Still need convincing to ride Berg & Bush? Look no further.
In truth, there is one reason to ride – joy. Mountain biking brings you joy like no other sport. The distances travelled, the hills conquered and the trails descended all add up to create a fulfilling and fun outdoor experience. At the Berg & Bush, we have all that and more.
1. Location
Nestled just outside Winterton in Kwazulu-Natal, the Berg & Bush base – Emseni Camp – is an oasis of mountain biking isolation, a blissful combination of rural idyll and bushveld bonhomie. When you jump on your bike here, you transport yourself to unique destinations, but before you’ve even started riding, thanks to the laidback location, your body and soul have already been transported to a place of sweet riding dreams.
2. Trail
The guiding principle of the Berg & Bush is to produce an event that has the best, most rideable, free-flowing and fun trails. When event founder Gary Green wakes up in the morning, after he’s said hello to his favourite cows, he thinks about trails. Even Gary’s cows think about trails. Gary and his team aim each year to add on or tweak the trails to consistently improve the rider experience. As a mountain biker himself, Gary knows what riders want and the trail network of the Berg & Bush is testimony to that vision and insight.
3. People
The Berg & Bush is a family-run event and it’s the pride and joy of the Greens and the local community members who are involved. The attention to detail – from the route to the catering – is all borne from the personal involvement of the Greens, extended family, local farmers, family-friends and community members. It’s an event like no other, where everyone pitches in together to create the ride of a lifetime for participants.
4. Scenes
It goes without saying that most events in South Africa boast incredible scenery. In all honesty, if you make a trip into the countryside you’re going to be running or riding in beautiful surroundings. So what sticks out at the Berg & Bush? Everything. The Tugela River, the valley views from Spioenkop, the juxtaposition of lush farmlands and dry bushveld, the thorn trees, the huge aloe trees, the big blue skies, it all adds up to create a thoroughly pleasing assault on the senses.
5. Gees
People who attend the Berg & Bush are here for the same thing – the laidback energy of the ride and race village. Coffee steams away in the morning, beers flow freely in the afternoon, and the world famous Handlebar does a roaring trade in red wine and Old Brown Sherry as the cool evenings settle in. If you’re a mountain biker that enjoys the off-bike gees as much as the riding gees, then Berg & Bush is the event for you. Fair warning, though. Some of the tents are fairly close to the river’s edge, which has been an issue for some over-excited riders in the past.
