Republic, the United States and Canada—marking the first time North American participants joined the Certified Trail Rater ranks.

A Diverse and Experienced Cohort

This cohort, comprised of trail builders, bike park managers, consultants working with public administrations, and professional bike guides, dove deep into the principles and practice of the International Trail Rating System (ITRS). With the completion of this training, the ITRS community now counts 31 Certified Trail Raters from 10 countries in Europe and North America, including Canada, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the USA.

Participants tackled a comprehensive curriculum designed to build both technical understanding and practical expertise. The training featured a strong emphasis on real-world trail evaluation, using a variety of alpine routes around Visp that showcased a mix of technical difficulty and exposure—ideal terrain to apply the ITRS framework in diverse conditions.

Thanks to Thömus AG, attendees had access to high-end e-bikes that made navigating the alpine trails efficient and enjoyable, while also ensuring more time on the trails to create accurate assessments of trail experience and difficulty. As with previous sessions, the group provided valuable feedback to the ITRS team, helping further refine the training structure and evaluation criteria used during the certification exam.

The ITRS Trail Rating App (now available only in beta for CTRs) has yet again proven itself as an invaluable tool to help streamline data collection and trail assessment in the field assisting professionals ensuring high quality and consistent trail assessment.

Exam and Certification Outlook

The exam, held on the final day, evaluates the candidate’s ability to consistently apply ITRS methodology in the field. While the full review process is still ongoing, early impressions suggest all participants are on track to become fully certified CTRs—a testament to the quality and dedication of this international group.

Beyond the training, the real journey for these future CTRs begins now. As ambassadors of the ITRS methodology, they’ll contribute to building a more standardized, safe, and transparent trail experience for mountain bikers around the world. The ITRS Management Consortium has already received growing interest from organizations in other regions keen to host future training sessions, with potential new editions under discussion for late 2025 and early 2026.

With momentum building and a global community taking shape, the ITRS continues to establish itself as the go-to standard for trail difficulty rating. This latest training session in Visp not only underscores the system’s international appeal, but also highlights the collaborative spirit driving this new profession forward.

Quote from Yari Alpizar, participant of the training course.

Trail rating is a subjective and problematic issue, maybe the worst one to deal with. As Trailforks user, country admin and platform ambassador, and more importantly, as trail advocate, I can certainly say that this is one of the biggest issues, if not the biggest one, when talking with riders, riding destinations managers and land managers. So when I had the chance to go through a whole week of training to get certified on this ITRS standard and get first hand details from the creators and experts, I didn’t hesitate once and book it. It was an eye opening week, not just getting to know how to rate trails consistently and accurately but also leaving all “if”, “I believe”, “I think” and other subjective situations that impede a proper objective evaluation based on numbers, degrees and facts. There were eight persons on the training, from all across the globe, Canada, Czech Republic , Spain, Switzerland and USA. It was a good opportunity to share our doubts, interests and similar questions and views about mountain biking and trail rating systems. And we realized that in the end, we all find ourselves in similar situations, with our own peculiarities but overall, facing similar challenges. Having a tool like the ITRS to help the mountain bike community to more accurately rate trails, is for sure a golden opportunity for us all and I look forward to implementing this system as fast as possible everywhere.

Interested in learning more or hiring a Certified Trail Rater?

Visit www.itrs.bike to learn more about the system, download for free the full documentation signing up to stay updated on future releases and training opportunities. You can also check out the dedicated CTR list page to find qualified professionals ready to help you in assessing your local trail network.