The New Year

Well 2011 is pretty much here so happy New Year everyone. The Forest Freeride 2011 website is live and has full details of everything we've got going on throughout 2011. The usual suspects are still there, Girls Only weekends, 1 and 2 day skills courses, etc but there's a couple of new things too.

New this year are, 2 and 3 day bikepacking trips and 1 and 2 day beginners training courses ... so a pretty broard spectrum of mountain biking really. We'll also be running/hosting some guided ride days for our previous customers ... all free of charge. If you've visited us before and fancy the idea either keep an eye out here or on the website.

Over and out.

Christmas is coming.

I know it's still the best part of two months away but I also know some people are far more organised than I am ... Christmas, love it or hate it, it'll still happen and you'll still be expected to take part to some extent. We're going to give you a little head start and make your life a bit easier by letting you buy Forest Freeride gift vouchers on-line, straight from the website.

Vouchers are available for all our courses and are valid for 12 months. If you buy a voucher and your loved one would prefer a different course, don't panic, we'll happily exchange it for the one they want. To buy your vouchers just go to www.forestfreeride.co.uk and click on the link that says, gift vouchers and solve those present problems.

When Ian met Percival

While attending a skills course Ian had the unexpected pleasure of meeting Percival at closer quarters than perhaps he'd have liked.

Percy had decided to fling himself over a fence to escape Helen Keller the blind ewe and roll head over heels into the yard where Ian was busy getting his groups BBQ going. Much swearing and running around followed from all those concerned ... 600lb of llama squashing your burgers isn't good.

This picture was taken after everyone had calmed down a little but judging by the look of things both of them would rather be somewhere else.

2011 ... already!

Well it's been another busy year and it isn't over yet ... but I thought I'd just mention a few things that we'll be doing next year.

Firstly we'll be looking at some Girls Only riding weekends. These won't be skills weekends (they'll still be there) instead they'll be two days of riding some of the most unspoilt countryside in the entire UK. The icing on the cake is the fact that there won't be any blokes there getting under your feet! I'm just in the process of booking the sunshine and all being well dates and details should be up on the web site by the end of November.

We're also working on some bikepacking trips for 2011. For those who don't quite know what bikepacking is think, off road touring with a real emphasis on self sufficiency. Details are still being worked out but again details should be available by the end of November. At present the plan is to run trips of different lengths and of differing difficulty, so even if you've never camped before there should still be a trip to suit.

Guiding as training?

I spent three enjoyable days last week guiding Sally around the hills and mountains. After a two day skills course earlier in the year Sally had entered herself for the, Manx End to End enduro which involves a 50 mile ride from one end of the Isle of Man to the other.

While riding was certainly nothing new, a stint in the saddle that long certainly was. Some practice was required. Over three days we put some miles and hours in, experience that will prove highly valuable in the IOM. The long days (the shortest of which was 6 hours riding) helped us fine tune Sally's riding position and make any little alterations. It also let Sally get used to the fatigue and stress that her body / mind will have to cope with and develop an eating strategy that would keep her fueled for the event.

Day two saw us tackle a rather interesting climb into the mountains ... a continual 2500 foot ascent, no flat bits, no downs, just up. However, I think the views were worth it. Sally should be resting now, waiting for Friday and her ferry to the IOM, safe in the knowledge that she's unlikely to come across anything harder than shes already faced ... good luck.

SSUK 2010

Well last weekend saw SSUK take place in sunniest Wales. I decided that seeing it was on home turf I'd ride down rather than drive. So 11.00am Friday saw me set off from Forest Freeride Towers on yet another loaded single speed (the monster cross was having a weekend off). The idea was to keep riding south until I'd had enough, bivvy under the stars for the night before a final leg on Saturday morning.

Surprisingly everything went pretty much to plan. The slightly vague route I had in mind turned out to be a winner, the detour into the Doethie valley was a real gem, steep, twisty and narrow and lined with brake grabbing ferns!

I threw the towel in around 8.15pm, after all I'd been riding since 11.00 with two five minute stops and a ten minute one to grab a brew. Bike unpacked, tarp up and it started to rain which was perfect timing as it was just the excuse needed to climb in side my bivvy bag and try to stop my legs from turning imaginary pedals. Morning arrived quickly but any thoughts I'd had about a leisurely start also left quickly ... the midges were some of the worst I've ever had the pleasure of breathing in!

