Mountain biking severely limited as Melbourne enters Stage 4 restrictions
Mountain biking is all but banned in Melbourne with Premier Daniel Andrews announcing a raft of Stage 4 restrictions, severely limiting movement as the state grapples with more COVID-19 outbreaks.
For the past five months mountain bikers around the country have had to deal with a range of restrictions surrounding their sport including closed trails, borders and public health advice.
However, restrictions announced on Sunday night now limit exercise to a one-hour window and no more than five kilometres from a person's home.
These restrictions, among other things, also include a curfew from 8pm-5am (work, essential health, care, safety reasons excepted), a five kilometre travel limit for goods and services and a further push for people to work from home.
The restrictions around exercise (one of four reasons to leave home) are listed in full below.
You can leave home to exercise but there are limits:
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You must not travel more than 5km from where you live to exercise.
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You can exercise with one other person you live with or a friend or family member, as long as neither of you travel more than 5km from your home. Please use common sense and limit the number of people you see in person right now. It is safer to connect with friends and family using phone calls, social media and video calls. If you are exercising with someone else, you should keep 1.5 metres distance between you. Don’t hug, kiss or shake hands.
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You must limit your exercise to once a day and for only one hour.
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If you are a parent or guardian who is caring for a young child or someone who cannot be left unattended then they may accompany you.
In light of these new conditions, mountain biking is nigh on impossible. Unless you live within five kilometres of accessible trails, are by yourself and stick to a few laps all in under an hour there is no way riders can follow COVID-19 guidelines.
Mountain Biking Australia knows our Victorian readers will follow these new guidelines and help the community get back on its feet. We encourage you to look to some of our ‘Isolation Biking’ articles to stay involved in a safe manner.
We have a range of topics covered including changing cleats, a neighbourhood skills session and plenty of at home workouts.
Our thoughts are with everyone in Victoria as you battle this awful virus. Stay safe and we’ll see you on the trails in the hopefully not-too-distant future.
