Five new Buller mountain bike trails

Mt Buller unveiled five new single-track mountain bike trails last Friday as the progressive opening of the mountain biking season got underway. The trio of new gravity trails – Alley Way, Bombs Away and Danger Zone – run parallel to one another and unlock a superb pocket of the resort area, with undulating and twisty riding through stunning tall mountain ash forest taking riders down to the Mt Buller Tourist Road. The two cross-country trails – Delatite River Trail Link and Woolybutt Extension – add five kilometres of friendly riding and, importantly, better connect existing trails to provide a seamless riding experience. Alpine Resorts Victoria head of resort assets and operations Melanie Vonblanckensee spoke at the project opening, thanking organisers for months of work and celebrating the opening with Mt Buller staff and a small group of excited local riders. Mansfield Shire CEO Kirsten Alexander and Nicole Nye from the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions joined the celebrations, with resort operations manager David McCoombe cutting the ribbon and inviting riders to take the new trails for a test run. Ms Vonblanckensee said the five new trails connected existing riding networks, improving the trail system and providing more opportunities for every kind of rider. “This isn’t just about adding kilometres to the network – these new trails fill in some important missing links,” she said. “The downhill trails build on the existing gravity network, giving riders a full day of gravity riding as well as filling in the missing pieces in what is now a four-hour riding loop that starts and finishes in the Mt Buller Village. “They also improve the experience for both advanced and novice riders and families, while creating more opportunities for schools and events. “This is another step in supporting Mt Buller to become a year-round destination. “Mountain biking is a key motivator for the approximately 100,000 visitors we welcome to Mt Buller over the green season.” The new trails were funded through the Victorian Government’s Regional Tourism Investment Fund and delivered in partnership with Alpine Resorts Victoria, which also contributed to the project and delivered the works. Mt Buller resort operations manager David McCoombe oversaw the project delivery and said he was thrilled with the extended trail network. “Riders are going to love how these new trails allow them to truly ride the full vertical of the mountain from the top of Spurs on the gravity trails, link onto these new tracks and then continue across the Mt Buller Road down to Delatite River Trail and all the way to the valley floor,” he said. Mountain bike season at Mt Buller opened last weekend with a progressive opening of trails. The full network opens on Saturday 5 December, with shuttling services and mountain bike uplift on the Northside Express Chairlift every weekend from 5 December to Easter Sunday.