Mountain Bike Borders

New bike build

2011-11-25T08:33:00.001Z

The build is coming along nicely. Pictures and full story soon :)

Another cracking event!

2011-10-19T10:19:00.000+01:00

Ae Report

Sunday the 9^th ofOctober saw the 6^th and final event in the Scottish MBO summerseries. This was our second attempt atorganising an event and we were keen to make good on all the learningopportunities our last event had offered us. The venue we chose for this finale was Ae forest in Dumfriesshire, a7stanes centre and home to some rugged single track and a café serving someexcellent cake.

We were keen to use Ae as,in common with our last event, it offered the chance to set a course thatincorporated hardly any tarmac as well giving competitors a chance to rideplenty of grin-inducing single track. The40km² area we had decided to use is mostly forestry and surprisinglyhilly with some lung busting climbs. The run up to the event saw us makingseveral trips over to Ae to check out the area and the accuracy of the OS map –it’s amazing how whole forest roads can completely disappear given a few yearswithout any use. Having spent many hoursin the saddle and even more working on the map we were finally ready.

This year the SMBO eventshave been blessed with outstanding weather however our run of good luck on thesun stakes couldn’t last and true to Scottish form the days prior to the eventwere rather soggy. Given the greyconditions nearly 40 hardy souls donned their wet weather gear and headed tothe start line. It was great to see newfaces making an appearance as well as the regular SMBO hands. One pair camehome early with a broken rear mech but rather than admitting defeat they simplyhired another bike from the shop and set off again as they were “having toomuch fun to stop early” (always good to hear!). As the 3 hours drew to a close, tired, muddy,smiling faces started appearing over the horizon. The bike wash and showers were soon put intoaction.

Congratulations to JackieJamieson and Margaret MacIntosh who, on their first attempt, won the femaleteam with 180 points, Katie and Robin Munro who won the generation team with320 points, Keith and Lynne Brydon who won the mixed team with 340 points,James Daplyn and Paul Ryan who won the male team with 350 points, AlisonGillies who won the female solo’s with 300 points and Alan Hartley who won themale solo’s with 390 points.

Thanks go to Andy McLennanfor all his help and support, everyone who helped collect in check points afterthe event and to the staff at Ae who couldn’t have been more helpful. Thanks also to our sponsors Alpine Bikes andHigh5 from providing prizes and emergency rations.

So that’s the end of thesummer series and I’m already excited about next year!

Results and more can be found here ..... http://www.smbo.org.uk/

The day before

2011-10-09T00:04:00.001+01:00

What a day before we had! Ae mbo event is almost set up.

Set off in 4x4 to set out some checkpoints at Ae, took a lot longer than first thought, hampered by a puncture!
Toni and Scott did a great job on the bikes fighting through some heavy downpours to make it back in virtually same time as us lol

Tomorrow is looking good, all set out and ready to go :)

One week to go!

2011-10-02T09:52:00.001+01:00

With only a week left, the entries are starting to come in at last. Seems mbo'ers like to leave it to the last minute!
The course is all decided, and looking like a real challenge.
See you all there.
www.smbo.org.uk

Nice day at Ae

2011-09-25T00:35:00.001+01:00

Great sunny day riding at Ae. Toni and I rode the round the checkpoints for the upcoming trailquest/smbo event on the 9th of October. A few adjustments, but most perfect :) its gonna be a great course.

Ae map done!

2011-09-22T23:55:00.001+01:00

That's The map for our Mountain bike orienteering event now complete :) Toni has done another top job! More info at SMBO
Heading there too test it out on Sat

Wheels update

2011-09-18T19:00:00.001+01:00

Just been for the first ride on new wheels. After my initial eeek! They make funny noises moment and realised that was them just settling down lol they feel great :)
Deffo made a difference to the rolling speed of the bike, and the freehub sounds nice, not noisy like hope ;)
Was only a mince round Glentress this time so more rigorous testing will follow soon!

