Growing up in Railton, Tim Reid often looked to the mountains on the town's western flank with wonder.
They would be ideal for mountain bike trails, he thought.
And now that he spends his days wandering the forests, discovering waterfalls and building mountain bike trails, his thoughts are unchanged.
He also lives in town with his family, and with his partner owns the popular main road eatery the Lime Stone Cafe.
On Saturday the next stage of the Wild Mersey network, which includes 15km of new trail accessible from Goliath Park at Railton, will be opened.
For Mr Reid, the trail opening will put the "wild" in Wild Mersey, as new trails will feature a range of technical, advanced riding to complement the existing network of flowy beginner and intermediate trails in the network.
Heavy rain in February delayed the first taste of the trails, which were supposed to be launched with a round of the Tas Gravity Enduro Series.
That event has now been postponed until April, which has given Mr Reid and his trail building colleagues more time to finesse and finalise the trails on offer.
While pedaling along a linking trail between the new jump line 'Super Hornet' and what he said will be known as the 'Quarry', Mr Reid said a central trail hub will provide access to blue and black rated descending trails, and a connector through the Badgers Range to Sheffield.
"We've been advertising the Wild Mersey for a while now, getting the locals interested and getting businesses interested.
"It's perfect for locals and it's going to boost the economy.
"It will change the town."
The opening is the second trail release for the Kentish end of the Wild Mersey network in recent months, after the Sheffield trailhead was unveiled in December.
At the time, Kentish Council Mayor Tim Wilson said businesses were already beginning to see interstate inquiries.
Cr Wilson said once the network is complete riders will be able to disembark from the Spirit of Tasmania and ride the Wild Mersey without any need to hire a car.
"We think this is a real selling point for the Wild Mersey," he said.
A further 30km of trails will be opened in the Badgers Range later this year.
The new trails will be opened with a launch event this Saturday at Goliath Park, Railton, from 11am.
Sandy Powell
Court and crime reporter covering the West and North-West of Tasmania for the Advocate.
Court and crime reporter covering the West and North-West of Tasmania for the Advocate.
