The Summer of MTB

The Summer of MTB started infamously with a ride around Red Hill just before Christmas and yours truly going OTB on that bump at the bottom of the Rock Slide After a few days the swelling went down and I was back on the bike around some awesome trails in the Belrose Area that I've since found out I shouldn't have ridde.  I rode the Horse Track from the intersection of Forestway and Mona Vale Rd up to the St Ives Showground, twice but never found the way out the other side, when I do I will put a up a section on the site.  The Summer of MTB ramped up with my first trip to Old Man's Valley.

OLD MAN'S VALLEY - Hornsby, NSW

So apparently we weren't supposed to be riding Old Man's Valley, me and the 10 million other riders who came away totally stoked with what Synergy Trails have built in the small area.  A massive shout out to Hornsby Shire Council, SNORC and Synergy Trails for this trail Centre.  They have set the standard for future development in Sydney Metro and hopefully will provide some great learnings for the potential trails at Bare Creek in Belrose.

A few fire trails with a mate kept the wheels turning until after new year when the Summer of MTB went to a whole new level.

MT STROMLO - ACT

WOW .. I can see why people like this place!  We only had a couple of hours to ride so we started with Loop 2 (includes Skyline and The Luge).  A late start, scorching heat, 2 flat tyres and the boy going too hard on the luge - producing lots of claret - cut our session short.  But that was enough to cement in a return trip in the not too distant future.  (I accidentally deleted my video footage ... DAMN!)

JINDABYNE COMMUNITY TRAIL - NSW

I last rode the Jindabyne Community Trail in January 2012 and what a great job they did over winter converting this walking track into a well groomed MTB trail.  Rollers, banked corners, some really nice flowy sections and a groomed surface with the odd rock make this trail a must do.  It runs from Cobbon Street to the Dam giving access to the fantastic Mill Creek trails to the Tyrolean Village.

If you are a skier / snowboarder then pack your bike next winter or alternatively hire a bike from Sacred Ride. The Jindabyne Community Trail is relatively flat so its a great way to get the legs moving before or after skiing and its just a few minutes ride from the centre of town. 

Kitted up - out and back - showered and ready for skiing in under an hour.

BUNGARRA ALPINE CENTRE - Jindabyne, NSW

I can't say enough about the trails at Bungarra Alpine Centre, my only gripe is that they are not open every day so it can be difficult for visitors to experience these great trails.  It did become a lot easier this summer when they created a weekend pass that allowed visitors to ride from midday Friday until midday Monday for just $5. I took full advantage of that.  They have quite an amazing range of trail styles and difficulty levels in a relatively small area, plus a number of skills and pump tracks. Also some EXCELLENT beginner trails!

Pick of the trails were Copperhead Flow, Ridgeline Doubles, Emu's Run down through the Rollercoaster.  Speaking of Emu's, I had a little run in with a local .. watch this for a laugh!  Mountain bike vs Emu

LAKE CRACKENBACK RESORT AND SPA - Bullocks Flat, NSW (near Thredbo)

I rode here last winter and was super impressed with the Lake Crackenback Resort Loop.  This spring they upgraded their skills area and added a flow and pump track.  The boy and I spent 3 hours playing around in that park and it contributed to a massive improvement in my cornering skills.  There are a number of very worthy XC trail options in the Thredbo River Area, a great coffee shop (one of the best in the snowy) and the guys at the Activities Centre are good for a chat too! 

Lake Crackenback have a large number of hardtail mountain bikes for hire which are more than adequate for the trails around the Thredbo River.

Mt KOSCIUSZKO SUMMIT TRACK - The highest point you can ride a bike in Australia

The Mt Kosciuszko Summit Track is a dirt road, with 7.7km of water bars - on the way up there is one short descent of 500m the rest of the 7.2km is up hill .. no flat sections .. which means on the way back it's a 7.2km, water bar infused, loose gravel descent.  LOVED IT! LOVED IT LOVED IT LOVED IT!!  1+ hour up ... 13 minutes down.

Watch the Mt Kosciuszko Summit Track Descent video - I can't explain any better how much I enjoyed every aspect of this ride.

THREDBO RESORT - NSW

Too much to write to include in this article .. read it here.

IN SUMMARY

The Summer of MTB was awesome.  Hundreds of kms riding some great trails and probably the most exciting thing was the number of new trails and trail centres that have popped up in the last 12 months.

The only negative thing .. Day 1 - OTB - that fall broke my wrist and now the doc wants me to go see a specialist.

Comments: