KEY POINTS:
More than 500 children aged between 5 and 13 had a mud-free introduction to mountain biking yesterday in the Woodhill Forest, northwest of Auckland.
The track usually has a scattering of muddy puddles "but there's been no rain for a week, so they missed out on the mud", said Grant Ogilvie of the Auckland Mountain Bike Club.
"But they had a couple of hills and the agony of going up and the fun going down. A lot went round with their parents. It's not competitive, it's about getting your first taste of off-road," said Mr Ogilvie, who is Auckland co-ordinator of the Meridian Energy Kids' Bike Jam.
It was the sixth of seven jams being held nationally. The events draw a total of 3600 riders.
