FMX Insider No.31: Goanna Tracks

International competitions such as Red Bull X-Fighters and X Games have a worldwide reputation for their massive FMX courses and technical designs. Professional track builders such as Jesse Olson and Dan Herron have been designing and building these insane courses for decades. Little do most people know that we have a home-grown monster course in our own backyard. Designed and built by Australian OG rider, Cameron ‘Sturto’ Sturbridge, this X-Fighters style course is regularly used for Australian FMX Championships. I recently spoke with Sturto on his new found love for architectural design and course building.

Ben: So Cameron, what is Goanna Tracks, Coonabarabran?

Sturto: Goanna is a massive off-road motorcycle complex just outside the town of Coonabarabran in central western New South Wales. It was built by the Cromb family who are motorcycle enthusiasts and wanted to give something back to the sport. It has been the venue for many national level events including the MX Nationals, Off-Road Nationals and AFMXC.

Can you give me a run down on the FMX course and the track design?

The FMX course is big with around 13 main hits plus a handful of tech sections and transfers thrown in for good measure. It’s a good mix of dirt and ramps bringing together a lot of BMX inspired features like the quarter pipe, hip jumps and a bowl section.

How did the initial idea for building the massive FMX complex arise?

Before it opened, the goal of Goanna was to be the biggest and the best complex Australia had ever seen which I believe we achieved. As a rider, I really wanted to give back to the sport that had given me so much and Goanna gave me a blank canvas to create my dream course. With all the resources I needed available, I knew this could be something really special. I had some crazy ideas as the possibilities were endless. But so it was usable by more than a select handful of elite professionals, I refined it down to something that was going to be rideable, ultra safe and still push the limits of the sport while retaining some of my more ‘out there’ concepts.

Was the course inspired in anyway by international competitions such as X Games or Red Bull X-Fighters?

Absolutely. I always look at what has been done in the past as there are ideas and lessons to be learned by others successes and mistakes but I wanted to create something new and unique unlike any other course. The last thing I wanted was for someone to say, “Oh, it’s just like so and so course from this event.” That’s just not how I roll. I’ve studied architecture which gave me the ability to conceptualise something new and really push the limits of the design process before refining it back to something both functional and unique.

What was the design process? How long did the entire course take to construct?

The design process was long because the original plan was for the course to be in a different location or the ride park, but due to rain and geotechnical issues the build kept being postponed. After coming to the realisation it just was not going to work we scouted a new location which also meant going back to the drawing board. In hindsight, this was a blessing as the new location provided a much greater opportunity for creativity and overall function. The build itself took around three weeks; we basically cut the side out of a hill and turned it into a flat pad using all that dirt for the features. This also allowed us to utilise the natural terrain to develop features like the drop-in, bowl and the dual-directional quarter pipe.

How many FMX competitions have been held at the Goanna Tracks so far and what riders have shown their skills on the course?

We have had two rounds of the AFMXC out there and a couple of ride days for select athletes. The standouts would have to be the late Tyron Gilks who really pushed the limits of the course design utilising features I had not even thought of. Truman Carroll and Joel Brown who both tied the course together beautifully and Matt Schubring whose ridiculous bike skill and background in BMX made him right at home on the technical course.

How did you feel seeing it all finally come together at the very first comp?

It was amazing because I really worked hard to make it happen. It’s something that started on the drawing board four years before hand so it had changed and evolved so many times before eventually becoming a reality. To see it being used in the way I had visualised so many times was a very humbling experience.

Are there any future plans in place for the Goanna Tracks complex?

Absolutely. We intend to continue running annual events at the facility. The course will continue to evolve and change as the rider’s skill increases and we can continue to push the possibilities of what can be done on a dirt bike.