I wrote a column in which I stated that the easiest gobbler to call is one with a wingman often will race each other toward what they think is a hen I experienced the exact opposite of that scenario Legal shooting time had already arrived as I walked down a grassy hillside toward my blind which was tucked under an oak-lined ridge about 75 yards from a small creek that meanders through a pasture Not five minutes had passed before a hen launched off her roost and landed just a few feet from my decoys but nevertheless I reached for my box call and made a few sleepy-sounding yelps She filled the valley with yelps and clucks Her calls were better than any I would make but his frenetic gobbling made it clear he had flown down and was racing through the woods toward me and my noisy feathered friend I shifted my chair to the left and got ready to shoot and she trotted off to meet her unseen suitor Shortly after she disappeared over a wooded hilltop Whatever took place on the other side of the hill likely was not suitable for young viewers when I caught movement from the corner of my right eye strolled past my blind and was moving toward my decoys so I waited until the blind blocked me from the gobbler's view After perhaps two minutes that seemed like hours I finally peered around the wall of the blind The gobbler was 50 yards away and still moving north and within a few minutes another hen joined her picking at the wet grass and milling aimlessly around my decoys walking along a fence on the west edge of the valley When I cranked out a series of yelps on my box call slow walk toward me and my collection of hens and decoys and he was at least 100 yards away when he stopped but never closed the gap between himself and the hens but he never gobbled and didn't take a single step their way They turned their backs on the gobbler and strolled away up the hill toward where my truck was parked The gobbler stopped strutting to watch their departure and I dared hope that he would follow them and perhaps drift into range then looked back to see what the tom would do He galloped to the creek's edge and hopped over it and from there it was a quick 40-yard dash to my decoys and when he slammed on the brakes next to the hen decoy The bird proved to be a 24-pounder with a 10-inch beard but its spurs were clearly those of a 2-year-old He likely was just a few days into his first active breeding season Why had this gobbler been so reluctant to approach what looked like three hens loudly aggressive gobbler I'd heard earlier was the “boss” tom in the area while the bird I bagged and the one that had quietly fled were both inexperienced and sub-dominant They were wary that the bigger tom might be around they also were intimidated by multiple hens Eric Atherton is a Post Bulletin outdoors columnist He can be reached at sports@postbulletin.com The North Queensland Toyota Cowboys held an opposed session in Atherton on Saturday morning alongside our feeder club the Northern Pride This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Vaibhav Suryavanshi is the talk of the world after taking the IPL by storm But history is littered with cautionary tales of teenage athletes thrown in deep end too soon Please call us on 1800 070 535 and we’ll help resolve the issue or try again later Photos from the North Queensland Toyota Cowboys recovery session in Atherton on Saturday Don Johnson is a dad to three sons and two daughters celebrating fantastic Scandinavian composers at the 2025 Atherton Tablelands Chamber Music Festival where local and internationally based musicians unite to bring intimate performances to the heart of far north queensland set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Herberton town hills 2025) offers a rich program of classical and contemporary chamber music with soloists and festival directors Khalida De Ridder and Simon Thielke performing bonus works by Schumann and Tansman with the festival orchestra Whether you’re a dedicated chamber music enthusiast or a curious newcomer the Atherton Tablelands Chamber Music Festival promises an unforgettable weekend of inspiration Join us for a celebration of music in one of Australia’s most picturesque regions Camerata – Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra Check out our playlists from our latest issue Our free Weekly Newsletter delivers the latest arts news reviews and features to your inbox each Saturday Atherton thinks so...Are gearboxes the future of downhill MTBs Atherton thinks so...Hands-on with 2025's most exciting mountain bike Atherton’s interest in a belt-driven downhill bike started six years ago in co-founder Dan Atherton’s caravan but it wasn’t until August 2024 that the brand began pursuing the project seriously.  Five intensive months of development and testing later, the A.200.G was released to the world – and boy did it make a splash.  The Atherton A.200.G eschews derailleurs in place of a gearbox and belt drive – tech that many commentators believe is the future of mountain biking.  