Ride Cairns salutes trail blazers
Djabugandji descendant Rhylee Herd is the face of a Ride Cairns video showcasing the legendary Kuranda Downhill mountain biking trail which follows the path of his ancestors through World Heritage rainforest.
Tourism Tropical North Queensland Chief Executive Officer Alex de Waal said Shuttle Rewind took viewers on a mountain biking journey through time showcasing the ancient, rainforest-clad Kuranda mountains deep in Djabugandji land.
“The film emphasises the Kuranda Downhill’s sacred mountain biking status as the oldest downhill trail in Australia and one of the first of its kind to be raced anywhere in the world,” he said.
“It also pays respect to the crew who started the MudCows movement which painted the Cairns downhill mountain bike culture into the psyche of riders around the world.
“Rhylee’s pilgrimage along the picturesque rainforest path of his ancestors through traditional Djabugandji land is particularly poignant.”
Rhylee agrees. “Having my heritage and cultural background printed into this film really shows how much respect Ride Cairns and the entire crew has towards my tribe, the Djabugandji people, and the land we own which I was able to showcase to the rest of the world through my favourite sport,” he said.
The keen mountain biker grew up in the historic rainforest village of Kuranda and from the age of 12 started riding the Kuranda Downhill track, one of a network more than 550km mountain biking trails throughout the Cairns & Great Barrier Reef region.
Mr de Waal said the network was growing with the recent opening of another 40km of trails at Atherton Forest Mountain Bike Park and three shared-use trails in National Parks on the Cassowary Coast now having signage.
“The Ride Cairns website will be updated with these trails which also will be included in a mobile phone app being developed,” he said.
“The Ride Cairns app will have interactive maps showing trails throughout Cairns & Great Barrier Reef and will interface with social media so riders can take photos and post them.
“Our upcoming marketing and media activity for Ride Cairns will focus on three upcoming events, the rapidly growing Gravitate Mountain Bike Festival on October 2-6, the 20th anniversary of the Crocodile Trophy on October 18-26 and the RRR Mountain Bike Challenge on June 7, 2015.”
Shuttle Rewind can be seen at http://www.ridecairns.com/shuttlerewind/
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