Slush Fund

2026 has been a good year for the mtb trail network that spans the eastern Port Hills of Christchurch. 632 volunteer hours have been logged in the restoration of over 22 kms of trail. Malcolm McClurg tells the story of how the Taylors Escape multi-use track built in 2022 has led to the formation of a Port Hills Trails Collective, connecting the people who look after the Port Hills trails.

The Ground Effect Slush Fund puts its name to a couple of the 15 prescribed trail routes at the Wairoa Gorge MTB Park, and donates $1000 cash annually to help the Nelson MTB Club maintain and continuously improve the Wairoa Gorge trails.

The City to Sea Rail Trail project aims to repurpose the Foxton to Longburn railway line into The City to Sea Rail Trail - Manawatu. The Ground Effect Slush Fund donated $1100 in 2025 to purchase a chain saw, and recently answered the call to top up the kitty with $700 to purchase tools to keep the community working bees in business.

As an old volcano covered mostly in native bush, Pirongia is an awesome maunga for building mountain bike tracks. The Ground Effect Slush Fund recently replaced an e-barrow destroyed in the February storms for Pirongia MTB so they can get back to work.

Dig Ōtautahi Trust has been set up by enthusiasts who have been building and maintaining mountain bike tracks on the Port Hills for more than 20 years. Most notably they are responsible for the Taramea Loop, Elevator and Full Monty. The DOT trail leaders now have hi-vis thermal Ground Effect vests for their frequent dig days.

A recent Ground Effect blog post on riding the Munda Biddi inspired the Munda Biddi Trail Foundation to request some funds from the Slush Fund to purchase equipment for their trail maintenance volunteers.

The Golden Bay MTB Club with the help of an $1800 donation from the Ground Effect Slush Fund has established a trap line along the completed stage one section of the Pikikirunga Trail.

Richard Goldsbury has tireless energy and enthusiasm for creating and maintaining trails around Canterbury. The Slush Fund has added a chainsaw to the tool box for spring Port Hills trail maintenance.

Due to the heavy rain event in July, the Kaiteriteri Mountain Bike Park took a real hit. The Ground Effect Slush Fund donated $2000 to sponsor the rebuild of the Badjelly Bridge.

The Southland Mtb Club recently purchased an e-barrow with a $2099 contribution from our Slush Fund. It has already been put to work, helping to make the maintenance side of things easier on the trails at Sandy Point.

Saturday 14 June 2025 rolled round with a dig day at Taylors Mistake beach near Christchurch. Led by Malcom McClurg and the Taylors Mistake Bach Association, work commenced on a new track that climbs above the Taylors Mistake Road - a nice way to dodge much of the narrow and congested tarmac when heading back to town. Ground Effect was stoked to get out and use their brand new WMC trail tools. A massive thank you to everyone that came along to help.

The Belmont Area Mountain Biking Association (BAMBA) in Greater Wellington has recently completed a professional, machine re-build of the popular ‘Electric Avenue’ - orginally hand-built by volunteers back in 2017. Ground Effect’s Slush Fund stumped up $1750 to purchase a leaf blower to help keep the new track neat, tidy and flowing fast.