Back to the Feature! 2012 Sunny Corner Trail Bike Ride

adventure sunny corner

HEARTLAND HOEDOWN We delve into the witches’ brew that was the 2012 Sunny Corner Trail Bike Ride to see what makes this long-standing event so popular.

ANDREW HOBBS & IAN HANCOCK

I

’m standing on a ridge next to my steaming TM 300 dinger.

To my left, and silhouetted against the recently logged skyline, is a rooster-trail of dust from a couple of KTMs. To my right are two blokes sporting mismatched riding gear and inhaling Styvos for breakfast. Just an hour prior, I was in the trade alley talking to a bloke who owns a brand new 6-Days edition KTM, his own chopper and happens to have a net worth north of a million bucks. So what do the three of us – me, the stogie smokers and the Maverick Millionaire – have in common? That would be the 2012 Sunny Corner Trail Bike Ride.

Heartland. It’s a well-worn term these days, but what does it really mean? To Julia and the crew in Canberra, it’s the bluecollar workforce that drives the nation forward. To an evangelical

minster in middle America, it’s the residents of the bible belt who cut deep through the heart of the country. To a V8 fan, it’s Ford or Holden. But in dirt bike circles, it’s events such as the Sunny Corner Trail Bike Ride – known as ‘Sunny Corner’ to most of us – that brings blokes, bikes and booze together for the annual celebration of man and dirt bike. Sunny Corner was born 22 years ago by the crew from Central Tablelands Motorcycle Club and has grown to become one of the must-do events for any selfrespecting trailrider on the eastern seaboard.

But what’s made the event so successful? The people, the place, the party ... what is it? We threw some bikes in the ute and headed west over the Great Dividing Range on a mission to find our own little piece of Australia’s dirt bike heartland.

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adventure sunny corner

THE LOCATION

“Sunny Corner brings blokes, bikes and booze together for the annual celebration of the meeting of man and dirt bike.”

There’s no doubt Sunny Corner provides some of the most picturesque riding terrain west of Katoomba.

Wedged halfway between Lithgow and Bathurst in the state’s Central West, the undulating pine forests – with the odd dollop of gum trees thrown in – simply inspire you to ride. Under that canopy lies a network of singletrack that extend for miles. When linked together by the trail-gnomes from CTMCC, these tracks offer a riding experience that’s hard to duplicate.

And according to Sunny Corner’s organiser, Luke Seymour, “These are trails some people never get to ride, or will never find again on their own.”

THE ATMOSPHERE When you throw more than 1000 frothing dirt bike riders, a few beers, hours of bench racing and miles of epic riding together, you get what many guys consider off-road Nirvana.

But the first step to a successful Sunny Corner campaign is to find a base.

With campsites in short supply, a tent city seemingly grew out of the ground as tribes staked their claim for this year’s mid-September weekend.

Erected in the pine forest city was everything from the simple swag to full-blown Work ’n’ Play set-ups, trucked in behind burbling F250s.

Once settled in, I couldn’t help but notice that two distinct tribes emerged: the riders and the support crew. The “riders” are blokes’ kind of blokes. Their bikes need a top-

end rebuild after every event, and they sneak out onto the trails on the Saturday afternoon for a few unofficial loops. On the other hand, the “support crew” are the blokes whose bikes only need a top-end rebuild once a year.

They’re more inclined to settle in with a Bundy or a brew, and do more socialising than riding. But when the sun went down, both tribes re-united around the traditional Saturday night bonfire, where lies were told, legends forged and past glories re-visited.

We took advantage of Saturday evening’s bonfire gathering to get the punters’ perspective, and they all seemed to sing the same Sunny Corner tune. “It’s just the atmosphere,” says 10-year Sunny Corner veteran, Steve, from nearby Lithgow. Which is a big call from a bloke who lives not half an hour away from the event and can ride there any time he chooses. Paul, who trekked from Coffs Harbour, has racked up a string of 12 Sunny Corners.

“It’s the boys’ annual trip away,” he says matter-of-factly. Armed with three cartons of beer – and the comforting thought that a pub is close by if need be – he settled in with four of his mates for a weekend away from the WAGs. As the fire slowly died down, so did the bravado, and riders skulked away to their swag or camper to grab some sleep before trails opened first thing on Sunday. For many, sore heads, smokey eyes and cold fingers were a guaranteed outcome of the big night out. In the morning there was a gnarly mix of riders and ‘only just’ survivors.

ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE

H

ow often do you have great intentions for your Sunday morning – be it a cheeky moto, surf, run or cycle – but instead of making the most of that glorious early-morning sunshine, you veg in bed nursing a hangover? Sunny Corner is simply about getting on the bike and having a laugh with your mates, despite the pain you will no doubt be feeling from Saturday night if you’ve chosen to camp in the forest.

Although the two clearly marked trail loops are open to the public year-round, the organisers achieve the perfect mix of open firetrail

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and prime singletrack to keep you frothing at the mouth, and hitting the trail with other like-minded punters gives the event a real carnival atmosphere. Some are willing to put the hammer down with you, and others know their limits and courteously pull over and let you through.

But even more important than the riding is the inevitable bench racing around the campfire or in the banter in the barbeque queue. Sunny Corner is simply a great excuse to get away with your mates and forget about everything. Just don’t forget the Berocca! – Ian Hancock

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adventure sunny corner

“The event was born 22 years ago and has become one of the must-do events for any self-respecting trailrider on the eastern seaboard.”

THE RIDING The litmus test for any trail event, however, is the riding itself. Two 70km loops – one north and one south – greeted punters on the frosty Sunday morning, and the trails offered plenty of variety to keep riders amused.

Diving into the pine forest brought ribbons of loam, sprinkled with sneaky roots just waiting to whip an unsuspecting front wheel out from under you. Technical hills led onto firetrails just in time to give you a breather, before diving down into an angry brook or turning back on to more singletrack cut into a moonscape

of recently logged forest. Harder sections were signposted to give the inexperienced or cowardly a chance to B-line around them and/or slice in front of their mates for the next piece of singletrack.

So how much riding is enough?

Word is KTM’s national off-road team manager, Brad “Wonka” Williscroft, managed to squeeze in four loops before the trails were closed at 1pm on Sunday. Seems the Aussie enduro vet was in training for the upcoming Australian 4-Day Enduro and was looking for some extra testing time.

That’s some 300km of riding in half a day. Beat that, I say. I couldn’t!

HEART OF THE MATTER It’s hard not to get excited about riding the Sunny Corner. You’re surrounded by a sea of bikes and riders, situated squarely in a location that seems purpose-built for off-road riding at an event that’s organised by a crew of people who’ve 22 successful events under their muddy belts.

So, did we unearth dirt bike’s heartland? When you see that many people from all walks of life, all unified by their love of good riding and mateship, it’s hard to say we didn’t.

But don’t just read about it, do it!

See you there next year…

MORE ONLINE...

For an image gallery from this year’s Sunny Corner, check out www.transmoto.com.au

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