Hunchback Trails Action Group in West Wodonga | Bike trail

Hunchback Trails Action Group

Locality: West Wodonga

Address: Felltimber Creek Rd West Wodonga, VIC, Australia

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25.01.2022 Hunchback eh? Something about the place.... Great work Tom. We are super proud of ya fella!

25.01.2022 An interesting comparison, showing the change to the timber work over the weekend. That ain't no twig and when this big guy decided it was time to call it quits, one of the Hunchback backdrops changed a fair bit. You will be missed big guy, but in my opinion, you will be just as majestic lying on your side (full of critters), as you where when you were upright old son.

23.01.2022 FOUR FULL YEARS AGO, our community and our community's self-funded parklands land managers of Hunchback (PAW), were TOLD that (until further notice) there were to be no more community events, community level MTB fund raising crits or community 'buy in' in a general sense.......because of "environmental concerns". No doubt, Coronavirus will now be the excuse for further delays that are measured in YEARS around this mater; as opposed to days or weeks. The TV series Utopia spri...Continue reading

23.01.2022 No doubt about it, our Hunch is an extraordinary place! And I am talking purely about DRAINAGE in this instance (albeit that is "extraordinary" in many other ways as well). As late as yesterday evening, I was SLUSHING around in gum boots out there, as the 400th rain/hail squal rampaged through the place; turning the swimming pool into an even bigger swimming pool. The creek was cranking, as were a bunch of 'instant creeks' that had poped up all over the place.... Fast forward (a mere) 24 hours ( after not much more rain, but a daytime max of only around 10 degrees and no drying wind) and the place is FULLY RIDABLE!! It speaks volumes about how well the place was built in the first place and how suitable it is as a MTB location. Brilliant. Factor in the (virtual) ZERO maintainance insistance/regime currently imposed and it is double amazing. And the PUMP TRACK is no exeption either. A big THANK YOU to Indi from TFB for zipping out this morning and bailing out the new drainage sumps, which helped heaps, by allowing two key areas to dry up faster. NET RESULT? 4.30 PM this arvo and it was riding fine! No track damage possible/likely, as long as you stuck to a good line and I happily packed away all the bunting tape and "closed" signs. Game on! We have an AMAZING park and if we look after it with the occasional bit of self-control and patience, it will remain as just that. One day soon, we can ALL look forward to being able to get out in the rain and build/maintain our great park, as that is the IDEAL time to make major headway. I fear that the wheels of beuracracy will continue to move at a snail's pace and that we will MISS the FOURTH 'building season' in a row, but one day team....one day.... A massive thankyou to everyone who respected the closed signs on the pump track over the weekend and gave it the breathing space it needed. Rog for H-TAG

22.01.2022 Oh my. Oh my-o-my-o-my. Things are about to get real folks.... A jewel in the crown of our great town this one is going to be folks.

21.01.2022 Just "wow". Beautiful work Terrain Trails Construction. Simply beautiful.

19.01.2022 What a difference 36 hours makes!!! The CLAY BASED pump track is deadly when water-logged and it also comes apart horribly if ridden in that state. Luckily, after the carnage in the first shot, I was there to do IMMEDIATE repairs. Getting that done straight after this sort of thing makes a massive time difference. If things had dried up as they were in the first photo, it would have been all bad.... Then, with the track blocked off, everyone did the righty and stayed off it until it was dry enough. The (cross ways) tyre marks in the 2nd (dried up) shot must have been pretty late and amount to nothing. Most importantly though, everything RADIUSED the way it sould be and ROCK HARD n dry. The only way to travel with CLAY berms. A tiny bit of moisture is OK and the resulting hero grip is great, but past a certain point, it is just trail vandalism. So STOKED how many people are doing the right thing here and massive thanks to all. We just have to ed-U-ma-kate the 1% that just don't seem to get it. More signage to come. Rog for H-TAG

