Post a pic of your non trials bike

[Mark W]

Ah, didn't realise you'd popped over this side of the border! Whereabouts are you? The whole of South Wales is ridiculous for the amount of riding available. So many dig crews everywhere!

[MadManMike]

On 12/5/2022 at 9:48 AM, Mark W said:

Ah, didn't realise you'd popped over this side of the border! Whereabouts are you? The whole of South Wales is ridiculous for the amount of riding available. So many dig crews everywhere!

As strange as it sounds, there's actually less to ride where I am now - in Brizzle I had Ashton Court a short ride away, as well as many pump tracks. Where I am now, I have to stick the bike in the car and drive to trails and I've struggled with the motivation to do that... There's apparently something fairly nearby which I plan to check out once it warms up again.

We bought a house in April 2021 in Undy, a small village between Chepstow and Newport.

[Mark W]

That's a new one to me, but a quick Maps search reveals all! That's unfortunate positioning though, there's a lot of stuff going on a short drive from you but appreciate that driving-to-ride feels significantly different to pedalling out the door. If you do decide to have a pedal out, I'd be happy to meet somewhere! If you've not been on your bike much then a cruise around somewhere like Cwmcarn would be a good place to start. It's a pretty fun trail centre with some proper signposted routes and a lot of fun off piste stuff, but the climbs there are a bit more welcoming than some of the absolute bastards you can find in the valleys down here... Think it's about 30mins or so from you by the looks of things.

[MadManMike]

Yeah I've done Cwmcarn a few times, not for 3 or so years though - I think there's more there now, it used to just be a red and a purple trail. Funny that you say the climbs are more welcoming, I found the red one pretty brutal!

Certainly easier than Y Wal at Afan though, that climb is brutal 

Verderers at FoD is one of my favourites and pretty forgiving for someone in my current shape.

Definitely up for a ride at some point, probably once things warm up a bit - I'm a fair weather rider and don't really have any winter kit to use even if I was feeling brave. I'll definitely need to do a bit of training, I haven't been on the bike for so long... other than a quick ride around my area, which is totally flat.

[Mark W]

Yeah, over lockdown a lot of really fun off piste stuff got added, and they've also developed and added to the existing network. There's a blue and two reds and blacks now, along with the old school DH track which they've done up too.

The Twrch climb is certainly rough to be fair, it's fairly relentless. Both Cafall and Twrch (which are the two 'normal' climbs) are hard in their own ways - Twrch is the awkward techy rocky one, and Cafall is the one that appears to be 90% hairpins... 

Still need to get over to FoD! Seen so many videos from there and it looks fun.

[MadManMike]

2 hours ago, Mark W said:

Yeah, over lockdown a lot of really fun off piste stuff got added, and they've also developed and added to the existing network. There's a blue and two reds and blacks now, along with the old school DH track which they've done up too.

The Twrch climb is certainly rough to be fair, it's fairly relentless. Both Cafall and Twrch (which are the two 'normal' climbs) are hard in their own ways - Twrch is the awkward techy rocky one, and Cafall is the one that appears to be 90% hairpins... 

Still need to get over to FoD! Seen so many videos from there and it looks fun.

Cafall has the zig zag section, I can't remember what it's called, but yeah it's a slow climb (At least with me at the pedals haha).

Twrch I had to get off a few times, climbing is my weak point especially when it's techy.

FoD is probably my favourite place to ride, Verderers is only a blue trail so not technically demanding, but has great flowy parts - the dragons tail section is so much fun, you can easily go way too fast!

There's also Launchpad, which is even easier to go way too fast on, it's basically a downhill pump track that's over in under a minute, it's great fun. The red trail there (name escapes me at the moment) I found a bit too rocky and just worn out last time I rode it, it's probably been re-done by now though.

[Mark W]

20 hours ago, MadManMike said:

Cafall has the zig zag section, I can't remember what it's called, but yeah it's a slow climb (At least with me at the pedals haha).

Twrch I had to get off a few times, climbing is my weak point especially when it's techy.

FoD is probably my favourite place to ride, Verderers is only a blue trail so not technically demanding, but has great flowy parts - the dragons tail section is so much fun, you can easily go way too fast!

There's also Launchpad, which is even easier to go way too fast on, it's basically a downhill pump track that's over in under a minute, it's great fun. The red trail there (name escapes me at the moment) I found a bit too rocky and just worn out last time I rode it, it's probably been re-done by now though.

