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Thredbo Mtb Plan Under Threat?


macca_chris's picture

By macca_chris - Posted on 02 March 2014

Clearly people dont realise how low-impact a well built trail can be, and just to prove their point, they want to put in shared single track between walkers and riders... that will end well...

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/get-off-your-mountain-...

Rob's picture

Yes, because it would be so much fun riding on this (which before you ask, is a walking path to Mt Kosciuszko):

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/46616337

pharmaboy's picture

The above is no fun for walkers either - how you experience nature walking on a metal path just above the ground is beyond me.

As to sharing tracks - nearly all tracks I ride, I share with walkers who are invariably great people and say hello back. Having seen how busy that track at kozi gets, you are going to be riding at 15kmh tops.

macca_chris's picture

exactly! I have no problem with shared tracks mostly, but if they want to put in shared tracks which are both going to be busy with walkers as the snowy mountains is, and appease mountain bikers, there are going to be some serious accidents

Lach's picture

... with mtb tracks there are always going to be huge areas that can only be accessed by NPA types on foot. That's great for them, but now they don't even want to share the little bits in which NPWS are prepared to allow some mtb development.

Selfish stuff, and ignoring completely that all the tracks (walking, mtb and maintenance trails) around Thredbo are built in the middle of an environment that has been decimated to provide facilities for skiing. Hopefully the NPWS will ignore the NPA in this case.

The new shared use track being built between Thredbo and Lake Crackenback is a little different. It does follow a valley that has a major road and a power line corridor (with various bits of fire trail access), so it is not exactly pristine wilderness, but it does go where no tracks (largely) have gone before. I haven't seen it yet, but understand there is a lot of crushed gravel surface and that, while scenic, it will probably not have much appeal for the riders that go to Thredbo for the DH and Flow tracks (particularly if they don't have a shuttle back up to Thredbo - but the same goes for walkers). It will be an interesting test of how well a shared use track works in that sort of environment.

pharmaboy's picture

There doesn't need to be accidents, surely there isn't a need to make it a designated cycling track, just remove the restriction.

I was up there pin the new year, and just wanted to ride upto the hut and some of the snow with my son. We started riding along and missed the first sign ( well, I'm assuming there was one), but when I got to the first set of stairs I asked someone.

we have to get along, and start seeing bikes as a relaxing form of transport not a racing machine. Segregation gets us nowhere

Speed limit of 20, and giveaway to pedestrians complete with $400 fine at discretion of ranger - sorta like a no dickhead policy and all will be fine

mudgee's picture

When NPWS were developing their mountain bike strategy, these guys criticized NPWS of bias in the consultation process because the facilitator was both a bushwalker and mountain biker.

They forced NPWS to redo the consultations around the state with a 'neutral' facilitator (of their choosing).

Then they didn't bother showing up to most of the repeat consultations around the state, forcing NPWS to cancel most of them due to lack of interest. (Ironically, most of the rsvp's received were from mountain bikers)

If they had something to say then they had their opportunity when the strategy was being drawn up. They wasted the NPWS's limited time, budget and resources then and seem to be doing the same now.

What became evident from that exercise was that neither the NPA or The Cooling Foundation represent the views of many people. Certainly not many people who are willing to be helpful to NPWS.

bikemad's picture

is even worse,there is no were to ride other than fire roads.I manage a lodge in perisher valley and we attempted to open a few summers ago but as there is bugger all to do up there in summer,we couldnt go ahead.Ive been up there in summer and many of the walks would be great to ride,and see barely any foot traffic but heaven forbid you should ride these deserted paths!

macca_chris's picture

Are the fire trail rides around perisher any good? Was considering them a while ago, and I might go down in april so that might be on the plans

Rob's picture

Hey - don't knock riding on fire trails in the Snowies... it's ages ago now, but we had some good times there. Check out the gallery:

http://nobmob.com/node/3749/gallery

This stuff is just awesome:

Cascade Trail

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