Ae entries OPEN

2011-09-16T09:21:00.002+01:00

Entries Open for the Ae Event at www.bmbo.org.uk/Ae Get in early for a Good discount!

For more info on the event format and some other useful stuff visit www.smbo.org.uk

New 29er Wheels

2011-09-08T11:56:00.002+01:00

Well I decided to upgrade the super heavy basic Bontrager wheels that came on my Gary Fisher 29er. After a particularly wet trip to Aviemore riding through Scottish rivers deeper than the hubs, the shimano cup and cone bearings were looking decidedly dodgy to say the least. Looking around for what to buy I got a surprise at the prise to be honest. I wanted to get some reasonably light wheels with Stans rims so I could get the big wheeler onto tubeless set up asap.

I found Superstars had a deal on for Stans Crest Rims on their Switch hubs with brass nipples and black sapin race double butted spokes.
The quoted weight was 1650g for a set of the Crest wheels (actual weight was 1720g but think they quoted the 26er weight), so I thought cool :-) Stuck in the Paypal details and the order was placed.

Quoted as instock I figured they would be here in a day or two, but due to a carrier mix up they took a few more days and unfortunately I didn't have them for the Wark MBO event at the weekend! Oh well they would have just got muddy anyway ;-)

When they arrived I received a text from Toni saying, em I think they have delivered an empty box!!! Which if anyone else likes to get lightweight stuff in the post for their bikes knows is the best response possible!

Opening the box I was impressed with the packing method, quality fitting box to protect the wheels. This makes such a difference.

Feeling them I knew they were quality, and they were light! Felt lighter than I thought they would.

They came with a rim strip fitted which looks cool in Red (my fav colour) but of course not so good for fitting tyres and tubes with......... I want them to run tubless but still waiting on the Valves and rim tape in the post from another supplier, I couldn't wait to get them on the bike lol
I cut a strip of duck tape and fitted it to cover the spoke holes so I could get them fitted asap!

I chose to fit Bontrager tyres as they are easiest to fit if I'm honest and they are nice and light.

So at present they are fitted to the bike with tubes and tyres, this will change next week.

My first impressions of the wheels are great, and hopefully after a good ride this weekend I will still be smiling ;-) Will update this post soon after a few miles and no doubt lots of mud!

Freehubs and bearings are easily purchased at at sensible prices, one of the main reasons I chose these wheels. Especially after hassles with DT Swiss and Hope parts! Either being unavailable or expensive.

No hiding now!

2011-05-05T23:43:00.001+01:00

The new team MTB Borders jerseys are here! Looking amazing in the new team colours :-)

Won't be any problems picking us out at the races now!

A couple of size issues, but other than that, we are very happy!

Pics will follow soon.

Yarrow Valley MBO Event..... Entries OPEN!

2011-04-29T00:31:00.000+01:00

Entries are now open for our Yarrow Valley Mountain Bike Orienteering event!
Get your entries in and support us on our first event. It's set to be a great weekend, with more sponsors coming on board as we speak. So far we have Alpine Bikes and High 5, with more planned.

Click the link below and come join the fun :-)
http://www.entrycentral.com/index.php?festivalID=&raceID=101040

Rules and Regs

2011-03-22T22:40:00.001Z

Spent most of tonight, writing and going through rules and regulations for the Yarrow Valley event! Who would have thought holding a round of the National MBO championship would involve so much work.

Can't wait for the event now :-)

Not long now!

2011-03-20T17:52:00.001Z

Only 3 weeks to go until the first Scottish mountain bike orienteering event of the year! The Pentlands is the first one and was a cracker last year, so get your entries in.

Visit www.smbo.co.uk to get your entry in.

New MTB Borders team jersey

2011-03-01T19:27:00.001Z

Design is done! Looking good :-)

New Sponsor

2011-03-01T10:16:00.000Z

The 2011 SMBO Series has just secured a new Title sponsor! Alpine Bikes will be supplying prizes and support for all the events in the Scottish Series.