That Zig Zag bit I think is Quadzilla? They've put signs up for all of the sections on it now but I'm usually too busy thinking "Why did they make it like this" to really take those details in, haha. Some bits of Twrch got switched up a year or so ago to make them more doable. The climbs had eroded on some of the techier bits (probably in large part down to how many ebike riders use that trail, they'd almost scooped bits out of it like when MX bikes get ridden up MTB trails) so they resurfaced some of it and altered others. That has in turn deteriorated/weathered in a bit so it's still a good challenge, but less haggard than it was.

Is FoD pretty compact? I don't really have any frame of reference for it. Is it pretty quick to get back up to do different trails, or is it BPW-esque where it's a pretty long climb to get up to do more runs?

[MadManMike]

On 12/13/2022 at 2:09 PM, Mark W said:

That Zig Zag bit I think is Quadzilla? They've put signs up for all of the sections on it now but I'm usually too busy thinking "Why did they make it like this" to really take those details in, haha. Some bits of Twrch got switched up a year or so ago to make them more doable. The climbs had eroded on some of the techier bits (probably in large part down to how many ebike riders use that trail, they'd almost scooped bits out of it like when MX bikes get ridden up MTB trails) so they resurfaced some of it and altered others. That has in turn deteriorated/weathered in a bit so it's still a good challenge, but less haggard than it was.

Is FoD pretty compact? I don't really have any frame of reference for it. Is it pretty quick to get back up to do different trails, or is it BPW-esque where it's a pretty long climb to get up to do more runs?

Quadzilla, that's the one - last time I rode it I was on a bike that was too big for me, so that probably negatively impacted my experience, but I remember struggling quite a bit on that section. Would be interesting to go there and see how different it all is now.

FoD I'm not actually that familiar with overall, I've stuck to the same old stuff when I've gone there. There's a few DH runs that you can get an uplift to, but I've never done them so I have no idea how easy it is to get back to the top without uplift.

The blue trail I think is around 40 minutes to complete, possibly a bit longer. Launchpad is relatively quick to get back to the top, about 10 minutes of pushing I think (You can ride it, but it's incredibly steep!)

I think it's pretty compact compared to BPW, I've done the ride-up option there a couple of times and found the climb to the top too much. I'd do it on an e-bike but I'd choose the uplift for the normal bike these days.

Once it warms up I really need to get out and build some fitness back, I'd be useless at all these places now. First time ever making a new years resolution perhaps?

[Mark W]

Quadzilla is just tough regardless, simply due to how they've laid that trail out. The grade isn't particularly steep, but all the switchbacks mean that you're basically having to generate speed almost from stationary over and over again, so rather than just spinning a nice easy cadence and maintaining your output you're almost doing interval training.

Basically everyone here has an ebike and they love that trail. I can see why as with a motor it'd make it a lot more engaging, but Twrch is way more fun on a regular bike!

Related to that, but I'm typically the solo regular rider or one of two regular riders if we do a group ride to BPW. It means that it gets pretty rough towards the end of the day! Last time up there we did the full bottom-to-top climb, and the first trail that got nominated was a top to bottom... Riding with the guys down here and having to chase ebikes has certainly improved my fitness!

Just going back to Cwmcarn, the Twrch loop takes me about an hour and 20-30mins to do, and I find it kills me way more than doing a similar ride locally. Most of the 'unofficial' stuff down here is more winch-and-plummet kind of trails, so fairly standard fire road climbs to then bomb down stuff. Because those trail centres are designed more as a loop they take a bit more doing - there aren't really the same kind of natural taking a break points on them (especially something like Twrch which is quite undulating for the top part of it), compared to most other setups in South Wales. There are some exceptions to that rule, but because of the hills being fairly short and punchy they lend themselves more to winch-and-plummet.

It means you may find that if you've got some more off piste local stuff it might be a bit easier to build your fitness on, but it depends what's closest to you really. As one example there's a place known locally as Mojo (as Mojo Suspension are based right by it and I believe used to use one of the lines there to test suspension) which is a little closer to you than Cwmcarn, and that's a series of different runs that all descend off one main climb so you can choose what you want to do, then either do a spin-and-push to get back up. It's here, and is contained within the two little woodlands you can see on satellite view.

