Australian Mountain Bike 151

Rider: Shane Wode Photographer: Sean Lee In late October many of Australia’s downhillers flocked to Bali for the Asia Pacific Downhill Championships. There’s always time to kill, and Sean Lee capture Shane Wode at play, riding a wall near where they were staying in a town called Padung Bai. Rider: Chris Panozzo Photographer: Damian Breach Chris Panozzo drops into the upper rock chute of Juggernaut, at Hollybank Mountain Bike Park, just outside of Launceston. The trail offers something for everyone, with double black diamond line choices and plenty of optional gaps to hit! It’s also one of the longer continually descending man-made mountain bike trails around. Don’t miss it if you head to Tasmania.…

It is not big news that mountain biking is increasingly about what you want it to be, not about your speed down the hill, or around a course. What’s really important about that is deciding what mountain biking is for you, and what it means to you. If you’re out riding on your local trails, chances are that plenty of people will have an opinion about what bike you are riding, or what equipment you are using. As mountain bikers, we are also likely to judge another rider by their bike, their helmet or their clothing. One rider might dismiss another’s technical ability due to their preference of bib shorts and jersey. And some riders might not consider a rider in board shorts and singlet might be able to ride…

While the UCI scratch their heads and the Enduro World Series (EWS) continues to grow, Mountain Bike Australia (MTBA) ensured there was an Australian Gravity Enduro Championship held, with official National Titles being rewarded after a weekend of racing in Tropical North Queensland. The Enduro discipline, also known as Gravity Enduro, has been Mountain Biking’s fastest growing competitive category in recent years. Plenty of mountain bikers favour the format’s similarity to getting out and mountain biking – surviving the climbs, and letting it all out on the descents. The event ran over 17-18 October in beautiful Palm Cove, with a transition ride taking riders to race stages at the iconic Smithfield Mountain Bike park, the venue of the 2014 and 2016 Mountain Bike World Cups. While competition was fierce for…

Falls Creek have launched the latest stage of trails in late November, and their cross country singletrack will increase from five trails to 12 trails – with the majority of these being blue (intermediate) cross country. A few have All Mountain features and there will be some entry level green trails as well. All up the network to date will offer a brilliant experience for those familiar with the area as well as for those starting out. With a great outlook, ready access to backcountry trails and an increasing singletrack network, Falls Creek is a great place to head this summer. Fallscreek.com.au/mtb…

In late October, the 21st Crocodile Trophy ran from Cairns to Port Douglas – the long way – taking in many of the great trails in Tropical North Queensland. In 2015, the elite men’s field was well stacked, featuring many national marathon champions, including our own Brendan Johnston. Over 9 days of racing, the Swiss professional Urs Huber proved he was the strongest, winning all but two stages, and taking the overall title. Having won in 2009 and 2010, Huber visited to experience the race and how much it has evolved in the past few years with shorter, more technical stages and a UCI S1 ranking. “I’m really happy about my third victory at the Crocodile Trophy. This race has changed so much since I won it last in 2009…

For the third year running we are sponsoring Rocky Trail's marathon opener for the year – the AMB100. Running on 14th February at Mt Stromlo, it's a perfect date for those that love singletrack, love mountain biking, and love a challenge. The course for the AMB100 is approximately 30km of Mt Stromlo's finest trails, hand selected by Martin Wisata in the week before the event, depending on trail conditions. It's one of the only opportunities you get to race so many of the great trails at Mt Stromlo in such a large event. There are 1, 2, 3 and 5 lap options of the race, with the 5 lap '100 mile' starting at 5am so racers can finish before the heat of the midday sun. Jason English has already shown…