Race The Convicts Trail | Take an epic adventure through history at The Convict 100

What do a horse event and The Convict 100 have in common? More than you would think, actually. The Convict 100 has been running for nearly two decades now and has a fervent following of mountain bikers from around the country. The course is steeped in history and also has precisely 0.0km of purpose built singletrack — quite a surprise for a mountain bike event in 2025.

Flow takes a deep dive into the 17 years of this historic mountain bike event and a few of the stories along the way. Ahead of the May 3, 2025 race day, we caught up with Race Director Mark Roberts to get some insights and a few friends of Flow who’ve raced the event and won it over the years.

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From Horses To Mountain Bikes | What is the Convict 100?

The genesis of the Convict 100 is an endurance horse event called ‘Shahzada’ named after a horse. The event was based around St. Albans and was all about riding your horse a reeeeaaaalllllllyyyy long way. It still runs today, and the long course is 400km!

“The original owner of Max Adventure, Gary Fairbrother, struck upon the idea that, if you take a horse somewhere, you could probably take a mountain bike,” says Roberts from Max Adventure.

“Halifax Hayes was the local contact. He was involved in organising the Shahzada, and he was also a big part of St Albans fire service. And so from the very start, it was sort of done in conjunction with the local community,” he continues.

Traversing the hills around St Albans, the course uses the Old Great North Road, constructed by convicts in the 1800s it was the original road between Sydney and Newcastle.

And the first time Max Adventure brought mountain bikers to the area in 2006, they had about 400 riders. Nearly two decades later, thousands have followed in their tyre tracks since, and The Convict 100 is held in high sted, especially among riders from greater Sydney.

The popularity of marathon mountain bike events has its ebbs and flows, but there’s something special about this one. In the first week of May, you can guarantee that a swarm of mountain bikers will be heading to St Albans to take on another addition of the Convict 100.

“Everyone comes down and camps, has a campfire, sits around and talks of their exploits and what they’ve been doing — comparing bikes and comparing equipment, that sort of stuff,” says Roberts. “And then there’s the regular punters that just come along, (they) just simply love it.

It’s roughly two hours north of Sydney and a short ferry ride across the MacDonald River, where you get transported into another world. The city lights fade into the rearview mirror and the glow of the campfires appear on the horizon as you enter the small township.

The regular population of the town is just a couple of hundred, but on the Convict weekend, over 1,000 people are camping in the valley. The Settlers Arms Pub is the central point of town, as it is in most small towns around Australia.

David Gosling, who has ridden 17 editions of the Convict 100 tells us that part of the fun is the adventure of getting out there.

“I usually get there after dark and sleep in the back of my car. It feels like a festival; the pub is always full—lots of campfires. Riders are checking gear and making last-minute adjustments,” he says.

“It’s a real bustle in the morning after the usual “good morning St Albans” wake-up call. There’s a queue for coffee and toilets. There’s often fog hiding the escarpment that surrounds the start area. Everyone is keen to go,” says Gosling.

Gosling raced his first Convict 100 in 2006, having never ridden a mountain bike before — though he had done a triathlon. He bought an Apollo Altitude with flat pedals and wore hiking boots.

“It was the hottest and dustiest race ever. It was when there was still a section where you had to carry the bike up the side of a hill. I had no gels or electrolytes, and I was way out the back. I had one bidon,” he recounts. “I was absolutely cooked, almost in tears. I was on and off the bike at every little hump in the track. I had skin missing from chaffing.”

“I did finish. I fell asleep in the line of cars waiting to get back across the ferry. When I got home, I went to open the front door, and my arm was cramped. My wife opened the door, she said I looked like I was going to die. I thought I had.

I said I was never going to do it again,” he says.

Since then, Gosling has wracked up the record for the most kilometres travelled in the race at 1,403km. Clearly, there is something intoxicating about the atmosphere and adventure of The Convict 100.

Following the Convict Trail

There’s something special about the pre-race chat that you have before a 4, 5, 6, 7+ hour endurance event. Excuses about lack of training are a common theme. But your legs need to do the talking on the cold morning starts and the truth will be left out on the trails.

The course has evolved over the years but still holds the unique title of no purpose-built singletrack. Even still, it’s hardly a buffed walk in the park.

“It still manages to be kind of technical, ” says Imogen Smith, who raced her first Convict 100 in 2006 when it was still the Dirt Works 100. “There’s sandstone sections where there are half a dozen different lines, and you’ve gotta think really quick and choose the right line.”

“It still requires a fair bit of good technical skill and bike handling to go fast in certain sections of the course,” she says.

A couple of the riders we spoke to highlighted these sandstone features for the test of bike wrangling they bring to the race. Roberts tells us there is a long stretch on the farm roads, into and out of town and some fire roads where it turns into a full on drag race for the pointy end of the field.

“The midsection of the course is the most technical and hard to maintain good flow and speed. It’s also where the nutrition intake comes into play, and the engine light could start flashing,” says Jon Odams, who has won the race three times and holds the current course record.