Built specifically for Charlie Hatton – the 2023 downhill mountain biking world champion – to race at Hardline Australia and through this year’s world cups Atherton invited BikeRadar and MBUK to its factory in Machynlleth, Wales, for an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at 2025’s most talked about downhill bike, and to learn why the brand is investing in gearboxes and belt drives Although the Atherton A.200.G is an evolution of the brand’s previous downhill bike explains this shift is a bold one: “We’ve taken the bike Charlie won the World Championships on and said ‘No We’re gonna get rid of that and we’re going to do something completely different But why risk messing with what is clearly a winning formula?  Gearboxes are claimed to offer many benefits, especially on downhill bikes While a gearbox generally weighs more than a derailleur drivetrain this isn’t a concern on a downhill bike.  In fact, Hatton was strapping 500g of lead around the bottom bracket of his previous race bike to improve performance (a practice some brands, including Orange A gearbox sits where a typical bottom bracket shell would so the additional weight is ideally placed adding weight to the rear triangle and anything mounted to it including the wheel) impacts suspension performance Reducing unsprung weight results in a more sensitive suspension system.  With no derailleur or cassette at the rear of the bike using a gearbox can improve the sprung-to-unsprung weight ratio of a bike.  more reliable than a derailleur system.  the gear mechanism is protected inside a metal housing There is also no derailleur hanging off the back wheel where it’s at risk of race-run-ruining damage.  Gearboxes can also enable you to shift gears without pedalling but Hatton says it offers genuine advantages on the track: “There’s limited time for gear shifts in a straight and I need to be in the right gear While mid-air shifts may be useful to an elite rider such as Hatton mere mortals had more prosaic concerns about the gearboxes of old which struggled to shift under load and generally used GripShift-style shifters Pinion has largely eliminated these concerns with its electronic SmartShift tech which offers near-instantaneous shifts with a conventionally shaped trigger shifter.  A gearbox and – in the case of the A.200.G – the belt drive that powers it is generally less efficient than a chain and derailleur.  Reporting seen by BikeRadar suggests a 4 to 5 per cent efficiency loss with the Pinion system rather than full sprints – where the loss is said to be less Either way, Gow explains this isn’t a concern for downhill racing.  Even at a 5 per cent loss in efficiency, this shouldn’t make a marked difference in a sprint, compared to a trail bike or XC bike with the benefits outweighing any drawbacks.  Gow claims “you get efficiency gains at that peak point of a finish line sprint” Gates made headlines when it announced its Gates Belted Purse prize fund To grow interest in its system and add a little jeopardy to the race calendar Gates announced that the first elite-level rider to win a UCI downhill race on a Gates-equipped bike would win €100,000 this is tempting – it would generate headlines and any rider would love to win the biggest prize fund in cycling But that’s not why Atherton opted for a belt drive.  In our review of the Atherton AM 130.1 tester Luke Marshall described the DW6 linkage used on the bike as “the new benchmark” for suspension performance This Dave Weagle-designed 6-bar linkage was used on the previous A200 but has seen a slight revision for the A200G with the main lower linkage sitting higher in the chassis than previously an integral part of Atherton’s design team had a concept for a mid-pivot version of the DW 6 linkage that makes the rear wheel’s axle path near vertical in the most active portion of the bike’s suspension travel Rob Gow explains; “The benefit of that being your wheelbase isn’t changing as you’re pumping through a corner so the grip therefore is maintained evenly between your two tyre contact points "This takes the existing race bike to a new level.” It may have been possible to utilise this design with a conventional drivetrain.  However, Gow says the packaging requirements of the pivot placement and drivetrain would have required a more complex drivetrain, potentially including a dual-chain or dual-idler setup, as seen on the Pivot Phoenix enabling Atherton to use smaller Gates sprockets ensuring the mid-pivot architecture can be used Add in the shifting and weight-distribution benefits of the Pinion gearbox and the reliability and durability of the Gates A Far North Queensland club is attempting to reverse a decline in senior membership with the introduction of a new added new yellow tees recently and has earned plaudits from members for the change The new course is 1984 metres shorter than the full Atherton 18-hole golf course The course has already proved a winner with Atherton’s eldest member the first to tee it up on the yellows at the