Check out our website and take your pick of events to enter here http://www.smbo.org.uk/

This years events look like being the biggest and best yet, with 6 excellent locations and more prizes than ever. If you have never tried Mountain Bike Orienteering, take a look at the website and give us a shout for more info if you need it.
go on give it a try, you might just like it!

SMBO Scottish Mountain Bike Orienteering

2011-03-01T00:03:00.001Z

Work is coming along well on our Yarrow Valley round of the Scottish series and we just discovered our round is part of the National Series too! No pressure then to make it a good one ;-)
More info, maps and where to enter coming very soon!

FFD 2010

2010-09-29T12:05:00.000+01:00

This year we had No Rain ……. Just perfect biking weather

For the 4th year running we held our own event, still named Forum Fun Day (Its not a race...honest)

based in Selkirk heading up over the Three brethren and using our favourite Yair Forest trails.

After last years washout, we were pleased to wake up to clear skies but with a cooler temperature, making it possible for us to run all the extra bonus tasks mid-stages.

This really is all about having fun, bring out new members and riding our bikes! We however came up with some easy tasks that had the competitors using their brains for a change! Also it levelled the field and gave the non racers amongst us a bit of a chance

:-)

After a few riders bailing for one dodgy reason or another, we all set off up the first climb from Selkirk to the stage start.

Stage 1 is a pure hill climb up to the 3 Brethren. Ok with an added twist half way up, and Dawn ready to greet everyone. This challenge was to split a chain, using your own tools and then complete the climb to the top.

Stage 2 saw everyone head downhill from the 3 Brethren, taking in some of the best Singletrack in the area. Some of these trails are used in the Selkirk Merida (CRC Mountain Bike Marathon series) so some folks are very familiar with them.

After a gentle ride together up to the start of Stage 3, we waited while Toni headed in to the buzzard Lair alone..... She called to say "START the riders, I can hear the Buzzard circling above" SO I set them off! One by one at 30 second intervals they headed up a short technical climb then downhill through some great singletrack carved through a clear fell and then into the Buzzard Lair! The trails were slick with the recent rain and I could hear the whoops and laughs from them snaking their way down to the finish.

Stage 4 was another climb stage, a tough climb at best but after the riding so far people were gonna suffer! This stage took us all back up to the saddle just below the Three Brethren. A lot of laughs and a well earned break before we headed on a slow plod up to the top for the final stage!!

This is my favourite stage, a Mass Le Mans start downhill. It goes straight down from the Three brethren right down to the valley floor and the finish at the Corbylin car park.

I set them off and they ran through the gate, grabbed their bikes and were off! Screaming and laughing lol it was a sight to see! Only one puncture the whole day from everyone, and it had to happen on the best stage too doh! Anyway Swayne (Viking) stopped whilst leading to fix it and watch the others fly by. His race was done. He didn't mind as it had been fun and still had some great downhill to go :-)

After we all finished, talked and packed the bikes we headed to the local cafe to work out the final results and present the trophy to the winner.

Well done to Colin (ckc) for taking the win.

What a cracking day everyone had, and they were already talking about next year and wondering what we will think up for them by then!

Come join the forum below and see the fun we have!

http://mtbborders.proboards.com/index.cgi

www.mtb-borders.com

Fitness: 33 Reasons To Cycle - BikeRadar

2010-09-08T14:19:00.000+01:00

Fitness: 33 Reasons To Cycle - BikeRadar

Gala Hill Sunshine

2010-08-31T10:09:00.000+01:00

Had a day off for the this week, and figured I should test the new camera. Here's the result.
Riding the Gary Fisher 29er to good effect.

Best to watch it in HD for full effect :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4i5wxMoF5Q&hd=1

Local Music for Local People

2010-08-28T11:00:00.001+01:00

Ok I know it says "Local" Well these guys are local, coming from Selkirk, but this is a Live show filmed in San Francisco :-) Enjoy Frightened Rabbit!

