Shadow Minister for Central Coast, David Harris, has ramped up his call for a Mountain Bike Plan of Management for the Central Coast by putting the matter on the State Government agenda for the next sitting of Parliament.
“I have been working with mountain bike groups for some time on developing a comprehensive Mountain Bike Plan of Management to capture the great opportunities that this sport presents, both economically and health wise,” he said.
“Mountain biking is one of the fastest and most popular family friendly lifestyle activities in the country.
“A world-class facility is being developed at Ourimbah State Forest by Central Coast Mountain Trail Bike Club, but designated facilities at places like Kincumba Mountain, around the Peninsula and in the northern coast are a must.
“The Coast must have a strategy that designates and highlights trails and tracks, allocates funding for infrastructure and identifies ways to attract riders to our area.”
Harris said developing a strategy could be a huge tourism boost for the region and he wants Central Coast Council to engage in “meaningful consultation” with the mountain bike community to explore the potential benefits.
Council started a Mountain Bike Feasibility Study in June 2019, with extensive community consultation, including 1,949 completed surveys as well as 25 targeted attendees over two face-to-face focus group discussions.
A detailed discussion paper has been prepared that presents the findings of the consultation, a review of the current locations for mountain biking on the Coast, a selection of case studies, site selection criteria, and a feasibility analysis including options and recommendations.
These will be reported to councillors by the end of October with a staff recommendation to publicly exhibit the discussion paper and undertake stage two community engagement in November.
At Council’s August 10 meeting, Deputy Mayor Jane Smith called for the establishment of a working group to consider options and potential for a dedicated mountain biking facility outside environmentally sensitive lands.
Councillors rejected Cr Smith’s Motion which effectively would have seen bikers excluded from riding in Coastal Open Space System (COSS) lands.
Cr Smith told fellow councillors that the environmental integrity of COSS lands, which were established 36 years ago by former Gosford Council in the face of community opposition, was under threat from damage inflicted by bikers.
She was backed by Cr Louise Greenaway, who said that while mountain bike riding was exhilarating, the sport was “death by a thousand cuts” for environmentally sensitive land.
“There is only so much the bush can tolerate,” she said.
Leif Arnebark, a representative of the Central Coast Mountain Trail Bike Club and a member of Central Coast Mountain Bike Trail Alliance, addressed councillors in the public forum preceding the meeting.
The club started about 20 years ago and manages Ourimbah Mountain Trail Bike Park in Ourimbah State Forest under a Forest Permit issued by Forestry Corporation of NSW.
Arnebark told councillors that the Coast was a perfect environment for mountain bikers yet had not one single metre of sanctioned mountain bike trail within its natural spaces.
He said the sport had no more environmental footprint than bushwalking and that the National Parks and Wildlife Service considered mountain bike trails to be an appropriate use of natural space.
“Residents and tourists who engage in active lifestyle pursuits within bushland grow to value that,” he said.
“It is time instead to focus on the positives that this amazing form of recreation offers.”
He said mountain bike riding was good for physical health, mental health, social interactions and conservation, and could potentially be an economic driver through ecotourism.
Arnebark said mountain biking essentially only occurred within environmental lands, with bushland being intrinsic to the sport.
“Removing mountain biking from the bush is like trying to remove surfing from the beach, one simply does not exist without the other,” he said.
He called instead for a mountain biking strategy with a formalised sustainable trail network.
Cr Bruce McLachlan said the Central Coast’s land had to be shared by the whole community and Cr Chris Holstein said that while he was a great supporter of COSS, he preferred to wait for the results of a feasibility study currently underway.
After lengthy debate, councillors voted to defer action pending the results of the Mountain Bike Feasibility Study which is expected to be ready for an October Council meeting.
Meanwhile, Police and National Parks and Wildlife Service have launched an investigation into a booby trap found on August 1 in Bouddi National Park which is thought to have been set to target mountain bike riders.
Scott Uzelac of Kincumber made the grisly discovery of a piece of wood holding a row of upright nails hidden beneath leaves on a popular trail in the park.
“We were halfway into the trail when one of my friends got a flat tyre.
“We didn’t think much of it at first, but when I headed back to the car to get some parts, I got a flat as well.
“We thought there might be a hidden tree root or something, so I started kicking the leaves around to see what it was, and my shoe hit what ended up being a nail.
“So, I got down on my knees and found a whole row of nails sticking up out of the ground attached to a piece of wood.
“It was a pretty scary find.
“I assume it was put there to stop mountain bikes.”
What made the situation even more alarming to the father of two was the fact that the trail is often used by family groups and bushwalkers as well as bike riders.
“If a runner had trodden on that, it would have gone through their foot,” Uzelac said.
Sue Murray