Andrew’s right on my tail. At first, he chases me along the trail through tall, dry grass. A few fast bends and small jumps follow. Then the trail gets more technical, with stones rattling under the tyres. We come to a halt at a ledge. The landscape looks to me like a photo wallpaper: In the distance, huge mountains; below us, Lake Wanaka with its emerald-green bays; and ahead of us, a single track that jumps and winds its way completely freely through the mountainsides in sweeping bends. There’s no end in sight to this dirt track.
Karen and Bri catch up with us. Their faces are still beaming from the ride. It feels as though Andrew and Bri are already part of our close circle of friends on the island, even though we only met the two locals this morning in the car park. Both in their mid-twenties, they’re die-hard bikers. Should they show us their home trails at Glendhu Trail Park? We won’t manage all 25 lines today, but Andrew and Bri will give us a tour of the park’s facilities later on. The trail park also features a bike shop with a hire service and a cool bar. It’s the place to meet up for a good coffee, a snack at lunchtime, and a cold pint and some nachos after the ride.
By contrast, the trail taxi outside the door seems to have remarkably little to do. People here prefer to cycle themselves. After all, a 400-metre climb is certainly manageable, especially as the fun of the descent feels much longer. The trail builders have really made the most of every nook and cranny of the terrain. In fact, nobody here seems to be in any hurry. After the rides, there’s plenty of discussion and laughter over a beer – about new trails and about who nearly went over the handlebars where. Then that phrase comes up again: ‘No worries’. We’ll be hearing that a lot more on our trip. Very often. And at some point, we realise that here, the phrase means much more than just “no problem”.
The Alps on the other side of the world
A trip to New Zealand, to the other side of the world – we always thought that was only worth it if you had plenty of time to spare. So, practically never. But as fate would have it, our own son has suddenly qualified as a World Cup downhill rider and wants to spend a few months abroad during the school term. Preferably somewhere where he can prepare optimally for the racing season over the winter…
Finally, at the end of January, the whole family was on a plane to New Zealand. The only question was: where exactly? The advice from experienced New Zealand cyclists ranged from: ‘Queenstown!’ ‘Nah, better to go to Wanaka or Nelson.’ ‘What about Alexandra?’ ‘Nonsense, Rotorua on the North Island is the best place for trails!’ We decided on Wanaka as our base. It’s the perfect place for Lois to attend a cycling school, and Queenstown’s bike park is also within easy reach for weekend trips.
It takes a few days before we’ve become reasonably familiar with the New Zealand Alps around Wanaka. They are mighty mountains and glaciers set amidst vast landscapes. And in between, sheep. Lots and lots of sheep. There are around 23 million sheep in New Zealand. That works out at about four or five sheep for every person.
Finding ourselves in this completely new environment, we start by using the map to orientate ourselves using the lakes, rivers and seemingly endless roads. One of these soon takes us to Cardrona Bike Park, a 40-minute drive away. Here, two lifts take you up into high-alpine terrain at an altitude of around 1,860 metres, where a mix of flowing and technical trails awaits. The famous Peak-to-Pub descent is around ten kilometres long and ends at the historic Cardrona Hotel, where you can settle down for a burger in the aforementioned pub with its lovely beer garden.
A middle-aged female cyclist takes a seat next to me on the chairlift. We’ve been chatting for a while about the trails whizzing past beneath our feet when it turns out she’s the headteacher of Lois’s new school. We hear about the school race she’s organising herself this coming weekend in this park. A downhill race in which schools from across the region will be taking part. The best riders in the race will then qualify for the national final. If Lois wants to, he’s welcome to take part. What’s more, the organising team is also looking for volunteers…?
So, a few days later, I’m standing by the side of the track on the mountain, and Lois rolls up to the starting box. Whilst the riders whizz past me one by one and the spectators are giving it their all, I find myself thinking about the discussions back in Europe: how could we do more to support the next generation of mountain bikers? It’s a question that doesn’t even seem to arise here. Mountain biking is simply part of life. For Lois, this day marks the perfect start to his school career in New Zealand: he wins the race.