18.01.2022 Yesterday evening, H-TAG became aware that a person/s related to PWHs, was/were the victim/s of a senseless, mindless and despicable act of criminal vandalism. H-TAG condemn that action in the strongest possible sense and request that ANYONE who is even vaguely comfortable with those sorts of action, NOT follow, visit or otherwise engage with this page. H-TAG are entirely comfortable that there is NIL connection between our followers/interested parties and these highly-repuls...ive actions. However, given the history between the often opposing views of all & sundry at PWHs and H-TAG; we feel that this must be articulated in this manner. If ANYONE has information around any of this, please contact Wodonga police and assist them with what we understand is a (now) on-going police investigation. Roger Derrick for H-TAG NB - for the record, this statement will be reflected in the same way on the now, very quiet PWHftDT page.

18.01.2022 32 shares already for this superb video by Cal. Great job mate. Really nice work. Let's go 33 shares. Too good not to and this one has got to appear on this H-TAG page forever. I bet the NEY SAYERS who held this one back for so long, are starting to see the error of their ways now.... if they are prepared to be honest with themselves.... There is NOTHING NOT to LOVE about this. Just magic. About a TRILLION folks over the next few years just had their physical and mental health drastically improved. Love your work, certain members of Wodonga Council. Rog at H-TAG

18.01.2022 H-TAG had some limited input towards this and great to see Wodonga Council and St Johns ambo service leading the charge towards a more ROBUST solution. These signs are starting to appear around the Rock n Roller precinct and are essentially navigation/location REFERENCE POINTS. This will allow ALL stake holders to be able to "speak the same language" in the event of an emergency response/evacuation situation.... The vehicle access road UPGRADES have been superb and that is another big part of it. Trust me on this one! I once had to VECTOR IN the ambos from the passenger seat and things got pretty sketchy on the old surfaces! The new vehicle track is a virtual Hume Highway in comparison and that's a great thing. Please keep an eye out for these sorts of signs and similar indicators. YOU could be a BIG PART of things in this realm one day (either as a RESPONDER or as an injured rider). Knowing all the key locations etc will be a big help with the coordination of the overall response. Please, never become complacent about what we do up on that hill. R n Rer is a FAST TRACK in anyone's language and HIGH SPEED can mean substantial CARNAGE in the event of an oooopsy. GEAR UP if you are chasing run times. Impact armour & a full face are entirely appropriate up there if you are pinning one on. Always ride within the LIMITATIONS of your own skill level and your bike's SPEC and always carry a MOBILE PHONE. Be a bit more cautious in the LATE PART of the day too. Casualty evacuations are 10 TIMES harder in the DARK. Again, trust me on that one. I have first hand experience at the Hunch as a responder in that situation. Enjoy our great new GEM folks, but keep it real up there. Strava is horrendously inaccurate about 5 - 10 % of the time, so watch that one if its your jam. Don't get sucked into the abyss, courtesy of a bit of GPS randomness cycling at only 1 Hz (that is not much at all and not even in the ball park of motor sport GPS timing). Massive KUDOS to our hard working council and the community LEGENDS that are our local AMBOS. Rog for H - TAG Wodonga Council Parklands Albury Wodonga Albury Wodonga Mountain Bikers Inc. DELWP Hume Terrain Trail Construction Visit Albury Wodonga Cycle Station Albury Hunchback MTB Park

17.01.2022 Sure, I can a bit of a busy-body around the pump track and event centre area at the Hunch; but just to be clear, it is just another port-of-call for me. For example, this here is a 22 footer that I am responsible for, in amongst a bunch of other cool stuff at this location; that have been created by my hand. Happy to get it done at the Hunch, but its not like my life depends on it or anything :)... Just want to make that clear, in case anyone ever gets the wrong idea. Having said that, I will ALWAYS put in big time at the Hunch, as long as things stay real. Rog for H-TAG

