Background

In 2014, with the backing of our competitors, In 2 Adventure approached National Parks with a proposal to discuss if there might be an opportunity to develop the Beerwah State Forest at Ewen Maddock Dam area into a recreational Mountain Biking Park.  This was positively received and three months later national parks confirmed that funding had been approved for this development.  An environmentally friendly and sustainable course was determined by national parks and in Feb’ 2015 work began on the development of the plan.

National Parks, TrailWorx, local MTB groups and volunteers have devoted a lot of time and hard work in the development of the trails and Stage 1 is due to be completed in June 2015, with further future development planned.

New Trails for Qld Champs & MultiSport Festival

Last week national parks very kindly granted permission to utilise some of the new trails for the Qld Cross Tri Champs and MultiSport Festival on 2nd & 3rd May, which was very exciting news as it allows us to significantly improve the course and address some of the very valuable feedback that has been provided by participants in previous years, in particular to remove the 2-way section on the mountain bike leg.  For this reason we have made the decision to utilise some of the new trails and amend the course.

What’s New?

1. The Mountain Bike course is now a 7.5km lap instead of a 7km lap.
2. The 2-way traffic on the mountain bike course has been reduced to just 150m on a highly visible straight section of trail.
3. There is a lot more flowing single track trails through picturesque rain forest and ferns.
4. All of the rutted and eroded single track sections have been removed.
5. The trail run lap is now 3.3km and takes in some new trails that run alongside the dam.

What Does this Mean for the Event Course

Due to the amended MTB and Trail Run lap distances this means that the overall course distances have been amended slightly.  These are outlined below.

1. Qld X-Tri Championships: 1500m Swim (2 x 750m lap) – 30km XC MTB (4 x 7.5km laps) – 10km Trail Run (3 x 3.3km laps)  Previously 1500-28-10.5
2. X-Tri Sprint: 350m Swim (1 x 350m lap) – 7.5km XC MTB (1 x 7.5km lap) – 3.3km Trail Run (1 x 3.3km lap) Previously 350-10-3.5
3. X-Tri Junior & Teaser: 150m Swim (1 x 150m lap) – 5.5km XC MTB (1 x 5.5km lap) – 1km Trail Run (1 x 1km lap) Previously 150 – 4.5 – 1
4. X-Tri Dirt Kids: 50m Swim (1 x 50m lap) – 2km MTB (1 x 2km lap) = 500m Trail Run (1 x 500m lap) Previously 50 – 3 – 500
5. 8km Trail Run: No Change to distance
6. 4km Trail Run: No Change to distance
7. 45k XC MTB: 6 x 7.5km laps Previously 49km
8. 22km XC MTB: 3 x 7.5km laps Previously 21km

Course Maps

• VIEW X-TRI COURSE MAP
• VIEW TRAIL RUN MAP
• VIEW XC MTB MAP

Why Make this Decision Now?

We knew that work was due to start on the trails but could not be sure if the new trails would be available for this event.  Thanks to the great work of volunteers and national parks work on the trails has happened very quickly and National Parks very kindly granted permission for the use of some trails on Friday.

The decision to use the new trails and amend the course is based on delivering a better experience for participants and most importantly to eliminate the 2-way section on the mountain bike leg.

Can I Ride/Run the New Course?

Work is currently being carried out on some of the new trails, however, the course will be marked and available for a practice ride from 4pm on Friday afternoon 1st May or early Saturday morning.

Please note: There will be no course marshals or first aid on the course on Friday afternoon or Saturday morning and riders choose to ride the course at their own risk.  Riders are advised to ride in groups and ensure they have a mobile phone with them in case of an emergency.

In Summary

We are very excited about the development of a recreational MTB park in the area because it means that more people will have the opportunity to experience this beautiful and picturesque landscape with their family and friends.  The development is also very exciting as it will provide some fantastic options for courses and technical riding in the future.  The time and resources that National Parks, TrailWorx, Local MTB Clubs and Volunteers have devoted to this project has been amazing and such a great thing for our sport.

More Information

For more information please visit the event site HERE