Wow, thanks for the responses everyone. Some fantastic points.
Check the zoning before you buy; that might help
Good idea, thanks. In reference to the mtb park, I wouldn't really be building for anyone else but myself so I'm not sure I'd encounter the same concerns but as I start keeping an eye on real estate, I'm noticing that some land is not develop-able. I'll have to ensure the property I'm interested in allows for what I intend to do with it. I got a kick out of 'No, Steve' on that video. It's exactly what I'm looking for.
Check out land tax arse rapage first
I didn't think of this aspect and will have to look into it since it wouldn't be our residence. If it's something reasonable I suppose that's just an additional cost of the whole idea.
It sounds great from your description, but that is one hell of a drive and I'm not at my best form when I'm behind a steering wheel. Still, it might be something to consider when I take affordability into account.
It is a reasonable idea. The only downside - you have to manage the land and that exercise has a great deal of implications that can get in the way of trail building and riding....
4.5 hours to Wellington from my house according to google maps is again, one hell of a drive. Still, at just over $1,000 an acre that's pretty tempting and I could do that right now. The other properties would probably require a bit more equity than what we currently have, but I've been idly watching steals of land come up on real estate websites from time to time for awhile now. In regards to managing the land, I'll have to look into the specifics. I may have been under the false assumption that vacant land wouldn't need more than an occasional scrub-cleaning. Thanks for bringing those up, I find myself considering how bad of a drive that'd be.
Even the shittiest looking creek water can be filtered and purified, makes extended trips much easier.
I really like your idea of having some sort of water on the property but this really narrows the selections down while possibly driving the price up. If I could find it, I'd jump all over a piece of land that fits my criteria, has a creek and is affordable right away.
I've been looking to do this myself - go halves with someone
I'd look at the links you've provided but I can't while I'm at work. We might not be competing for the same area if you're in Melbourne anyway. Good luck, I think it's the way to go.
only real thing to keep in mind is liability
I agree with Craig regarding people hurting themeselves - You will have to be prepared for this if you go ahead and buy and build.
So you are the one person that rides clown shoes?
So, guys, I should elaborate on why I brought up Clown Shoes and what this has to do with liability. I hate to bring up Canadian/Cascadia type trails as examples but it's what I know and love so thanks for bearing with that. As a few of you guys have pointed out, Clown Shoes is not popular or known as a fun trail at Whistler. It's actually more of a trail someone does once and claims they'll never go to the trouble again. To me, that's perfect. It's been mentioned that once the trail I build is complete and IF the location of it becomes known, I'll have people riding on it (along with the liability) whether I like it or not. The way I see it, I can reduce this possibility significantly if I build trail that is absolutely NOT what people want. The last few years of watching popular trails develop has led me to believe that most gravity riders want easy air, most xc riders want challenging climbs and most weekend warriors want little technical challenge.
The way I see my trail, it might not appeal to many riders. I want timber North Shore features 20 cm wide that go on for awhile and end in 2 meter or whatever drop offs with absolutely no ride-around. I want lengthy rock gardens on slopes greater than 45 degrees and smooth rock surfaces to ride down greater than 70 degrees, again with no options to ride around. I want rooty, rocky nasty turns, hairpins and kickers. I want filter after filter, drop after drop (preferably setup by a skinny or rock ledge). I want something that is completely unsuitable for a the masses and to be disliked by those skilled enough to ride it anyway. I want this trail to be difficult work, a battle that one can regularly win or lose. I want to be exhausted when the trail is finished even though there will be little to no climbing. I want to earn a beer after each turn. I may not get any of this stuff, but this is how I see it. Then I'll probably build another trail just like it. There's plenty of fast groomed stuff out there already, I want my trail(s) to be slow and excrutiatingly technical.
Any thoughts on this perspective? Who knows, there could be this huge group of gravity riders just dying to find a trail that rides exactly like the trail I'd like to build, just waiting for me to build it.
In regards to the liability (just in case little Johnny from the skatepark decides he's going to have a go anyway). Well, that's just part of the risk I suppose. I'll have to look into liability insurance costs. If they're not reasonable, it may dictate that the prospective land is more secluded.
Again, thanks for all the insight everyone, this is a pretty big purchase I'm considering with elements I wouldn't have thought of. I don't know if I'll get a green light from the missus on something like this in the future, so I'd better seize the opportunity.