Cross Borders Epic

2010-06-29T13:56:00.001+01:00

That was an epic ride! 74km in total. We did a complete loop of Newcastleton, then the crossborder trail joining up with the Lonesome Pine trail and following it back to Kielder, then round the Deadwater trail, back up the Lonesome pine, onto the Bloody Bush trail before joining onto the crossborder loop again back to Newcastleton where we did the last bit of the red/blue route.

Newcastleton was fun, the crossborder trail is worth doing, especially the return route (amazing view!) and I enjoyed the Deadwater trail although I was too tired to do the technical sections justice.

We were really disappointed with the Lonesome Pine and Bloody Bush trails and the latter should be amazing but both were spoilt by really poor trail building. The board walk sections are great fun but the rest of the trails have been bulldozed through the forest and a load of hardcore dumped to make the trail. The feeling is that the trails have been dumped on top of the landscape rather than integrated into it. The surface is really rough and often a very, very loose mix of large stones and sand making the uphills pointlessly technical and the downhills very sketchy and frustrating. All flow has been spoiled and the trails feel like they haven't been finished. FC England have wasted so much money!

We really began to appreciate how good we have it north of the boarder - funnily enough the small section of the Bloody Bush than snuck into Scotland was properly laid and compacted but as soon as it went back into England the surface deteriorated again. It has definitely put me off entering any of the Enduro's down there if the trails are like that.

Fortunately we got to ride back to Scotland again and try the red/blue return back to Newcastleton with was fab and really had us grinning again :-)

We really enjoyed the day, especially the awesome weather and will go back to Newcastleton to do the crossborder loop but we wont bother with the Kielder trails next time.

Here is the route we did, taken from Endomondo which I highly recommend as a free bit of GPS software.

Inside The Lab: An In-Depth Look at Trek's Race Department

2010-06-23T20:27:00.000+01:00

Monday 12th April - the Day After!!

2010-05-12T15:01:00.000+01:00

Unsurprisingly we had a late start today but we were actually feeling ok, meaning we could all stand upright and string a sentence together. Brunch on the terrace was a leisurely affair, enjoying strong coffee while looking out at the mountain we had scaled yesterday. It was fair to say we were feeling pretty pleased with ourselves but none of us were up for a big day in the saddle. Eventually we set about cleaning our bikes and making sure they were still working.

About mid-afternoon we headed out for a wee local ride, nothing too ambitious but enough to get the legs turning again. We headed across to Valor following the GR7 walking route towards the Cheese factory, all fairly easy going apart from one set of rocky switchbacks that we all walked – they weren’t that hard but with tired legs and slow reactions we decided discretion was the better part of valour. Skirting the top of the town we headed out along a nice piece of single track that lead us down into a gorge. Yet again the winter floods had swept away the bridge and with deep fast flowing water we were forced to use the extremely dodgy looking “bridge” the locals had cobbled together. It was basically a few branches tied together and looked very slippery as the water almost immersed it, especially in not very grippy bike shoes! A combination of teamwork and luck got us all across with our bikes.

A steep climb took us out of the valley and back to the road. We had a steady climb on tarmac where the bikes began to show the signs of the punishment they had taken yesterday, gears started jumping, wheel went flat and freehubs began to feel and sound distinctly ropey. We fixed what we could and continued up until we hit the singletrack that dropped off the edge of the road and down into the valley. We made a brief stop at a natural spring that produces carbonated water. The locals filling up crates of waterbottles tried to tell us about it but our limited Spanish wasn’t up to a full translation. It certainly was a weird sensation drinking from the fountain.

We continued on down the valley along a dirt road, the large landslip we came across had yet to be cleared but was an easy clamber across and the washed out ford didn’t hold us up much either. Just as we started to climb the red dirt road out of the valley our curiosity was sparked by a group of A-frame huts fenced into the bottom of the valley. They were deserted but looked like a summer camp of some sort – very bizarre anyway!

The climb back towards Valor felt brutal on our poor tired legs but we made good progress winding our way through some very pretty Casa’s, eventually we dropped down to an ancient bridge and began the last climb up through the streets of Valor. Drawing on our last dregs of energy we made it to the top of the town and hit the path back to our Casa.

