Hey, back from Beechworth. Managed three rides. First one was Wed. arvo about an hour after we arrived. Sent the kids and wife to the pool, i went for a ride. Probably a mistake as it was 35 degrees up there and very dry. Managed to get lost down the back side "extra loop" Spent 1 1/2 hrs trying to get back to the car. Managed to drink 3 litres of water in that time. Dont think I've ever sweated that much before. Actually felt rather dizzy and dehydrated once I finally got back. Was a good intro though and it was a good lesson on where to explore and where not to. Did around 11 kms and apart from the extreme heat and the getting lost part, was alot of fun. Very rocky and technical in alot of parts with good flowy sections.
Thursday morning went out early, alot cooler and the family was still in bed. Felt much better and with a bit of "local" knowledge
had a ball ripping up the tracks. Did quite a few laps of the same area and mixed in a bit of the downhill tracks as well. Got more and more confident with the terrain. Spent around 1 1/2 hrs again but this time covered alot more distance and had alot more fun. Cleared alot of rocky sections that I had trouble with the day before. Ended up having to go back as the wife wanted to drive to Bright, Hotham and Buffalo for a bit of a road trip. Could have spent alot more time there as i was feeling quite good. Did get in trouble as it was, as i got back a bit later than i had said and they were waiting for me.:madmax:
A bit of sweet talking and the fact that I didnt complain too much about the epic journey the day before, got me another leave pass for this morning before we had to check out at 10am. I did have to be back by 8am though, to help pack, so i headed out early. Great weather again and nice, crisp morning air. Spent another hour or so, enjoying the many flowing tracks and tricky rocky sections.
Overall, fantastic trails. Very quiet though. No other cars in the carpark and nobody else seen on the tracks. Good and bad I suppose. The freeride section seemed in need of a bit of maintenance, with many of the manmade bits needing repair. I may have missed alot of those sections though. The jumps track was fun, but I'm a bit of a girl when it comes to those big jumps and berms. Did get a little air, but wasnt going too hard. If you like rocks, Beechworth is the place for you.
I have taken a few of those dodgy videos which i will try to post up soon. Being a bit more flowy with a few less tight corners seems to have improved the quality in some sections, but dont expect too much.
Cheers
