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New Custom Built Bikes for Trail Journeys Fleet
Trail Journeys are developing an new bike specifically for the trail and from our 10 years experience on the trail we have identified areas that are important to our customer and our service depart. These include puncture proof tyres, good quality bearings, comfortable riding position with high rake stems for maximum comfort, comfort saddles and many other features identified by our staff.
Check out the comments from our past customers
Trail Journeys like to pass onto our new prospective customers the comments from many of our satisfied customers.To view these CLICK HERE
Trail Journeys launches Wine/Railtrail Combo
New for the 2011 - 2012 season will be a combination Guided Wine and Railtrail experience taking in some of the best cool climate vineyards in New Zealand. For the wine experience, Appellation Central Wine Tours out of Queenstown will take you on a tour of some famous wineries in the Bannockburn area including lunch and then deliver you to Trail Journeys for the start of your Railtrail experience.
Driving down to start the Railtrail. For a good suggestion, READ ON !
Increasingly we have people driving to Central to start the Railtrail. A good TIP for those people is for you to drive to Middlemarch and leave your car with us for either secure inside or outside storage. Catch our bus that day to Clyde where you stay the night and then start the trail the next morning, cycling back to your car. This way you don't have to wait for the bus to take you back to Clyde. As most people will finish around lunch time, if they do 4 days on the trail, you will effectively be 5 hours earlier on the road home or to your next destination. Contact our team for more information. CLICK HERE
Trail Journeys success in Middlemarch !
Trail Journeys new base in Middlemarch has been an outstanding success. With a combination of services offered including hot showers, internet access, merchandise, bike hire and car storage, the Middlemarch base fills the need for a top class facility. The 24 hour fuel from our newly installed card pumps has also provided the local community with a reliable fuel service for the area.
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Trail Journeys History
Neville Grubb and Ritchie Bailey founded the original Trail Journeys "Kayak & Outdoor" in Alexandra in 1990. The two experienced locals had been involved in outdoor activities in the Central Otago for numerous years, with multi-sport, kayak and cycling backgrounds. They both had (and have) a burning passion for the local area and what it offered (offers) to the outdoor enthusiast. They took and very much still take a pride in showing visitors to our beautiful region the best the area has to offer.
With the advent of the Otago Cental Trail Rail in the mid Nineties Nev and Ritchie began to focus the "Kayak & Outdoor" operation towards servicing the needs of people cycling the Trail. What began as a small sideline ended up becoming the main focus of the business in the ensueing years. In 2003 the business was renamed Trail Journeys and moved to a new location at the start of the Otago Central Rail Trail in Clyde, the Clyde Trailhead in an old Railway storage building.
From 2003 until today the business has continued to grow based around their unwavering committment and passion for excellence, their systems and their customer service (Take time to read a few comments and look at some of the photos in our testimonals page from customers who have cycled the trail with us. This testimonal page is regularly updated with our most recent customers feedback and any photos they may have sent us). The business has now catered for over 20,000 customers to date with very, very few problems.
In 2007 Ritchie Bailey sold out of the business to enjoy his retirement (and to continue brushing up on his paddling technique). Later that year Nev brought in four new partners to ensure that the business would continue to provide exceptional standards of service to it's customers as it grows. These partners are Shayne O'Connor (Nev's son-in-law), Hugh McIntyre, Mike Barnett and John Knight.
Nev and Ritch are also the organisers of the iconic (not a word used lightly here note !) 3 Day Goldrush Multi-sport event, now catering for 1200+ people on Otago anniversary weekend in March each year. This event has been going since 1997 and offers competitors a fantastic experience in the outback of Central Otago. Entry for this event is secured on the Goldrush webpage and goes online on the 31st August each year. It pays to enter early as it fills up within one week of being available online.