Nelson-Tasman track grades too easy
Nelson-Tasman bike trails are slated for re-grading, after an audit found their difficulty outpaced their grade level.
So far 43 tracks in Nelson, on land owned by the Nelson City Council and Nga¯ti Koata, and 11 tracks in Tasman have been audited by Simon Noble of consultancy service Envisage New Zealand. He recommended that many of the tracks tested be re-graded to reflect their technical difficulty.
Nelson City Council said in a statement that once all bike tracks in the area have been audited, both it and the Tasman District Council will work with Nelson Mountainbike Club (NMBTC) and Nga¯ti Koata to ‘‘assess the recommendations’’ and change signage and marketing materials to reflect the new grades.
In Nelson, Noble checked trails in the Codgers, Codgers-Maitai, Fringed Hill, Maitai Face, Marsden Valley and Sharlands. The Tasman trails tested were at Kingsland Forest and Moturoa Rabbit Island.
Noble audited tracks using a range of different bikes and tools, measuring things like speed of descent, steepness and width of tracks, smoothness, and turn radius.
He advised that many of the tracks were more difficult than their current grading suggested.
The grading system is a one to six numbered scale based on the New Zealand Cycle Trail Design Guide, from easiest to most difficult.
Noble said 32 of the 43 tracks he tested in Nelson had a grade level which was too low for the track design. Based on his recommendation, half of the tested trail network is Advanced – grade four or higher – and every downhill mountainbike trail is at least grade three.
Noble said that there were ‘‘relatively simple and cheap’’ ways to make the more difficult trails in Nelson easier, noting that there were beginner (grade one and two) tracks ‘‘within a 75km drive of the city centre’’.
‘‘This could be achieved by splitting trails in two, or making adjustments to slope, width and turn radius. I do recommend a rethink of the network to increase the provision of Beginner Grade trails. This might involve making existing trails easier, or by making new trails.’’
Tasman’s bike trails were also overall more difficult than their grade suggested, though one Moturoa Rabbit Island track is recommended to be downgraded from grade two to grade one.
Community and recreation committee chair Tim Skinner said it was ‘‘so important’’ for Nelson’s trail grading to be consistent with the rest of the country.
‘‘We know that Nelson’s trails draw people from around New Zealand, and we expect to welcome international visitors again when the borders reopen. Riders of all abilities deserve to have confidence in the trails they are using.’’
NMBTC President Mel Schroder said the club supported greater track consistency, but noted that it was more difficult to maintain easier grades.
‘‘Nelson terrain makes building and maintaining easier trails expensive and difficult and the work required to maintain trails is increasing.’’
She said it was ‘‘easy’’ for beginner graded trails to deteriorate with time and use.
‘‘Riders of all abilities deserve to have confidence in the trails they are using.’’
Tim Skinner Community and recreation committee chair