After a quick shower we set about trying to fix all the faults that had appeared overnight in our bikes. Mostly it was a case of tightening stretched gear cables, but Kev took his freehub apart to find only one ratchet still in place after the battering his back wheel took in the superfast rough descents we had ploughed down in the closing stages of yesterdays race. With everything back in it’s proper place it sounded a whole lot better!

Mmmmm delicious veggies for tea again tonight (I wonder how we’re going to eat our way through 3 crates of them by Thursday?!!!)

Day stats:

Ride – Questa Vina ride

Ascent – 560m

Distance – 14 km

Time – 2 hour 45 mins

Sunday 11th April - Race Day!

2010-05-11T09:08:00.004+01:00

The alarm went off far too early this morning, it was still dark outside! Since most of our stuff was already packed and in the van all we had to do was throw some clothes on and grab some breakfast before we hit the road. First light was dawning as we set off down through the village and the nerves were beginning to make themselves felt. We had been warned that the road we should take was closed by a landslide but that we could take “The Track” to get round it. We had heard mixed opinions, some saying don’t use the track as the construction lorries need it to clear the slip and others saying it’s fine and a van like ours would have no problems getting through. All in all we thought it best to leave extra time to make sure we didn’t miss the start. As it turned out the road had been reopened the day before so we had plenty of time. The rest of the journey flew by quickly in a mixture of excitement and nerves. As we came over the last pass towards the coast we were all taken back by the sea of polytunnels that carpeted every inch of the flat land before the sea – it truly was an awesome sight. A lot of the fruit and veg that appears on our supermarket shelves comes from this area and every competitor in the race gets a crate of veg when they cross the finish line!

We got to El Ejido an hour early but used most of it trying to find the start line as it wasn’t where the downloaded map said it should be. We tried following a guy in a on a scooter wearing a bike helmet sporting the event logo but he’d obviously read the same map as us ended up in the fictitious start too. We got there in the end by following another guy on a decent looking mountain bike. Check in was interesting as none of us speak Spanish but we managed in the end and bumped into a few other Brits entering too.

The competition looked intimidating – all sporting roadie tops and looked extremely fit. There were a lot of bling bikes on the start line too mixed in with a few from Decathalon. I’m sure we were the only riders in baggies! We set off on a procession through the streets of El Ejido lead by the Major and a police escort. It was cool being part of such a colourful pelaton and being cheered on by the residents who came out to watch the procession. The real start was a few miles out of town and we were dropped almost immediately – not that we made any effort to keep us as we knew we’d never make the top at that pace.

From watching previous event video clips we had assumed the climb would all be on hard packed fairly smooth forest road, boy were we wrong! The going was ok as we zig-zagged our way up through the sea of polytunnels but then we were led into a gulley and followed a very stony riverbed for several kilometres, suspension forks were unlocked and shocks changed to full bouncy to try and make the going a wee bit easier. The sun came out and started to bake us as the gradient increased and we ground our way up through the foothills in our easiest gears. With the broom wagon hot on our heels we finally reached the hard packed forest road and steadily started to climb our way up the mountain.

The first feed station at the 15km mark was a real milestone for us and we began to feel like we might be able to actually make the top. It was stocked with chocolate croissants, bananas, dates and a variety of drinks. Fortunately the broom wagon decided we were too slow to follow so stopped for a chat and a smoke at the feed station. Feeling much more invigorated we continued up switchback after switchback into the pine forests of ordered squat fir trees that covered the mid-slopes of the mountain. There was a lot of beautiful singletrack disappearing tantalisingly into the forest and we began to get excited about the long descent ahead of us.

The next milestone was when Kev checked his GPS and told us we had already climbed higher than Ben Nevis. The view back down to El Ejido confirmed how high we were and looking out we could see clouds over the Algerian coast. I was really enjoying myself and it felt less like a race and more like a normal mates ride but in the warm sunshine with amazing views at every turn and the smell of pine trees in the air.