Also just remembered about Wentwood! Wentwood is just North of you (find it here), and has some super good trails there. Again, winch-and-plummet, but a lot of fun. They can be a little tricky to find, but if you parked in the normal forestry carpark and lurk the heat maps on Strava you'll probably find the trails themselves easy enough. There are some easier ones and there are also some absolutely ridiculously steep ones that I was pretty glad we didn't ride last time we went there...

There are loads of walks in Wentwood forest, so I'm sure you could take the family up there for a stroll some time and surreptitiously keep an eye out for trail starts and finishes on your way through  

[DJEHB]

An icy spin down the local this morning, trying to shake off a cold but no surprises I’m now feeling worse 

[Mark W]

Nice  

Also managed to get out yesterday, but a little later in the day:

The contents of my water bottle was getting pretty crunchy towards the end of the ride. Not ideal! Everything was running remarkably well - so firm it was like summer again. All fun and games until you hit a random icy root...

[MadManMike]

23 hours ago, Mark W said:

Quadzilla is just tough regardless, simply due to how they've laid that trail out. The grade isn't particularly steep, but all the switchbacks mean that you're basically having to generate speed almost from stationary over and over again, so rather than just spinning a nice easy cadence and maintaining your output you're almost doing interval training.

Basically everyone here has an ebike and they love that trail. I can see why as with a motor it'd make it a lot more engaging, but Twrch is way more fun on a regular bike!

Related to that, but I'm typically the solo regular rider or one of two regular riders if we do a group ride to BPW. It means that it gets pretty rough towards the end of the day! Last time up there we did the full bottom-to-top climb, and the first trail that got nominated was a top to bottom... Riding with the guys down here and having to chase ebikes has certainly improved my fitness!

Just going back to Cwmcarn, the Twrch loop takes me about an hour and 20-30mins to do, and I find it kills me way more than doing a similar ride locally. Most of the 'unofficial' stuff down here is more winch-and-plummet kind of trails, so fairly standard fire road climbs to then bomb down stuff. Because those trail centres are designed more as a loop they take a bit more doing - there aren't really the same kind of natural taking a break points on them (especially something like Twrch which is quite undulating for the top part of it), compared to most other setups in South Wales. There are some exceptions to that rule, but because of the hills being fairly short and punchy they lend themselves more to winch-and-plummet.

It means you may find that if you've got some more off piste local stuff it might be a bit easier to build your fitness on, but it depends what's closest to you really. As one example there's a place known locally as Mojo (as Mojo Suspension are based right by it and I believe used to use one of the lines there to test suspension) which is a little closer to you than Cwmcarn, and that's a series of different runs that all descend off one main climb so you can choose what you want to do, then either do a spin-and-push to get back up. It's here, and is contained within the two little woodlands you can see on satellite view.

Also just remembered about Wentwood! Wentwood is just North of you (find it here), and has some super good trails there. Again, winch-and-plummet, but a lot of fun. They can be a little tricky to find, but if you parked in the normal forestry carpark and lurk the heat maps on Strava you'll probably find the trails themselves easy enough. There are some easier ones and there are also some absolutely ridiculously steep ones that I was pretty glad we didn't ride last time we went there...

There are loads of walks in Wentwood forest, so I'm sure you could take the family up there for a stroll some time and surreptitiously keep an eye out for trail starts and finishes on your way through  

Funny you mention Wentwood, we've been meaning to do a walk there pretty much since we first moved here - I think we've gone everywhere but Wentwood now. Sheryl already knows I'll be scoping it out for trails, next time we decide to go for a walk I think I'll suggest there.

When I last did Cwmcarn I did the red and the purple once, then I was totally exhausted, that was at the peak of my fitness so I doubt I'd be able to do that now. Does the red trail still have the jump section that you can loop back round and do again? That was a fun feature.

The most local to me is in the screenshot I've attached. I've not been there, but apparently there's some half decent trails there, so they're probably the best option for some fitness building. I can ride to them, but it's along a sketchy 60 road so not ideal.

If you go to Mojo, you may as well check out FoD - the start point is at Pedalabikeaway, which seems to be pretty close to Mojo.

[AdamR28]

Snow still clinging on tightly up here. Beaut 

 

Did a race the other weekend... hadn't planned to enter, but didn't have anything on so just turned up and got an entry on the day. Glad I did, had an ace time! Hamsterley is a lot of fun. Reckon I hit more than 150 jumps over the course of the day, ha.

