MTB Track - Forsyth's Mill

Just getting back into the MTB groove after a break from late 2012.

I've decided to try and hit up a few more tracks this year as I tend to get stuck into riding just a couple of favourites - chiefly because it takes me forever to learn the layout and only then do I get up any semblance of speed!

Anyway, hitting up the Perth Mountain Bike Club website I picked out Forsyth's Mill near Sawyers Valley, which sounded fairly good and not too far of a drive (45 mins from my inner city suburb as it turns out).

Nice drive out to the place on an early morning weekday, arrived at 6:45am to an empty and well laid out carpark, complete with picnic tables and ablutions block, and some cool but just-up-sunny conditions, and after a quick warmup, checked out the trailhead info and then crawled off down the trail for an initial exploratory lap.

Ended up doing three laps for 17km in total (the main blue level trail is 5.5kms) - was thinking of a fourth but my shoulders were complaining after my having tried to go through trees instead of around them! No offs, but a few grazes from this non-advisable tree-butting technique.

Short story: looks like I have another track to slot into the favorites!

Characterised by the closeness and abundance of trees throughout a significant portion of the circuit (there's quite a few close tree gaps to squeeze through, including a through-tree, and more than one low hanging branch), the run is nevertheless very flowy with no great elevations changes, and one I'd characterise as toward the easier blue diamond level.

Whilst generally narrow, the track is fairly smooth, with only a couple of rock garden sections (nothing too challenging in that regard, although one garden is strategically placed at the end of a longish slow, winding climb) and the major restraint to progress is the often tight twistys and proximity of trees to thread around. There's generally a small or sometimes larger berm on the turns (a few with loose pea gravel) and maintaining speed is fairly easy, although if you are on a 29er as I was, some of the tighter turns require you to use all available real estate. Passing may be a bit of an issue, with the occasional wider fire trail sections spread apart and quite short in length.

Apart from the aforementioned rock gardens, there is little in the way of other natural ground impediments, with the occasional small log over and odd rock drop. On the last portion of the track there are a number of TTFs classified as single black diamond, including a Shore feature comprising a ramp, small gap jump to a flat and then a metre drop off; a wood ramp log over, and a log ramp log over. Didn't try the Shore as I'm a bit of a safety weeny when I'm riding by myself, but the ramp and platform are fairly wide, the gap isn't that great as long as you carry some speed up the ramp from the clean approach, and the drop off isn't anything too daunting, with the landing area straight and clean. If you'd rather take the B line around these TTFs no problems, as both the black and blue lines are clearly marked on top of very visible yellow poles. Interestingly, only the B line for the wood ramp log over ads any significant time penalty if you are racing around.

There are a couple of really great sections in the last third of the track: a very swoopy and bermy turns section which is huge fun and rewards smoothness, a short twisty up and down section with jumps and dips through close dense forest, and a two jump series which can be taken at high speed as long as you remember the 90 degree right hand berm immediately you hit the ground after the second jump!

All in all, a great little track, and one that doesn't require a lot of familiarisation but will reward repeated laps with noteable speed increases. As a lower intermediate level rider, I really loved it.

There is also a very short green level track for beginners, although as it merges with the blue level track at the end, keep an eye out for faster riders.

Here are some details about the track location etc:  Perth Mountain Bike Club - Forsyth's Mill.

Ride Safe!