Although we were one of the back markers on the race we were very pleased when we reached the second feed station a whole hour and a half before the cut off time. We’d been climbing steadily now for 3 hours and were high up on the mountain. We were being cheered on at regular intervals by spectators who had driven up to support the race. They were a friendly lot and the language barrier was little problem, Walt even persuading one of them to give him a push up a steeper section in a Tour de France style! An hour later and an ambulance came into view, we had reached the highest point on the ride at 1600m after 4 hours and 30km of steady climbing – now the fun really started!

It began with a fast section of forest road before we were directed up a short steep climb onto some singletrack. Due to us opting to take the slightly shorter route (50km instead of 60km and 750m less climbing) we were now back amongst the racers. This caused a wee bit of a problem because as roadies they were super-fast up hill but totally rubbish going down or over anything with a rock in it. My competitive instincts kicked in and I began picking them off one by one, most were very good about letting me through. The trail was excellent narrow undulating singletrack with tight switchbacks and marshals ready to catch you if you fell off on a technical section. A few were slightly too enthusiastic and were standing in the way with a look of horror that you might actually want to ride their section – I could see them thinking “Damn, I’ve had no accidents yet and now this daft girl actually wants to ride this!” I was thoroughly enjoying myself, even though my tyres were way too hard I couldn’t bring myself to stop, it was just too much fun!

Another fast section of forest road brought us further down the mountain and Kev whistled past me finally clear of the slow riders who had held him and Walt up allowing me to get ahead. The next section of singletrack was steep and very dusty. It was impossible not to lock your back wheel up and I really wished I’d let some air out my tires as they bounced around the dusty ruts finally depositing me over the handlebars into a bush. A nearby marshal came rushing to my aid, righting my bike for me and yabbering away in friendly Spanish. I took the opportunity to drop my saddle so I could ride the next bit, the marshal looked a bit concerned but I stayed upright this time and continued my way tailsliding down the increasingly tight switchbacks until I met my match with the last one and opted to walk it rather than disappear over the edge. The trail spat me out at a Cortijo and I stopped and sorted my tyres and saddle height.

The next part of the course took us down a track that started fast but became looser and rockier until we were riding down a riverbed with burning brakes. Finally we emerged from the gulley and onto fast tarmac for the last blast back to the finish line. I crossed the line in pretty much bang on 5 hours, Kev was about 5 minutes ahead and Walt a few minutes behind having been held up even more by lycra clad roadies struggling with the technical route.

We collected our boxes of prize veg then some pasta and beer being dished out at the finish line before settling down on the grass in the sunshine to watch the prize giving still buzzing from the excellent ride. I was pretty nervous about entering such a hard event but loved every minute (well apart from the riverbed at the start – that was a killer and we all suffered covering that section!) I think I would seriously consider entering again 

Day stats:
Ride – El Ejido Race
Ascent – 1600m
Distance – 50 km
Time – 5 hour

Saturday 10th April

2010-05-10T09:07:00.000+01:00

Another sunny day in

Spain

. I’m beginning to get a wee bit worried by the race we’ve entered tomorrow. The Casa has a fantastic view dominated by the Sierra de Gador a large mountain between us and the coast and that’s the mountain we are going to be racing up – at 2236m it is impressively big and I’m sure it’s been getting bigger everyday we’ve been here. Every time we stop to enjoy the breath-taking views around here my eyes are drawn to Gador’s looming bulk. 50km sounded no problems in the comfort of my living room a few months ago, but now as reality sets in I’m beginning to get a wee bit nervous. Never mind we’ve entered now so there’s no bunking out.

With this in mind we had planned a restful day, just a trip to the local supermarket in Ugijar in the morning then we had been invited up the mountain for lunch by some very hospitable Brits who have swapped the rat race for a self sufficient life high up in the Sierra Nevadas. Ian had offered to fetch us and our bikes to save us the climb, even in the van it took us 30 minutes of steady climbing up a dirt track to reach their homestead or Cortijo. We were treated to a superb lunch, most of which was home grown, topped off with some of Karen’s potent homebrewed cider. As we sat on their terrace in the sun enjoying the spectacular views it was easy to see why Karen and Ian had chosen this spot to live.