10 miles further and I was done, I rolled into the campsite around 8.30 to be greeted by what seemed to be the worlds biggest bacon butty and copious tea. All I had to do now was stay awake until the "race" at 2.00.

The course was pretty good, half climbing (the first half) followed by a fantastic and very long descent ... superb fun, the braking bump and rigid fork combo' helping keep the concentration levels nice and high. The evening saw me talking bikes with old customers, veteran WRT riders and a vast selection of other one geared weirdos ... as you can imagine I had a great time.

Normal service is resumed.

It's been a while but here I am. The Monster Cross had an outing to sunny France for some fantastic riding and a couple of nights under the stars too. 100°+ temperature, BIG 1000 metre plus climbs and loaded single speeds just seem to fit together like a glove on your foot - but it was fun non the less. There should be a picture here to give you an idea of the terrain, when they describe it as volcano country they certainly mean it. I didn't really have a defined route, just a rough idea of what direction I was meant to be heading. This gave loads of scope to explore all the little tracks and trails I came across ... some superb and some not so. I discovered that wild camping within French national parks is very much a no no, so late camps, early starts and stealth was the order of the day.

MonsterCross ... It's like Marmite!

Thought I'd share this. It's a 29 inch wheeled, rigid, 2 speed single speed with drops so we'll just call it monstercross ... think cyclocross only bigger. This is possibly about as far removed as you can get from most right thinking peoples idea of what a mountain bike is or should be- however, this thing is great fun, it really is. Trails that you can fly down on a more normal bike are now interesting again.

Even though it's a single speed there are 2 cogs out back, an 18t for flatish stuff and a 20t bail out gear for when you meet the proper hills. It's going to get a shake down run this week then it's over to France for a few days exploring the mountains and volcanoes around Volvic. The monstercross and me will be wild camping while we're out there and I'm hoping that 20t cog will be enough ... looking at the map there's some real climbing to deal with. I'll let you know how we get on.

Bivvy Season.

The Welsh Ride Thing rolls out of Forest Freeride this Saturday, 60 brave soles heading for the hills for a couple of nights under the stars and over 100 miles under their wheels. The WRT always heralds the start of the summer bivvy season so if you fancy giving it a try then why not book yourself on a weekend. You don't need any experience or fancy equipment (we'll supply you with anything special) all you need is a sleeping bag and some way of carrying your gear.

Bivvy out weekends aren't a race paced route march, they're far more relaxed affairs ... after all you don't need to get back before it goes dark as you'll be carrying your bed with you. Some people worry about the weather, particularly rain but there's no need. Everyone carries a tarp besides their bivvy bag which if erected well, will ward off most bad weather. If things turn out really horrible then we head for a roof and four walls, almost bivvying indoors.

If you like the idea but are still a little unsure, feel free to get in touch with any questions and I'll do my best to answer them.

A week in the Beacons.

I've just returned from a week in the Brecon Beacons where I've been leading a group from Harrow school on a D of E gold award cycle expedition. The weather was fantastic all week with no rain and plenty of sun ... even if that did mean it got a bit cold at night.

For some of the lads on the expedition it was their first time riding off road. Add the fact that they were fully loaded with camping gear and food they did pretty well all things considered. They covered around 260km over 4 days with about 40 % off road and the remainder on quiet lanes. There were a few shocked faces when they realised they were expected to ride across parts of the Sarn Helen trail, obviously rocks, steep descents and foot deep puddles weren't what they expected!

Anyway here's a picture I took last week as proof that it doesn't always rain in Wales!

Happy People!

Hearing from past customers telling you how much they enjoyed themselves and how their riding has progressed is one of the best parts of my job. Last night I got a thank you email from Annika who was here at weekend, she's written about her experience on her blog so I thought I'd share it.

 http://satu.wordpress.com/2010/03/08/what-i-did-on-my-holiday-weekend/

I was also pointed in the direction of a couple of Bike Radar posts today which make nice reading ... and give me a warm glow inside.

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12679953&sid=1a166201a26b2e1894a6178a0b1bbebe

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12653571

It makes digging trails in the rain and standing around while the wind tries to remove the skin from my face all worthwhile.

