Chris O'Callaghan, founder of Cross Country Trails, describes his day
I’VE BEEN WORKING in outdoor pursuits since 1993. I did once work in a factory when I was 17, but I thought, That’s enough of that.
My partner, Liam Sheehy, and I set up the mountain- biking business in December 2007. We’re both competitive mountain-bike riders. The Ballyhoura region is one of
four adventure hubs in the country, with everything from mountain-bike riding to indoor climbing and clay-pigeon shooting, all within a 15-minute drive.
What novice mountain bikers love about the sport is that it’s so non-judgmental. You’re not cycling along a road wondering if your bum looks big or how you’re doing. You’re out in the trees in the middle of nowhere.
The trails in the area were built in conjunction with Coillte, who provided the land, and Limerick and Cork county councils, as well as Fáilte Ireland. JP McManus matched the funds, with the result that we now have 15,000 acres and 96km of marked biking trails. One trail is 56km long, takes you across two counties and takes fit professionals around five and a half hours.
We start the day at the trail start in Ardpatrick, and most of our clients will be off riding by 11am. We charge €40 per bike for the day, including helmet, tube and pump.
While they’re gone we spend the time servicing bikes. We bring our lunch with us and eat in the car park.
We get both individuals and corporate groups looking for team-building exercises. As well as being great fun it helps establish a mutual respect: the guy with the big job or the university degrees isn’t necessarily the one who’ll do best.
One of the things corporate groups complain about most on arrival is that they feel mentally fatigued from their work. They come back to us after a day’s cycling physically fatigued but exhilarated. It’s a total tonic for them.
Winter is our busiest season. We have massive drainage in the trails, so it never gets too wet, but I think people actually like mountain biking for the opportunity it gives them to get mucky. I think it brings out everyone’s inner child. They come back in at 4pm covered from head to toe with mud and grinning from ear to ear. And the great thing about biking is that everyone did it as a child, so there’s no learning element – unlike, say, surfing.
On an average day you could have 300 bikes on the trails, but many of those are people from all over bringing their own bikes. It’s terrific to see them all out getting exercise.
By the time we’ve finished servicing the last of the bikes it’ll be 7pm and time to head home – which, thankfully, is two minutes down the road.
** Chris O’Callaghan is founder of Cross Country Trails (www.xct1.com), in Co Limerick
** In conversation with Sandra O'Connell