South West Life

Some time back we looked at the Mt Lennard mountain bike trail, and talked about the chance to get out in the bush, and experience some of the south west in some healthy and pretty exciting ways.

Mountain biking hasn’t got to be any less fun, and we’ve found some more ways to get some great times from it.  There’s a track system in Wellington Mill, maintained by the South West Mountain Bike Club, that regularly hosts downhill meets.  We went there last week to see what was going on, and found some serious sport occurring.  

Downhill racing is a subset of mountain biking, these people are (mostly) on machines specifically designed to travel down ridiculously steep and narrow tracks, and to get plenty airborne when the opportunity arises.  If one of the measures of good sport is excitement, or even danger, this has it in huge, fat dollops.  Watching training day I saw one young bloke come unstuck at the end of a run and break a collarbone, but the skills demonstrated all over the shop showed that riders everywhere were getting some big jumps done and landing them safely.  It’s also pleasing to see that protective gear is completely normal and worn absolutely everywhere, it’s not something you avoid if you want to look cool.

Practice day was good to be at.  I spoke with a number of parents who had brought their kids up for the weekend and were shuttling to the top, then sitting and waiting for the arrivals.  Parents were pleased to see that youngsters were competing (sometimes on an even footing) alongside much older athletes and were taken seriously by those older players.  Sport’s always got a social component and this isn’t any different.  Serious mountain bikers are learning to deal with adults and being treated as real contributors in the sport.  

The track system is maintained by the club themselves, under direction from the Department of Environment and Conservation.  It’s great to be able to say something really positive about a government department, and this time I can, the club says they’re great to work with.  Parents again were happy with this process.  Their kids are seeing that resources like this pretty cool track system, on a great chunk of hillside, don’t just appear, they come out on club work days and put in some energy to make something happen because they want it to.  The sense of responsibility and contribution from this is pushed as a plus to me a number of times.

Then race day arrived.  Two clubs were responsible for this comp, as they are for many of the Wellington Mills events.  South West Mountain Bike Club has done a lot to make things happen at the track, but numbers for a good day’s competition and assistance with lots of equipment like, say, the timing gear, are added to the mix by the Peel District Mountain Bike Club.  With personnel, gear and vehicles on site from both clubs, it’s a vibrant event.  A total of 178 people had competed in the six meet series until the day, and the hope was that the numbers would edge past the 200 mark for a year.

Hammering downhill we saw riders both male and female from under 13s through to the (over 40) masters class.  All levels of skill are catered for, including the sport class, which is essentially for beginners.  The speeds for the different classes were evident, with beginners looking quite leisurely when compared to the elite guys getting massive amounts of air.  The cheers and laughter when the willing parted company with the track was a welcome sign.  Laughter means someone is muddy and embarrassed, but there’s no need for the ambulance.  The competition is only going to be won by those willing to push hard, so there was laughter aplenty on the day.

I’m partial myself to mountain biking, but this is a new level for me.  It’s a great day and there’s a community that has formed around it, as you’d expect.  People are out having a bunch of fun, and working to make sure it’s going as it should.  Even the government’s being helpful.  And if you were there on practice day, looking after the guy who went too hard and needed to lie down in the shade after his run, thanks a lot.

Contacts:
South West Mountain Bike Club – www.swmtbc.asn.au
Peel District Mountain Bike Club – www.pdmbc.com

Photos by Jesse Roberts