ceremonial opening recently Club President David Hazlett told ‘The Express’ that Atherton was following Golf Australia’s edict of ‘more Australians playing more golf’ in making the change they can’t hit the ball as far and they get a bit disillusioned with the game,” said Hazlett “The idea of the yellow course is to allow for people who score high to be able to shoot lower and feel better when they play golf tips and access to partner promotions Join our newsletterGet weekly updates on news A coroner investigating the death of newborn baby girl in Far North Queensland has demanded answers about why critical witness statements have not been provided Any Questions? Please call 1800 070 535 Saturday & Sunday 7:00am – 11:30am (AEST) This is probably not the page you’re looking for The season’s onset brings a host of evocative smells which two esteemed players have never been able to savour Alongside the sugary cloud drifted a junk shop of memories, sweets handed out at jelly and ice-cream parties, shared on the kerb outside the corner shop, sucked on the way home from school. Later on, we passed a man pushing a mower to and fro on his front lawn and that fresh hit set off a whole other chain of flashbacks. As a cricket lover, you probably know where this is going. and the winters are long and damp and quite barren of natural smells cut grass is the first sign the cricket season is on the way – quite quickly on the way now There are only 16 days until Surrey walk out (probably wearing beanies and carrying handwarmers) to start their County Championship title defence Smell is the most underrated of all the senses; the least glamorous often held at bay by the indignity of a runny nose But it is also the sense most connected to memory and is linked to the part of the brain involved with emotional and behavioural response Which is why we have such a strong reaction to mown grass: sitting next to the cricket season to come is also the cricket season past but who have now slipped away to rest a while on the bench in the shadows Alongside the lawnmower and the daffodils and the hawthorn blossom and the rudely fragrant hyacinth bulbs calling out from shop fronts the world is slowly coming to life as the days stretch towards the spring equinox It is one of the great pleasures in life to go for a walk in March and smell possibilities all around But this isn’t the way for every cricket lover or every cricketer There are at least two Test players who have never sniffed the linseed oil even the odour of sweet toasted corn floating out of the Kelloggs factory round the corner from his former home ground Atherton has no memory of having had a sense of smell His mum first noticed when he was six or seven years old “We lived in a village called Woodhouses [in Greater Manchester] where there are more pig farms per square mile than anywhere else in the country,” he says they would feed the pigs and there was apparently an almighty stink and she began to realise I was not registering any of this stuff.” it wasn’t something that he had ever thought about until the Covid pandemic when everyone else was talking about losing their sense of smell it means he needs someone to tell him if his food smells bad and he has begun to think his taste buds might be different to everyone else’s – he sometimes struggles to tell the difference between tea and coffee and tends to like spicy food rather than anything more subtle It also means he may have made a few olfactory faux pas in his time: “My teammates could probably tell you about some stinky shirts I might have worn out of ignorance.” But he is typically no-nonsense about the whole thing signing off with: “What goes in my nose is air Free weekly newsletterSubscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week’s action Smelling no fear: Mike Atherton hooks Australia’s Glenn McGrath for four in 2001 Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The GuardianAnother Test cricketer without a sense of smell is Simon Katich who lost the ability to sniff an old baggy green after an attack of glandular fever That also knocked him down the waiting list for a Test place after the rookie Ricky Ponting muscled into the vacant spot in the Australian middle order while Katich languished in bed Not being able to sniff the difference between parsley and sage did not hold him back when he got to the semi-finals of Australia’s Celebrity MasterChef in 2009 impressing the judges with his crispy salmon with wilted spinach and mashed potato Can we take anything away from these two fine cricketers being unable to smell Could it be that their inability to register the stinking pheromones of an angry fast bowler – thinking here in particular of a furious Allan Donald pawing at the ground at Trent Bridge in 1998 – helped keep them calm Might a lack of flamboyance at the crease be related to their inability get a sensory hit from a morning espresso or never having to endure the whiff of a post-match nightclub no amount of ruminating can stop the