Queenstown – a meeting place for the pros
Queenstown, the district’s administrative centre, is just an hour’s drive from Wanaka and surprises us with a completely different world: a melting pot of adventure tourists and outdoor enthusiasts. Countless adventure tour operators line the streets. Jet boating, bungee jumping, climbing, helicopter flights, skiing, freeriding – and, of course, mountain biking. The bustling town and all it has to offer can be quite overwhelming. That’s why we have just one rule: don’t stay too long.
The heart of the cycling action is the Skyline Bike Park with its 30 downhill runs. Added to these are the trails around the town and the terrain just outside at Coronet Peak. A ski resort in winter, a cycling playground in summer. The black runs are also used by World Cup riders for training. Fast, technical and uncompromising. In fact, we bump into Goldstone, Pierron, Hoffmann and many others, as some World Cup teams set up camp here during the winter months to test their new bikes.
Alexandra – Farmland Trails
The town of Alexandra, an hour’s drive south-east of Wanaka, is once again a completely different story: no international hustle and bustle. No adventure tourism on every corner. Instead, it’s surrounded by arid countryside and vast fields of lavender; there’s a good pub and a good café – and, in between, plenty of sheep once again. Here we experience a completely different kind of mountain-biking culture. At Matangi Station, our sport is part of everyday life for a genuine high-country farmer. His farm is huge: 11,585 hectares with more than 8,000 sheep.
For four generations, the Sanders family has been involved in the merino wool industry here, and for some time now they have also been involved with mountain bike trails. Brett Sanders is one of the driving forces behind ‘Matangi Station MTB’, the majority of which runs across his own land, as well as the private land of other farmers. Access to such land is not a given in New Zealand. Yet cycling had been permitted here for years – until, as usage grew, conflicts between agriculture and recreational use began to escalate.
There was even talk of a complete ban on cycling. Why? Brett explains: “The illegal construction of trails was getting out of hand and nobody wanted to take responsibility.” So the family got together with the ‘Mountain Bikers of Alexandra’ club to develop an official usage model. Today, there is a regulated mountain bike park on Matangi: part of the land is freely accessible, whilst an entry fee is required for other areas.
Matangi is popular because the terrain is different from other cycling spots. The trails here are dry, rocky and steep. A small group of farmers also meet up here regularly for group rides, says Brett. He’s actually just bought himself a new e-MTB for this very purpose. And of course, afterwards they pop over to the pub to chat about bikes and sheep.
Nelson – the Enduro North
It takes us a full 13 hours to reach the legendary town of Nelson on the north coast of the South Island. An enduro hotspot unlike any other in the world awaits us at the Wairoa Gorge Bike Park. The story behind it sounds almost made up: American billionaire Kenneth Dart bought the land and had a private mountain bike park built on it, featuring more than 70 kilometres of trails. When he suffered a serious fall, his doctor banned him from cycling – at the time, Ken was 70 years old.
Ever since then, the Nelson Mountain Bike Club has been running the park under a lease agreement. And these forest trails are a real challenge. Even the red-marked lines get our hearts racing. 1,000 metres of elevation gain over roots in one go, and our hands are aching. The next morning we meet Alistair. He’s another one who’s turned his hobby into his livelihood and runs ‘Gravity Nelson’ – a bike shop offering a trail taxi and guided tours.
He drives us up to the ‘Fringed Hill’ spot. From the highest point here, we see the vast Tasman Sea glistening turquoise before we tackle Ali’s top route: first the ‘Black Diamond’, then ‘Sunrise Ridge’ and finally ‘Whaimana’. An enduro descent where we get to know the legendary ‘Nelson Turn’. Bends that are unique to this place and drive Karen to despair: steep terrain and, instead of hairpin bends, fall lines await here. You have to tackle them with confidence and trust that a small bank at the bottom will catch you. So courage and determination are called for, in keeping with New Zealand’s philosophy of life: No Worries!