Out and about in the Australian Alps

The Alpine Cycling Club (ACC) is based in the mountain biking haven of Bright. Unsurprisingly with the riding on offer in Bright and the surrounding Victorian High Country, there’s a keen contingent of young riders in town.

Christian Stewart is the ACC’s Junior Coordinator, and he says the youth programme that’s run in the 1st and 4th school terms has over 120 kids involved every week, with kids coming from as far as Wangaratta to participate.

Whilst a junior mountain biking programme of this size in a regional town is mightily impressive, Christian said it all started with one parent organising a kids group ride over 10 years ago.

‘Like all great grassroots programmes, our youth programme started with one Dad taking a few kids out for a ride and it’s become what it is today. Kids from 4 – 16 all come along on a Tuesday night. All the ride leaders are volunteers, with additional MTBA level coaches providing regular instruction throughout the programme.’

Christian says the aim is to help kids improve and enjoy their riding within an inclusive environment. He says the kids are all very encouraging of one another, despite their varying ability levels and ambitions.

‘We have kids with additional needs riding bikes that assist their ability to access the trail network and enjoy our programme with their friends. That’s our club ethos and what we think mountain biking should be, having fun with your mates in a supportive environment.’

When asked about the how the programmes balance the kids who just want to enjoy riding, and those with the bug for competition, Christian says it’s a matter of getting the right kids in the right groups.

‘Some of the kids want to race, some of the kids want to ride jumps all the time, and some of the kids just want to ride a trail and tick it off. For example, picking their way down a double black gives some kids a huge sense of achievement. There’s also a sense of accomplishment that some kids enjoy after completing a long adventure style ride. We want to encourage the kids do what they enjoy while exposing them to as many different aspects of mountain biking as possible. They can race if they want but there’s many other sides of riding that are lots of fun.’

For the kids interested in racing or simply developing their gravity riding, the club has a progression squad aimed at youths in their early teenage years.

‘We’ve started a progression group this year, at around13, aimed at kids developing gravity skills to enter the Victorian series. We want to have a gravity focus, but also some adventure rides to show them that side of the sport as well,’ says Christian.

Christian says the gender diversity has been great in the

last few years, but there’s still room for improvement. The program has a 2:1 ratio of boys to girls in the younger groups and similar numbers in the progression squad. Christian says that up until the age of 11 the groups are mixed gender, but a change they’ve made that’s increased female retention is the introduction of all-female groups after the age of 11.

‘Up until about 11 we make the groups mixed gender, but after that we give them the choice, and it’s meant some girls feel more comfortable in a group that’s only girls. Then there’s other girls who’ve ridden with the boys their whole life, and they love pushing and being pushed by the boys.’

Another area where ACC’s junior programme is able to help keen youngsters is through the support of local shops. Christian says the shops in Bright have been fantastic in giving workshop demonstrations to the kids, and also providing servicing vouchers and prizes.

‘We have lots of support from the bike shops in Bright. They come down and show the kids some basics in terms of looking after their bikes, and through vouchers we’re able to support kids who display great attitudes and an enthusiastic approach to riding.’

Jake Grayson is a Bright local and has grown up within ACC’s junior programme. He says that the programme has increased his love of mountain biking by introducing him to lots of like-minded kids his age across a variety of cycling disciplines.

‘The junior programme has made me enjoy mountain biking a lot more. It’s helped me with my skills and made me feel like a part of the riding community. The Alpine Cycling Club isn’t just mountain biking, so you’re mixing with road cyclists and other disciplines as well.’

Jake says that the inclusive vibe the club is trying to foster is something he feels when he’s out riding on a Tuesday night.

‘While mountain biking isn’t a team sport it’s still inclusive, it’s all about being out on the trails with your mates. You get to the bottom and you’re high fiving, that’s what the program and the club are about.’

The impact that the club has had on Jake as a rider has inspired him to give back through coaching younger riders, something he feels is the right thing to do considering how much the club has given him.

‘I want to be a role model for the kids. The club has given me so much so for me coaching is about giving back.’

As for the future of mountain biking in Bright, Jake says that the sport is exploding in the small town.

‘Cycling has become so popular in Bright for a small country town. Our local school has rebuilt the bike shelter 3 or 4 times in the last few years to fit all the bikes that are being ridden to school. When I started out 8 years ago in the junior programme there was ten of us, and now there’s around 100,’

With ACC’s youth programme continuing to grow and flourish, and young riders like Jake seeing the value in giving back, it looks like the love affair between Bright and mountain biking won’t be slowing down anytime soon.