passing days There is something in the air: the season is coming This is an extract from the Guardian’s weekly cricket email, The Spin. To subscribe, just visit this page and follow the instructions This is the archive of The Observer up until 21/04/2025 The Observer is now owned and operated by Tortoise Media A rampant Atherton Roosters side has stamped its credentials as FNQRL contenders with a high-powered attacking display against Innisfail Full Digital Access $24 charged every 4 weeks unless cancelled. Renewals occur automatically unless cancelled as per full Terms and Conditions. Each payment, once made, is non-refundable, subject to law. Not in conjunction with any other offer. Prices may be varied as per full Terms and Conditions. See www.cairnspost.com.au/subscriptionterms for full details Atherton Bikes has teased a prototype downhill bike without a derailleur Dumping the traditional drivetrain in favour of what looks to be a Gates belt-driven system with a gearbox – most likely made by Pinion – Atherton Bikes' new A.200.G prototype is a statement of intent The drivetrain as we know it has a long track record and plenty of wins under its belt including for Atherton Bikes’ Charlie Hatton Rachel Atherton and ex-team rider Andreas Kolb chain and cassette removes one of the biggest failure points in mountain biking – and boosts suspension performance The teaser shot of the A.200.G on Atherton’s Instagram feed shows how svelte the derailleur-less rear end is potentially helping its rider weave tighter lines through rocks and roots and reducing the chances of cutting short a World Cup-winning run due to damage We’ve all seen the nearly countless heartbreaking moments when a rider’s chain snaps out of the start gate something a belt drive should all but eliminate Although a snapped chain doesn’t always signal the end of a racer’s run – Aaron Gwin famously won the 2015 World Cup in Leogang without a chain – it’s not ideal Moving to a belt drive should significantly reduce the chances of this happening we’ve also seen chains come off the chainring or cassette once again thwarting a rider’s chances of winning singlespeed design and reliable tensioner should reduce this problem In a sport where thousandths of a second matter not being able to shift gears while you’re freewheeling in preparation for the next section seems like an own goal Traditional drivetrains need to be rotating for gears to shift properly freewheeling or deep diving through technical terrain The freewheel is inside the gearbox itself rather than the hub the belt – or chain – continues to rotate This means you can shift gears without pedalling to speed up your exit from a corner or technical section By getting rid of the cassette and derailleur which should improve suspension performance control and – most importantly for a world cup racer – speed now it only needs a single cassette sprocket or belt cog the bike’s front triangle gets heavier because you’ve added a gearbox This is a real positive because the ratio between the front and rear ends' weights has shifted further the lighter rear end now has more to ‘push’ against so it takes more force to upset and destabilise the bike’s main frame This increase in sprung mass doubles down on the effects of the lighter unsprung mass Electric mountain bikes are the best example of this; weighty front triangles are matched with lightweight rears to bring impeccable suspension performance one of the downhill world cup’s largest and most successful teams moving to a gearbox design should persuade you – and put the final nail in the derailleur’s coffin… for downhill at least a wholesale move to gearboxes could be risky They’re relatively unproven in competition; although a few teams have run gearbox bikes – such as Zerode and Gamux – none of their riders have quite made it into the podium to prove the design’s mettle reliability and serviceability all factor in and help make the vulnerable derailleur look like a safe bet The rest of the bike’s construction looks to be relatively unchanged if the teaser YouTube video is anything to go by; it still uses 3D-printed lugs, carbon fibre tubes and the DW6 suspension design I was enamoured with on the shorter-travel A.150 Moving to a gearbox bike is a risk for any brand but it’s particularly interesting for the Atherton Bikes race team given their roster of impressive DH riders which is particularly pertinent if Atherton Bikes is running a Gates belt to link the gearbox and rear wheel belt manufacturer Gates is offering a whopping €100,000 prize fund to the first racer to win a UCI downhill World Cup with a Gates belt-driven bike The Atherton team members' track record makes winning it a near-certainty former world champion Reece Wilson’s new team for 2025 appears to also sport a Gates belt and Pinion gearbox the Scot announced his plans with the all-new AON Racing Team and teased his bike Competition for the 100k Belted Purse is hotting up and we’re very excited to see how the 2025 racing season unfolds