17.01.2022 Please stay away from the pump track and event centre features today. Another 20 plus km trails available, let's save this 500 meters for everybody’s further enjoyment. We checked the conditions of the dirt this morning and still too soft from yesterday’s rain. Also, Rog had to do some repairs because 3 teenagers ignored the two large signs between two sets of rain and literally cut laps on the track. Their action slowed down the drying process . If you see ignorant ...behaviour in the future, please feel free to educate the riders. Thanks, Indi See more

17.01.2022 It will be ready when it is ready gang and OMG, how good does it look in this TTC video. Amazing! And the thing I love about it most, is that EVERYBODY gets to use it and benifit from it.... Walkers, trail runners, MTBers, older folk, families, little tackers. Bloody marvelous. Even my 92 year old mum could slowly walk up any part of that. She is a weapon :) What a great way to open up these hills to more people and to greatly increase the number of people who will TRUELY care for them, based on the tangible conection they can now have with Klings and the Hunch. I still can't quite believe those moments when I sat in on WC meetings way back then and a couple of councillors were like "Nup!! Don't want this sort of thing. Of no real benifit to our town, a waste of money and environmentally damaging" (or words to that effect). Glad there were enough intellegent ones to get over the top of that sort of thing. Well done WC and TTC. Rog at H-TAG

14.01.2022 It is a real privilage to be licenced by Wodonga Council to conduct skills training within the RCZ with mad pinners like this and an even bigger privilage to be entrusted with their care and supervision. This young man has always been one of my favorite athletes. He is 100 % and has huge talent. During a sector time trial set the other day, he dropped a chain and still matched his target time!! "I just pumped more" he said! A regular wee Aaron Gwin in the making right there. ...But it is not just these suberb young athletes (and many, many others) that my collegues and I get to work with. It is also all about the MORE THAN 1000 riders past the start of the new climbing track, EVERY WEEK!!! That's right. More than 1000 a week. Find me another sports facility in this entire town that pulls that sort of usage and you will suprise me. And we really have not seen too many visitors yet, thanks to Covid! Wodonga Council have soooooo got it RIGHT with this one. Walking around at Willow Park this evening, I saw wonderful cricket (and other sporting) facilities, with a brand new club house etc, all needing a fair old maintainance regime....and I thought about how damn good value for money our little old ribbon of dirt through the cow paddocks is. Hey! Thanks to the effort of Indi and others, one day, we will even get a toilet! To the NEY SAYERS who constantly SLAYED every effort to head in this direction, I have but one word for you - "OWNED". Pure and simple. These young athletes are just the tip of the iceberg too and the GOOD that will come out of what has only just begun up there on the hills, will be imeasurable. Again, to certain NEY SAYERS around this - quite apart from the numerous aspects of your past (and recent) behaviour, your on going modus operani and your litany of reprehensible efforts to disrupt & derail much of this; your overall stance and so called "opinions" should have you hanging your head in shame. You never had and will almost certainly have NO IDEA. As opposed to the more than 1000 peddal spinners every week past the gate. Now they know boats. Massive KUDOS to all involved and just like this fine young man, SEND IT good style folks! Rog

14.01.2022 Folks, it has happened. We rode it this afternoon with the head trail builder of TTC and it is OFF THE CHAIN!! Please PARK carefully tommorow folks. Me thinks EVERY parking spot will be needed.... We have actually arranged access to the event centre in case things start to get squirrely. Common sense really. Even on my 180mm travel ENDURO bike, the climb was enjoyable from start to finish. A MASTERPIECE of trail design that Wodonga should be rightfully proud of. Hashtag Wodonga Council so got this one right. Hashtag no grizzly bears or moose in (or on) our hills... Rog at H-TAG