Men Ride Pink

Or so I keep telling myself. Fresh from the Forest Freeride workshop my new On-One 456 in a slightly odd colour. I've put it together as a new bike for guiding duties, hence the full compliment of gears and a lightish wheelset. If you're coming riding with us this year and for whatever reason you'd rather be seen dead than be seen with this bike, just let me know and I'll ride something else!

2010 ... The year to ride all the stuff you've meant to?

I've spent the last 4 and a bit years looking at the mountains which make up the sides of the valley here. There's a good chance that I know them better than anyone. Within a couple of weeks of living here I'd walked all over them and discovered some of their secrets but I've never ridden down them.

Each has its own character; on one side there is Esgair Geulan, a big hump backed lump covered in ferns apart from the track which runs the length of its spine. A steep, swoopy trail with corners that you could drift forever. On the other side is Creigiau Pennant, stupidly steep in places and stupidly narrow in others with very big consequences if it goes wrong.

So I've decided that 2010 will be the year to ride them. I don't know why I never have, it's just one of those things. I'll be riding with a helmet camera and post the results up once I get them. So if you've got something local that for whatever reason you've never ridden this could be the year to get out and put the balance right.

How do we do it?

Since the outset we've had a policy of not charging any extra for one to one tuition. One day skills courses are £75 and two day £125 regardless, so if you're on your own you'll pay the same as if you were in a group of six. It's not uncommon to see a price increase of 300% for a one to one course. We understand that everyone has to make a living and we're just the same BUT we won't penalize you if for whatever reason you'd like to be here alone ... afterall, some people have no choice.

Summer Holiday?

One of my many tasks as head of the international (Wales and England) mountain bike company that is Forest Freeride is to come up with new ideas to get people out on their bikes more. This summer we're going to give you the opportunity to ride your bike for 5 days in a row ... a sort of MTB summer camp.

We're going to try and get as much riding and skills training in as possible. We'll include at least 1 day at a trail centre, various ride outs into the Cambrian mountains plus plenty of skills sessions to help you get the most out of it all. The bunkhouse will be available for those wanting to stay here or for the high flyers who want to live it up we can point you in the direction of the pub or B+B. I'm still just working out dates but it will be a weekday thing, Mon through to Fri. If there's a group of you and you fancy the idea then get in touch as we can run one for you to suit. If you'd be interested either email me stuart@forestfreeride.co.uk or keep an eye on the web site.

Forest Freeride on tour?

Forest Freeride is based in one of the most spectacular areas in the UK and boasts some of the best riding to be had anywhere. Combine that with our own facilities like, bunkhouse, purpose built training runs, special skills areas and a 1000 acre forest to play in and it becomes a pretty good package.

However, we do realise that for some people wanting to attend a 1 day skills course we might be a little too far away to travel. We'd hate to deprive anyone of our expert tuition so are looking into the prospect of running some 1 day training courses in a well known English National Park (the clues in the picture). No details have been confirmed yet but it's likely to be during the summer months and quite possibly weekdays. If you think you might want to come along, either keep an eye on the website or email me and I'll keep you posted.

T Shirts and course notes

We've just had the new T shirts delivered and everyone training with us on selected courses throughout 2010 will get one ... how good is that?

Everyone attending a skills course has always been given a set of course notes or 'memory jogger' at the end. This year they've had a bit of a face lift and now contain quite a bit more detail than previous years, Everything you need to remember is in there, body position, braking, cornering technique and line choice are just a few of the areas covered ... perhaps we should consider writing a book?

Welsh Ride Thing 2010

The Welsh Ride Thing will once again take place at the end of May over the Bank Holiday weekend. For those who don't know the WRT is a 3 day mountainbike ride through some of the most unspoilt and wild areas in the UK. Besides 3 days of riding there are also 2 nights out under the stars to be enjoyed/endured depending on your point of view.

Riders are given a series of grid references a month before the start. They then have 4 weeks to devise a route that will pass through all of these points, there's no right or wrong way to go ... just hard or a little easier.

This year we've decided to give out 2 sets of grid references. This should give less experienced riders the chance to try the WRT without it being too daunting. I'd estimate distances to be in the region of 150km for the shorter route and possibly 250km for the longer one. If the idea of an epic ride combined with 2 nights in the mountains and forests appeals then email me at stuart@forestfreeride.co.uk and I'll send you full details.