From -30 ‘I cant feel my bits’ to +30 ‘fully body tears a.k.a sweat’ I was bike riding in a matter of hours thanks to the glorious wonder that is flight! Â Thank you Wayan? brothers…
Although  my trip to Australia was not specifically a bike trip, I had planned to do several good day rides with my Aussie riding crew (one other guy ) while I was there.
Hopefully I would fair a little better than the last attempt. Entering a 70km endurance race in March  for my first ride of the season apparently wasn’t my brightest idea to date. Thank you double leg cramp to front flip to broken scaphoid.
Im happy to report the trip went great! The new whip rode amazingly and was tested on a variety of terrain. From inner suburb flowy single track to peak to peak epics, it handled it all. I’ve put together a nice lil collection of photos from the trip for all yall to enjoy!
The indoor bike assembly in 40 degree weather is key….to not sweating to death
Art
A quick stop in Healesville, Victoria…not for beer unfortunately. Maybe on the way back!
Someones hair?…not ours
The man, the myth, the legend. Australian all rounder Callum  “rides when he can” Hearn!!
Some idiot who thinks he is from Canada…but isn’t
Nothing christens a brand new bike like a rock stuck in the linkage and it blowing over onto the gravel road in a strong wind  F^%&%$#%^KK!!!!
Â
Getting creative here. A cost effective way to get a clutch derailleur on a 1 x 9  setup. Run a 10 speed ZEE derailleur with a SRAM 9 speed cassette and shifter, same shifting ratio and runs great with a few minor cable tweaks
Absolute pinger of day!
Callum is sign, sign is Callum
Throwin down some cornering at Buxton….those bright shorts will feature a lot in this post
Small fern forest at Buxton bike park. The only place to stay cool on a hot trail ride day
Callum poppin sweet baby airs all over the place
Claims it !!!!
Buxton Mountain Bike park. We managed to throw down a fairly good 25km loop with no repeat of trail. The local club is doing some good work building suitable, sustainable trails for the area. Keep up the good work!
The infamous start ramp of the You Yangs DH course….not really that infamous but it does have a Radbike sticker on it so….
I dont really know how to explain this, or why this exists in Australia…but it does so
Self timer shot. Guess who set the camera up and wasn’t ready in time. This was 2/3 rds of the way up the Bright Enduro race course. This was definitely the best new riding zone of the trip. We have both ridden in Bright, Victoria before but never had too much success in finding a good trail network.The frustrating thing was we new they existed and we knew the potential of the place. Â This time however was different. Flowy pine forest single track , well built corners and poppers, and this course which had the right amount of tech and steepness. Sorry no more photos, we were having too much fun!
Dudes, on the way to Mount Buller
And then there’s this! Well labelled trail network at Mount Buller. A lot of work has been put into making this a legitement destination ride in Australia
The longest ride of the trip requires the most amount of pre-ride checks
Gettin a serious lube on!
Havin’ a time shredding the well made single track on our way to Mount Stirling across the saddle from Mount Buller. Good time to talk about the new whip. Well, it was awesome. The frame itself felt fairly similar to my  Carbine SL from last year. A little slacker and a little bit more travel were just what the doctor ordered. The 1 x 11 drivetrain by SRAM simply awesome. The first thing you notice..is the silence. No more front derailleur clunk and grind, That combined with carbon hoops and high volume tires makes for a near silent ride up and down.
We put in the extra effort to hike-a-bike up to the true summit of Mount Stirling where you find these beauty views and this lonesome snow gum
498 years old
Summit shredding with some amazing views
Poppin’ wheelies and taking names. Callum getting stoked
A massive congratulations to RACEFACE for their Next SL crank and NarrowWide chainring system. Simply brilliant! Chain has fallen off zero times so far. Their crankset also deserves praise. Stiff, light and very simple to install and to switch chainrings if needed. I ran a 30T up front which I think will be my go to for the future. Considering I am not in peak bike shape for the season I was still able to get up all the climbs I needed to. We will see how it holds up in the Bow Valley this season
Looking back towards Mount Buller Ski resort
Camping under the stars, small fire, brown drinks….heaven!
Some of the locals came out to hang
And then there was this gal. Udder dip on the creek crossing
You Yangs, west of the city. some giant granite boulders amongst endless farmland
A couple good rocky pitches to get that suspension moving. Pike up front Fox out back…dialled
These granite rocks are grippy, but you really don’t wanna come unstuck on them. The Maxxis Highroller II help keep you rubber side down. I am a huge advocate for a strong descending tire on my bike. Deal with the weight penalty, enjoy the rewards of DH bike like traction and no more flat tires.
