IMBA Australia

In SA, my nick name is the "Bowmaniac" and for numerous reasons which I will not go into here.

Working as a professional trail builder in SA since 2002, I was quite often asked to write articles about trail sustainability for the Bicycle SA newsletter. I have picked out some of my favourites for you.

DISCLAIMER:
These "Confessions" are colloquial and must be taken lightly, with good humour. Light reading with some philosophy thrown in. Enjoy.

Bowmaniac Philosophy: Profile of a Human Projectile

Way back in 2002, I was lucky enough to be involved in the Mawson Trail revamp along the Castambul Ridge. I think Martin Krieg was there working with me and a guy called Tim Burton for some of it. Anyway, we had been slowly working through the day, drilling through that rocky terrain to put in some new posts and attach the new signs. We had just finished for the day and were heading out through the top gate near Mawson Rd when I noticed there was a bunch of blokes getting ready for a mountain bike ride. One character in particular was interested to know what we were up to, as is often the case with folks along the trail. That’s how I met Brian George. We were chatting for a while about bikes and stuff; I was talking about some new single trails that might be happening as well as some upcoming public consultation that was a component of the State Mountain Bike Plan Foundation Trails. Brian was interested to know what that all meant for the Forest (Cudlee Creek Forest) and the kind of riding he and his mates did. So it was pretty clear that these guys were regular users of the Forest so they definitely needed to be consulted and I invited them to a meeting about the future of the bike trails with the local residents and government officials. As we were parting Brian said we had better come out for a ride sometime and that they rode every Thursday evening.

In the following month various correspondences were going backwards and forwards, but these guys sent some representatives to the meeting at Thomas Hill, which got heated on several occasions due to the potential impacts on local residents. However these guys, the Projectiles, were very interested in the Forest and keen to help up with some of the trail development and so forth. They therefore cemented their involvement in the project as legitimate stakeholders in what was to become Adelaide’s first purpose built single trails and mountain bike facilities. And trust me never underestimate a keen stakeholder.

When I eventually got out for a ride one Thursday evening, I was introduced to the concept of the “Human Projectile”. It was all kind of kooky, because some of these lads were on nice duallies and other’s where riding hardtails, with eclectic assortments of body armour. Crash Test Research pads were clearly evident. They were telling me that single trail was not really their gig and that their rides generally involved bolting down the Cudlee Creek forest fire tracks flat out. Fair enough, I was thinking, that’s kinda what I used to do before I became obsessed with single trail.

Anyway we headed out for the first run of the evening, to the top of a track, and I was quickly beginning to realise that the Human Projectiles had their own names for all their favourite runs. Cool stuff too like “The Guts” and “Bill Liddle” which are still on the trail map. However if I was to start detailing the Human Projectile jargon that is bantered around on the uphills, I would need to make a full text out of this article, so I will leave that for another time.

After a couple of runs I was really getting the taste for that “old school” adrenalin overdose that I had once been so accustomed to when I first started checking out Adelaide’s mountain bike potential. Admittedly I was not wearing armour, which I often refer to as “strap on confidence”, but these guys were fast. Really fast! In addition to their armour, specially prepared bikes and general insanity, these lads knew every corner like it was tattooed on the back of their hand. So much so that if you are riding around the Cudlee Creek Forest fire tracks and you see a defined line, you can be assured that the Human Projectiles are responsible for it. Needless to say I was left up the back of the pack choking on the dust and learning the hard way about those corners.

Essentially the Human Projectiles vary in age from the early thirties to the mid fifties. Most if not all of them live in the Adelaide Hills and have a slight mistrust of us flat-landers, but I never held that against them. They are family men with successful careers. Most of them also own motorbikes and all are completely fanatical about living life on two wheels. Apparently it all began in the early days of the 1990s, 91, maybe 92, but the first ride of the founding members has actually been clouded by the mists of time. Yet this means that this group of mates have been meeting every Thursday evening for last 15 years or more to get out into the Forest to hammer down the fire tracks as fast as possible. To catch up with their mates, get some fresh air and good exercise. And of course, finish with a cleansing ale and the mandatory counter meal at either the Uraidla or Scenic Hotel. Although the locations of these post ride meals are subject to change with notice if you are in the loop.

I have been out a few times since then with these guys and things have really progressed. Everybody is riding on high-end dual suspension rigs, with full-face masks and the team colours on their shirts. It’s a truly spectacular scene to see these guys riding in a pack of fifteen on a fire track, kicking up dust everywhere and racing shoulder to shoulder for the best line around the corners. Good humour and talk about the next away trip or the latest bike improvements are a staple for conversation on these rides. The Human Projectiles have always been hospitable and generous when I have visited and will welcome anyone along for a ride. Well almost anyone.

On thing that should be known about the Human Projectiles is that they have always acted as guardians of the Forest to a degree. Clearing fallen logs off of the forest roads and coming out to trail building days and the like. Given that most of these blokes are from tradesman backgrounds they have been interested in the concepts and construction of environmentally sustainable trails and have contributed to the design of some of the single trails in the network. Since those days the Human Projectiles have been liasing directly with ForestrySA and have helped with the upgrade and maintenance of the Thomas Hill Study Centre, which as you should know is a great asset for all users of the Forest.

In conclusion I would like to add that riding the fire roads with these lads is a real hoot. It’s a reminder of why I fell in love with mountain bike riding. It’s a glimpse of the origins mountain bike riding. And folks, this is what its all about for me. Meeting up with some friends, getting on the bikes, having a few laughs and having some good old-fashioned fun. Whether you are in the mud, sliding sideways and caked from head to toe or on the hard pack, with two wheels drifting into a line you didn’t think was possible until you tried it – the buzz is the same. If you have found yourself getting caught in the rut of analysing you heart rate, spending evenings carbo loading, replacing every part on you bike to lose a few grams, training everyday by yourself until your arse is nothing but callus, my friend you need help. I strongly recommend that you take off that lycra, just this once at least, drop you seat down and get back to your roots. What ever your bicycle fancy, just try to get back out there and do a loop that you haven’t down for a while with some riders who couldn’t give a rat’s arse about their training programme. Remind yourself why you got into this stuff and in the spirit of Richard Branson, “if it’s not fun anymore, why the hell are you doing it?”

Special thanks to the Human Projectiles for their warm welcome and generosity over the last few years, but thank you especially for reminding me that riding bikes is about having fun.