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New to Australia
Hi, I've just moved to Sydney three weeks ago and currently living in Manly. I'm keen to get involved in mountain biking over here but pretty un-fit at the moment so might need to ease into it. Can anyone recommend a group I could join for a first ride around manly Dam or any other good spot?
Cheers
Anne
[Mod. moved to Northern Beaches]
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Uuh, how about this web site and joining one of social rides?
plenty of friendly people on this site who would be happy for you to join their rides,check out the rides page!
TH which here we call Terrey Hills & maybe do Duckholes & Centre or if you want too maybe Perimeter & Long track which is the easiest of them all no technical stuff there just fire trails
As the guys have said, join a ride or post a ride. It is a bit strange riding with people you don't know or have never met (I am fairly new to this) but once you do there are some really nice people out there to ride with.
I will probably be going around the dam mid week once we have daylight saving so you are more than welcome to join me, otherwise I will be riding locally (Northern Beaches) the weekend after next.
I wouldn't recommend Manly Dam as an introductory ride if you're just new into mountain bikes. It is rated as "intermediate" and is in pretty rough condition due to lack of maintenance, reflected in the unusually high accident rate we're seeing at the moment.
I'd suggest something a little less technical. I'll be posting a newby ride for Saturday afternoon for one of these Terrey Hills trails shortly, for some friends who've just started riding. You are welcome to join and a lift can be arranged if you don't have access to a car.
There are nice views to take in, and there will be regular stops for the less fit to catch up. We operate on a "leave no-one behind" principle.
Duck Holes + Centre track loop is about 15km and takes about an hour for the fit, an hour and a half for the beginner. Perimiter + Long is an out-and-back that is 22km and about 2 hours for the beginner.
Thanks for the advice,
I get how this site works now although I'm still unsure about the location of alot of these rides and not having a car yet makes it a little tricky to get around.
I'm not a complete beginner, I've been riding for about six years and pretty comfortable with the technical stuff, I'm just very unfit.
Thanks for the invitation to the Terrey Hills ride, I would be able to make this Saturday unfortunately but def keen another time!
Cheers
Anne
Hi Annie, and welcome to Sydney,
Check out www.wsmtb.com You would be more than welcome at any of our club races. All ages and experience levels are catered for. Contact me at xc@wsmtb if you wish
Ray Rice
XC VP WSMTB
If you have Google Earth installed on your computer you should have a look at the NoBMoB Master KML, it has all the mapped trails available on the NoBMoB ride database and a very handy tool for someone looking for where to ride.
If you don't have Google Earth you can view each ride on the rides page and use the Map tab to view the trail on a map. This is the Manly Dam map page.
With a user account (if you have your address entered) you can click "Directions there." on the ride page and it will take you to full driving directions to that particular ride on Google Maps (For example this one from Ultimo to Manly Dam).
Not having a car would make it tricky, but Northern Beaches has loads to offer without much need for long journeys.
See you out there!