67 miles and 10500ft of climbing later...

Well chuffed!

[MadManMike]

10,500ft of climbing on a single speed, damn - you'll be rivalling Airbus soon

That jump shot is a great photo!

Congrats on the win dude.

[Luke Rainbird]

Great stuff Ads, well done on the top step!

[Duncy H]

 

Built myself a new vessel last week. Been piecing this puzzle together for best part of six months and the frame finally showed up. Medium Bronson 23, relatively low unsprung weight for alloy wheels, new gen rockshox squishy bits which honestly feels like a different approach to how to do suspension but in a good way, hayes dominion A4s, 165mm cranks to try out the hype. Sitting at 14kgs I think which I’m stoked on for it’s intentions. So far looks promising for achieving some things I set out to do with this build from initial ride impressions but we’re currently buried in snow, Santa is bringing warmth and rain though. 

Shoutout to my old bike too, had my Airdrop Edit for three years and I still found moments where I would stop and was just dam impressed by how it rode. Will genuinely be sad to see it go but hopefully passing it onto a friend and giving it the works before I do. 

[Tom Booth]

That looks a bruiser Duncan! How do you rate the new Lyriks Ultimates? I'd heard a few complaints about them (only teething stuff that comes from a new release) but it did steer me away from the upgrade

[Duncy H]

On 12/31/2022 at 2:10 AM, Tom Booth said:

That looks a bruiser Duncan! How do you rate the new Lyriks Ultimates? I'd heard a few complaints about them (only teething stuff that comes from a new release) but it did steer me away from the upgrade

What teething problems did you hear of? 
 

The new generation of rockshox squishy bits is very different to previous. It approaches it from a different angle, it’s a firmer platform/damper and does not have that flattering off the top suppleness of old but in contrast it stands up in the mid portion of the travel so much better rather than wallowing through it and there is no desire to start throwing volume spacers in there. It feels as though the front end is pushed into the ground and bites more as a result. As an experiment I did a ride setting the fork up as you would like the previous gen and it felt poor and wanted to brake traction a lot easier. So far very impressed by my ultimates but have seen non ultimates pass through our place and been less than impressed by the finishing. 
 

I’m still yet to really totally figure it out as my rides have mostly been limited to prework laps on tamer trails whilst we have snow here at higher elevations. Also keen to pull it apart soon and see what’s going on inside and get my head round it.

[Mark W]

On 12/23/2022 at 6:23 AM, Duncy H said:

Just wanted to say that's a great photo, dude! Bike looks like it should be sweet too. Those tanwalls work  

[Mikee]

On 1/24/2021 at 10:08 AM, isitafox said:

They're Selcof boost forks, think they're only available from Planet X so if you want a pair it's worth sending them an email. 

Wow. 2 years later and i'm back to toying with the idea of buying a pair. What's your opinion of them? Still in use?

[DJEHB]

Decided to try something a bit different. MTB and trials is my passion, so I’m keen to see if this will float somewhere in the middle.

 

Pretty much all hope + Burgtec spec. Planning to strip the stem and spacers silver and probably fit a pivotal off my old hex. 
 

Some great parks and pump tracks around me, and some great trails nearby

[Ross McArthur]

Just handed my bits in to the LBS. 69er project is go.

[J.KYDD]

New steed. Goes well. 
Buzzing with it. Got some fettling to do with set up so will be running laps at the local this weekend to get her fully dialled in

Probably going to order the cascade link to bump the rear end up to 142

[DJEHB]

That Forbidden is stunning, Druid?

 

I think this is my new favourite bike, made quite a few adjustments since last post:

 

- built up an i9 hydra for the rear (thanks Tarts for speedy delivery!)

- pike DJ forks

- new longer rear hose

- removed front brake

- Burgtec 30t sprocket

- shadow supreme chain

- 14t rear

- Burgtec saddle

- stripped the stem and spacers silver

- ODI longnecks

- cut down seatpost

 

Had an absolutely huge slam at the pump track on Saturday.. 2 front teeth smashed through my face, broken ribs and many other minor injurys. Helmet saved me big time. Anyways, plenty of time on my hands this week so figured I’d do a post.

[DJEHB]

double post

 

Edited February 13, 2023 by DJEHB
Double post