14.01.2022 DAWN PATROL In the finest tradition of the surfing world, here is a bit of a dawn patrol report (albeit that 'dawn' was actually about 8 am in this case :)). The Hunch trails will be super ridable this afternoon and are OK even now. Just avoid soft spots and avoid riding through the occasional puddles. All those actions, being consistent with the international MTB rider's CODE of CONDUCT. ... A bit of a different story on the PURPOSE BUILT pump 'n' jump area though. See photos for the story within that fine spot and later on this afternoon, things should be OK there as well. We shall see. Also, please note (in case you have not already noted this) - there are AMPLE AREAS and FEATURES within the event centre area for novice riders and YOUNG CHILDREN. At least 75% of what is there fits that description and should anyone choose to go STRAIGHT PAST those opportunities in a rampaging quest for glory on more advanced features; then BE IT on their own head. Common sense needs to be applied at all times and a little bit of appropriate SUPERVISION and RISK ASSESSMENT will always go a long way as well. Hunchback MTB Park Parklands Albury Wodonga Rog for H-TAG

14.01.2022 DAWN PATROL - Pretty damn wet out there gang, with steady rain since 4 am. PUMP TRACK CLOSED until further notice. Still, with the drainage capability of our dear, old HUNCH; we can still expect some great riding over the weekend. ... The PUMP TRACK area is clearly (I hope) much more sensitive to riding ahead of being ready, but please keep this entire concept in mind if you head out there at any stage today for riding in other areas. This concept is ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT, given that for more than 4 years, the PCRZ trails have not been allowed to recieve maintainance &/or repair. Sadely, that situation remains extant. Rog for H-TAG

13.01.2022 No doubt you are the same as me on this one. You show up to the Hunch and you think (or even say out loud) "Hunchback! You big, green, beautiful thing you!" This photo captures the essence of what I love about the place and no doubt, you are (also) the same as me in terms of your commitment to always wanting to care for and nurture the great community spaces we are lucky enough to have out there.... Things may be moving at snail's pace within the PCRZ part of the Hunch (in terms of finally being able to really start moving forward again), but it is NOT LOST on all the authorities involved that within the (more than) 260 followers of this page, there is GREAT WILLINGNESS to help out with lots of the hard, physical effort required. We stand proudly next to you all and will cherish the day we can all work effectively together as a big team, in a targeted, coordinated & harmonious way. All this, while achieving great economy-of-effort. Soon gang. Soon. Rog

12.01.2022 Photo from last year - this fine looking chap used to hang out with me on an all-too-regular basis last year, in the vicinity of the pump track. Happily, he eventually moved down to the creekline, after he started having trouble acessing his den under the concrete slab & this was actually the last time I saw him for the season. I am making every effort to keep these marvelous, but potentially deadly reptiles SEPARATE from young kids (especially) and adults on bikes as well.... Clearing debris and keeping the grass nice and short in & around the pump track area sure will help towards any unwanted contacts, but please be VIGILANT at all times anyway. Not just around the pump track either. THEIR home is EVERYWHERE out at the Hunch. I will soon be mounting up the usual, TFB-built SNAKE BITE KITS in key locations around the area. In case of an incident, go hard on one of those and call 000 imediately. REMEMBER - human/muscular-skeletal MOVEMENT is what promotes the transfer of the venom from the lymphatic system into the blood stream. Keep the patient as STILL as possible, apply first aid according to the instructions within the kits and bring 000 help TO the patient. Avoid bringing the patient out on foot to meet an ambo etc if at all possible. Never harm, harrass or aggrovate these notoriously fiesty locals, keep your eyes UP on the trails and work on your BUNNY HOP on a regular basis! Rog for H-TAG

09.01.2022 Parents, if your child/ren planning to ride today at Hunchy, please make sure they stay away from the Rock n Roller trail.

