As was outlined in our last article, following the success of the Karkloof Adventure Tourism Incubator, out of which the Nguni Trails team which now builds and maintains the Karkloof trails was born, The Sappi Trails Programme (STP), Karkloof Country Club and KZN Cycling successfully conceptualised and implemented the pilot phase of The Trail Building Apprenticeship Programme.
Paid partnership with Sappi
The training component of the pilot phase was held from the 1-3 November in Howick and the Karkloof with 10 trainees attending.
Thami Kunene (pictured above on the left), was one of the lucky trainees and he subsequently spent two months doing an internship at the Karkloof trails under the mentorship of Keira Duncan. Following his apprenticeship Thami found himself in the fortunate position of having three trail building job offers! The one he decided to accept was with KZN MTB, which he started on 1 March 2023. Thami said, “I feel honored to have been chosen for this position and I hope to do a good job after everything I have learnt!’’
When asked about his experience on the Trail Building Apprenticeship Programme, Thami responded enthusiastically, “I was a part of a team of four guys who went out every day and we focused on clearing existing trails as well as planning and building new trails. This training is what led to KZN MTB contacting me and offering me the job at Cascades. I also believe the course will help me develop other opportunities in tourism such as MTB guiding on weekendS when I’m not doing trail building and maintenance work!”
Thami’s favourite part of the course was the challenge of re-routing a trail due to harvesting operations which take place in commercial forestry. Considering environmental impacts related to trail building was also something which Thami found fascinating, and this is something he intends to focus on as he continues to develop his trail building skills at Cascades.
KZNMTB and Maritzburg MTB Club are putting in a big effort to continue the legacy created by Nick Floros who has been involved in developing trails at Cascades for the past 15 years.
Dellah Paul of KZNMTB said: “Nick has been an amazing asset to mountain biking in KZN and we will miss him, as he moves onto his international commitments. Thami has been employed to manage the park with a team of trail builders who we will draw from the KZN Development program during the next few months.”
Cascades Shopping Centre will be assisting with some upgrading at the park entrance and Thami will tackle the actual MTB park area. There are some exciting plans to revitalize the skills training area, the river trail, the main XCO course as well as the Downhill and Enduro Courses.
Cascades MTB Park will host the final round of the SA XCO Cup Series in July and the SA Enduro Championships in October.’’
This is an excellent example of how trail sports and adventure tourism can create meaningful work for those who are as passionate and committed as Thami. The Sappi Trails Programme wishes him all the best and we’ll keep in close contact with him as his exciting journey progresses.