Time passes quickly in the Sierra’s and once Walt had cuddled the chicken it was time to get on our bikes and head back down the mountain. The short steep climb out of the Cortijo was a shock to the system and quickly wore off the effects of the cider but then we were off hurtling back down the rough track, manualing over small puddles and streams and jumping off the drainage ditches that crossed the road at regular intervals. We intended to take our time but the speed gradually crept up as we whistled past pine forests and almond groves while trying not to be distracted by the magnificent views across the valleys. All too quickly we abruptly arrived back at the Casa.

We spent the next couple of hours cleaning and preparing the bikes for tomorrow – oh bugger, we’re racing TOMORROW!!!!

Day stats:

Ride – Descent back from Karen and Ian’s Cortijo

Descent – 800m

Distance – 12.5km

Time – 50 mins

Max Speed – 54.2kph – yeeha!

Friday 9th April - Figure of Eight

2010-04-28T08:48:00.004+01:00

Yay, it’s sunny again! It’s so nice waking up, opening the shutters and bright sunlight comes streaming in to the room – definitely could get used to life in Spain! We spent the morning tinkering with the bikes and lazing in the sun.

After lunch we headed out on the figure of eight loop which starts from the Casa front door. We were straight into a fast descent switch-backing down through the almond groves to Mercina Alfahar followed by a long but steady climb up the smooth tarmac to Mairena. I was really feeling the after effects of yesterday’s epic ride and was constantly dropped by the other two while the lactic acid slowly worked its way out of my legs.

Leaving Miraina, and feeling a bit more energy in my legs we joined the GR7 again and headed towards Jubar stopping to refill out camelbaks at one of the many fountains or fuentas that litter the area. We were slightly confused by the local church – on top of the spire is a cross, a Jewish star and an arrow that looks suspiciously like it points towards Mecca, definitely a church for the whole community J

Leaving Jubar behind us we headed on upwards on a rough track, steadily gaining more height along the side of a deep ravine where previously we’ve seen circling eagles (or were they vultures waiting for some unsuspecting biker to fall off the path). Finally we reached a red and white arrow that directed us over the edge of the road and down into the ravine. The singletrack that followed was fantastic, a mixture of fast flowing path, technical rocky sections and steep tight hairpins some of which Danny McGaskill would clear but I definitely couldn’t!

The path clings to the hillside and is very narrow at times – best not to look down. A pair of walkers tentatively working their way up the trail flattened themselves against the hillside and looked at us in sheer amazement as we flew past – he he he, much rather be doing what we were doing that slogging our way up on foot! Eventually the trail spat us out grinning like idiots at a fast flowing stream in the floor of the ravine.

The bridge that had once existed here had been swept away by the winter floods so carrying out bikes we waded across gasping slightly at how cold the water was. Continuing back along the other side of the gorge on more singletrack we finally ended up in Laroles.

What goes down much come back up again so we started to ascend back to Jubar on the road. More rocky singletrack took us down to Mairena where we were forced to take a detour to avoid another landslip that had completely taken the path away. Fortunately the detour was a very enjoyable blast down the steep narrow streets of Mairena weaving our way between whitewashed houses huddling on the hillside before a not so enjoyable slog back up a dirt access road so steep we had to push the last section. The track rollercoastered it’s way around the hill until we were back in the Nichite valley high up on the hillside opposite the Casa. I can’t stop smiling as I write about the last descent! A long flowing bit of trail interspersed with rocky sections that might have been a challenge if we weren’t having so much fun that we didn’t stop to think about them. The path traversed round the hillside gradually descending into tight rocky switchbacks down to the bottom of the valley.