09.01.2022 To say that MTB is more than just a passing fad is to make the understatement-of-the-century. I would also suggest that MTBers will look after this old tip, as well as (or better) than ANY other user group who may have been after an option like this. Great work by all here. Trip to the northern beaches after Covid anyone?... Rog

09.01.2022 DAWN PATROL WOWA! Our Hunch is in AMAZING condition this morning, after close to 20 mil of steady rain yesterday and a big storm dump in the night. That speaks VOLUMES about how suitable the place is for MTBing.... A brisk, cool breeze will dry things quickly, but we are talking HERO GRIP already! A beautifully MANICURED Rock n Roller climb (over significant distances) awaits you and the HERO GRIP on the way down will be SUBLIME. PUMP TRACK - very surprisingly, GTG already! Did not even bother bunting it off for a few hours. The sumps worked a treat and in a couple of hours it will be MINT. Stay HIGH on the berms and PIN IT! Thanks again to the H-TAGers who hooked in yesterday. Seriously contemplating a CARBON COPY EFFORT next Saturday morning to ICE the cake. Interested? Comments welcome on that point. Off to spend a few hours on my private property JUMP LINE project now, but may see you out at the big, green JEWEL this arvo shredders. Now GO PIN IT!!!! Rog for H-TAG Wodonga Council Parklands Albury Wodonga DELWP Hume Terrain Trail Construction Albury Wodonga Mountain Bikers Inc. Hunchback MTB Park

08.01.2022 ACTION The word "ACTION" does not sit in the title of this page/initiative because it sounds cool and represents some slick-sounding "buzz word" that makes everyone involved feel warm and fuzzy. Nup. It is there because we put our money-where-our-mouth-is in the "action" stakes. Given that TFB (the 'mother group' of H-TAG) was served a letter by PAW, on behalf of DELWP (driven by who knows who/what?) that all JUNIOR SKILLS COACHING was to be closed out of the PCRZ part of the... Hunchback MTB Park, we could all have been forgiven for getting the HUMP and turning our back on the whole thing; in terms of actual, physical effort. Not our style though eh? The letter did says we could still engage in limited, voluntary maintainance ( in the form of grass cutting), so BAM! Lets just get things done with some good-old-fashion ACTION shall we? See the photos attached. The first one is from over a year ago, giving you an idea of what things used to look like. The rest are from work I have almost single-handedly SMASHED OUT in the last fortnight, with some assistance from PAW. Yep. No fluff-and-bubble and I have simply spent a few week nights and both Saturdays of my (full time) working fortnight getting things cracking here. Nearly a metric TONNE of steel guard rails (dumped in the PCRZ 9 years ago) removed and GONSKI. Remaining clean-up work EXECUTED and a bunch of other stuff done as well. ACTIONS speak louder than words, even though I can punch a few of those out. Maybe this wee job stands as an example of how ACTION is actually not that hard to deliver and that some of the folks up the food chain might need to ask themselves whether-or-not FOUR YEARS is actually an acceptable time frame for ZERO physical action on the ground to have occured here; while reports are written, committees are formed and all manner of highly productive stuff along those lines, play out at snail's pace. Let's not let common sense and taking responsibilty for your duties get involved eh? Rog for H-TAG

06.01.2022 As I have described in my own comment on this post - "Iconic" already and the full loop is not even finished yet. The 330 plus likes are clearly indicative of how much the community appreciate this magnificent Wodonga Council project. Rog for H-TAG

05.01.2022 Staying on top of things around the pump track with some lawn mowing on Saturday morning. See photos. But the BIG NEWS is that I have had an offer from one of our local MTB dads, who runs a commercial grass cutting operation, to do the ENTIRE event centre, using the big guns!! I will try to get that cleared through PAW and if it goes ahead, it will stand as a superb EXAMPLE of COMMUNITY POWER and the spirit that drives that. Watch this space!!... Rog for H-TAG

04.01.2022 Thanks to anyone who came by the pump track today and RESPECTED the efforts to keep it in good shape. Only one set of tyre marks inside the taped-off facility later in the arvo and that looked like a very small kid's bike. No damage to speak of. I "re-opened" the area at 1600 h this afternoon , after a track inspection and it was in MINT condition. A few of us then got some wheels over it and made it even better.... If we time things right, a bunch of riders sessioning it at JUST the RIGHT time, can result in all the rollers and berms etc ending up GROOMED back to a perfect RADIUS and packed down nicely. Let's keep building a CULTURE of care, respect, patience and thoughtfulness in that area and EVERYWHERE else in the park as well. It is what is best for the common good and for the big, beautiful, GREEN pearl that we all know as the HUNCH. Thanks again everyone and please do not think I am being presumtuous in my actions here. I am just trying to do my bit to get things right in at least one small part of our great park. I look forward to a time when we can all have MORE SAY in doing the same everywhere else there. Rog at H-TAG