“The final dash along the fast fire roads to the finish line is always a rush. Watching the clock and pushing the pedals as hard as possible,” he continues.

Arguably, the most memorable feature of the Convict 100s gone by is the kayak bridge, crossing the MacDonald River. Originally, when the course crossed the river, riders had to wade. Roberts tells us sometimes it was waist-deep, and other times it was shoulder-deep. The kayak bridge was added to combat this, and became an iconic part of the course.

“I’ve seen a few forward somersaults with a half pike and still clipped in. So far, I’ve managed to stay dry,” says Gosling.

Charlotte Corkin from Max Adventure tells us that, like the route, the kayak bridge has evolved over the years, and it takes two days to build because the river is tidal, and they can’t build when the tide is out.

“Early bridge builds were only two planks wide, seeing many more riders ending up in the river. One year, there were two side-by-side kayak bridges (A-line for riding, and a B-line for walking) this took 46 kayaks. Some years it was a sturdy four planks wide and the latest events have seen it at three planks (about the width of a footpath),” she tells Flow.

Everyone we spoke to about the race was a fan of the Kayake bridge however it won’t feature this year as it’s following the same course as last year. However, Roberts hinted it may make a return in the future.

But it’s not just the Kayak bridge that form the iconic bits of this course, there’s the Sheppards Gully climb, Eight Mile Track, Browns Trail and of course the Old North Road.

The whole way along, you get glimpses of the past, and it’s hard to imagine this was the main route from Sydney and Newcastle along the Old North Road. But the rough sandstone track has proved to be a sought-after challenge for the modern mountain biker.

“I love the sandstone, and I love those technical bits. I grew up riding in Sydney, and it’s my favourite kind of riding…the step-ups and the ledges and that crumbly nature of the surface,” Smith says.

“The climb at the end is pretty hard, but it’s not a stupidly difficult course. There’s nothing that actually breaks you, but it’s a race of attrition,” she continues.

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In 2015 they turned the course around and ran it in a different direction. This allowed the route to hit more scenic areas and create shorter options to open the event up to a new segment of riders.

“The 48-kilometre course, for example, if it’s your first event or your first time out, (it could be) the first time to do an event with your son or daughter. It’s achievable for everybody, as long as you prepare and do some training,” says Roberts.

The elite results are peppered with the names you’ll recognise from other XCM races around the country, with the first rider across the line usually coming in just under four hours. But this is only a small selection of the field, and Roberts tells Flow that some folks end up pedalling through the finish under the headlights of the sweep vehicle at around 6pm — a long day on the bike indeed, but it’s not an effort without support.

“There is always encouragement from other riders, particularly in the last stages of the race. There are offers of help and spare tubes from other riders for anyone in a bit of trouble. People seem to want everyone to get across the line at the end of the day,” Gosling says.

The Convict 100 is one of the longest-running events in the country, and even after being upset due to Covid and called off in 2022 because of flooding in the area, it still attracts between 1,000 and 1,500 riders each year.

“I was blown away at just how popular the event is. It would have to get the most entries for a marathon event in Australia, hands down. And after experiencing it last year, there’s no surprise why,” says Mick Sherwood, who won the 2024 edition and will be back this year to defend his title.

“It is set in a gorgeous location with sandstone escarpments, hundreds of Gymea lilies in magnificent rock gardens, spectacular views from the ridges, best enjoyed earlier in the day,” continues Gosling, who jokes that he looks forward to finishing the Convict 100 more than Christmas and his Birthday each year.

The Convict 100 has a rich history in the Australian mountain bike calendar. The unique course, small-town vibes, chill camping, welcoming community, and stunning environment make this event worth committing to the weekend away! 2025 is set to be another cracker, so grab your mates and get involved. Oh, and probably start training if you haven’t already.

Entries are open now, head over to The Convict 100 site to grab your spot in this epic marathon event.

Quick tips for the Convict 100

• Any mountain bike would work on the course, but you’ll be happiest on a dual-suspension rig. You just need to ride within your limits and the bike’s limits. It’s going to be a long day out there, make yourself as comfortable as possible.
• Make sure you have enough spares and the know-how to use them, but also don’t show up with 170TPI, ultra-lightweight and fragile XCO race tyres. Mechanicals and punctures happen, but don’t set yourself up to be putting in a tube at some point throughout your day. A slightly heavier casing tyre will pay dividends when you cross the finish line and have not had to use a pump or CO2 canister throughout the day.
• Preparation is key for these longer events. Keep your training as consistent as possible, but there also no point smashing yourself the week before. If you can get riding in now, then do it so you have a good level of fitness. With that said the human body can handle a single day of endurance exercise — as demonstrated by Gosling in his first attempt at The Convict 100 — it just might hurt more and take more time to recover.
• Nutrition is key in the longer events. Keep fueling before and during the event. Be careful with breakfast, as the 7am start means you don’t want to eat a massive bowl of muesli before jumping on the bike for high-intensity bike riding (I’ve learnt that the hard way). Something light at breakfast and consistent fueling works for me, such as eating a bar or gel every 30 minutes.

Photos: Outer Image Collective