Kristy McBain (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I had the immense pleasure of opening the Narooma mountain bike trails last week. What an incredible new asset they are going to be to the South Coast. We're talking about world-class trails that bring people from across the country to our region, a key driver of our visitor economy and something that we know will only grow. This is an additional 55 new kilometres of single-lane mountain bike trails added to the existing 30 kilometres of trails in the Bodalla State Forest, at Dalmeny. I'm incredibly proud to say that these new trails were made possible by a $4.1 million injection of support from the Australian and New South Wales governments. They form part of more than 250 kilometres of new trails in Narooma, Eden and Mogo and add to the already phenomenal network of mountain bike trails right across Eden-Monaro.

The Queanbeyan Bowls Club is marking its 90th birthday this Saturday. Ninety years is an incredibly long time to be in operation, and it's a credit to all the members who have been part of transforming that club over the years. The club's greens were laid during the Great Depression, in 1934, and the club recently installed two synthetic bowling greens to attract new members. It stands out as one of the longest-serving bowls clubs across the region. The club has over 100 active members, including social members. It's an inclusive and social place for so many in our community to meet. It has a very proud pennant record—men and women who have achieved numerous feats at district, zone and state level and even some Australian titles, achievements that we can all be incredibly proud of. Congratulations to all involved in the club and a big happy birthday for this weekend.

I want to give a shout-out to some talented Eden-Monaro locals who have been hitting the big time lately. First up, at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics, Abbey Wilson, from the Snowy Mountains, won bronze in the snowboard cross mixed team event, and 17-year-old Lottie Lodge, from Jindabyne, took home a silver in the dual moguls event. Massive congratulations to Dalmeny snowboarding superstar Valentino Guseli, for a silver medal at the world cup in Switzerland, and to Pambula local and mogul champion Cooper Woods, who also won a silver medal at the world cup. They are very talented athletes, still doing really well in the Northern Hemisphere season.

Eden-Monaro locals have been busy taking out awards at the Tamworth Country Music Festival too. Huge congrats to Jindabyne's Brad Cox, who took home three Golden Guitar awards; Snowy Valley's Fanny Lumsden, who had the 2024 alternative country album of the year, Hey Dawn; and the Bega Valley's Cory Legge, who took out the award for the most popular musician or instrumentalist. We're all incredibly proud of your achievements.

I have one last shout-out, to Axl Arens, a Bega Valley superstar who, in conjunction with the Wanderer Festival at Pambula Beach last year, raised over $3,000 for headspace. This is nearly $6,000 of money he has raised for headspace— (Time expired)