04.01.2022 In case you have not seen the grass cutting works on the Rock n Roller climb yet, this gives you a bit of an idea. It is like this almost all the way to the top and some of our young TFB pinners are going to be put to work soon to finish the job. Snapped this photo of two very pretty girls during our Sunday evening walk. The climb is almost as nice on foot as it is on a MTB and after the overnight rain it was looking even better than when it was cut. Our gem-of-a-trail-on-da-...hill needs to be showcased on this way I reckon and that will only ever have us Wodongians super proud of our marvellous recreational facility, that has been so cleverly built by local experts. Rog at H-TAG Wodonga Council Parklands Albury Wodonga Albury Wodonga Mountain Bikers Inc. DELWP Hume Visit Albury Wodonga Hunchback MTB Park

03.01.2022 Got out early on Sunday and bunted-off the pump track coz of the overnight/early morning rain. Bailed the sumps & put the "closed" sign out as well (that features an expected re-open timing). Thanks to everyone who played the game and at 3.30 pm when I 're-opened' it, only one set of wobbly little wheel marks that amounted to nil real impact.... On the plus side (of the track being 'closed' for a bit), it gave me the chance to reshape & groom one of the main rollers (photo). If you have not tried that one yet, you will like it, I can garantee you of that. Best roller on the track for sure. Finally, in case you heard that I had a bit of a dummy spit a few weeks ago - it was not because someone was blatently ruining one of the new lips, just as I rolled up for a ride. I just got a tad upset when the person concerned did not respond particularly well to my fairly polite request to cease doing so.....just before he had a crack at an aspect of the track (that I had been working on) and declared that " if I find the person who did that, I am going to punch them in the face" (unquote). Things were never going to go well from that point. Unsavory I know folks, but just saying it like it is. Maybe a challanging aspect of all this that needs to go on the table in the future? Also, don't want anyone thinking I go thermo neucular over just a busted lip, as may have been sugested at some stage. Nup. it takes fightin' words to get me to DEFCON 3. R

03.01.2022 THANKS to everyone who stayed off the PUMP TRACK today. Only one set of little kid's wobbly tyre marks (and dad's boots), but no MTBers. Good game. After an hour of grass cutting late this arvo, I cut a few laps to press in some good radiuses (radi -i?), but overnight rain means we still need to keep it closed. Will check it early tommoz and maybe GAME ON by lunch time if all goes well.... Send it.

01.01.2022 MEXICAN STAND OFF with a bunch of very young, Hunchback locals. I guess I am not heading into the PCRZ then my fine young fellows? More chance, breaking through a wall of riot police. That's cool. Happy to head (west) into the RCZ and have a bow-peep and the fine, fine work being done on the R&R climbing trail. ... The upper paddocks of the PCRZ are all yours you young turks and treat them well my fine, young, BOVINE friends. After all, the big, green jewel is for everyone!

01.01.2022 News flash!! Large parts of the Rock n Roller climb now look as good as the Misano Grand Prix circuit! We were but 10, yet we still REAPED HAVOC on thee long grasses of thee Rock n Rolller climb. Most of us kept the throttle open for close to 4 hours, so a fair bit of grass went south.... Thanks heaps to everyone who showed up and hooked in like people possessed. These small but effective sessions really add up and illustrate the amazing effect of COMMUNITY POWER. Good game H-TAGers! Time for grandpa nap now.... Rog for H-TAG Wodonga Council DELWP Hume Parklands Albury Wodonga Albury Wodonga Mountain Bikers Inc. Terrain Trail Construction Hunchback MTB Park