Again the bridge had been swept away so we were faced with another bracing wade through knee-deep, fast flowing snowmelt. A short push and a gentle climb brought us back to the Casa where we took off our wet shoes and sat on the front step drinking a well earned beer whilst putting the world of bike geometry to rights. Happy days J

Day stats:

Ride – Figure of eight from Nichite to Laroles

Ascent – 915m

Distance – 22.7km

Time – 4 hours

MTB-Borders Spanish Trip part 2

2010-04-17T10:30:00.006+01:00

Thursday 8^th April

What’s that all about?!!! We woke up to thick fog shrouding the Casa which did not bode well for the ride we had planned since none of us had ridden this one and we were relying on a guidebook, an ancient disintegrating map and being able to see more than 10m! By lunchtime, and with vague signs of the fog lifting we set off in the van down into the valley in the direction of Cadiar. In Spain everything takes longer, which I quite like, but meant our brief stop in Ugijar to pay our race entry fees into the bank ended up being not so brief, however eventually we arrived in Cadiar and set off on the 400m climb up dirt track in the sunshine.

The climb was in parts quite steep but with fresh legs we made short work of it. By the time we reached the tarmac road at the top the mist had returned so we didn’t get any of the expected views while we climbed on up towards Juviles. As we topped the hill the mist cleared and we were finally rewarded with a spectacular view down a craggy valley, an impossible path clung to the hill opposite and we all said in unison “That can’t be the trail we’re going on! We’ll be walking!!! We’re going to die!!!!!” but deep down we all knew that was the path and hoped the guidebook was right with their description that it was the best descent on the whole route and we hadn’t inadvertently picked up a climbing guidebook!

The fast road descent into Juviles was fun and we were greeted by a reception committee of the town’s friendly dogs. After we had some food and generally delayed the inevitable by checking we had our insurance documents with us, knew who to call if one of us fell off the mountain and prayed to the mountain bike gods that our skills wouldn’t desert us at a critical moment we set off.

Joy, joy, joy – massive smiles and lots of goats – the book was right, the trail was sweet and had us grinning from ear to ear. We crested the col and were met with a path that switched back down the steep hillside to the village of Timar. The book described it as hair-raising and rocky but it looked fine and with confidence high we got out the video camera – visions of a U-Tube clip making us look like the cool riders you see in proper films swimming in our heads. First leg was great, slightly dodgy round the first hairpin but still going well, then we were faced with a rocky canyon with drops and no room for error – slam on the brakes and all we could hear from Walt above was “I’m not saying I told you so but….!” Ok, walk that bit, but the rest of the descent was awesome, pretty technical but just within our abilities so by the time we reached Timar we were all buzzing with adrenaline and raving about how good the section of trail was.

I love riding down through the tight winding street of the wee white villages in

Spain

but I have also learned to respect the concrete road, generally the Spanish use concrete when it’s too steep to have tarmac. So we headed of down a concrete road/ramp trying hard to ignore the obvious concrete road rising sharply out of the other side of the valley. We made it up in the smallest gears we had before the road turned back to tarmac as we arrived in Nieles. Just before the church we turned down a steep path signed Route Medieval. This was a mix of cobbles, rocky steps and dirt path which was great fun and the locals must have wondered what we were doing as we wooped and giggled our way down the descent that was only slightly marred by muddy landslips and fallen trees that we had to clamber over.

We forded the river at the bottom and started up a climb trying to ride where we could but the trail was narrow and pretty steep in places so we ended up hiking a fair bit. The path then switched back on itself towards Timar following the Route Medieval which is a gentle trail we had been greedily eyeing up from the other side of the valley. All was going great until we reached a major landslide that had taken the whole path away. We had a bit of a mission to get ourselves and our bikes across but we managed it. Further along we found another landslip, smaller than before but this time very muddy and by the time we had clambered across we were looking more like swamp monsters (ok, slight exaggeration, but I was cursing the people whole thought it was a good idea to make girls bike shoes white!) The next section of trail followed the old disused Timar road, it was badly eroded by the winter rains and also had some landslip damage. Next was another short descent through an almost lunar landscape down to another river. Here the erosion meant we missed the path and after an attempt to scale the near vertical side of the valley where Kev proved what a mountain goat he really was and Walt came as close to death as he ever had before, we re-evaluated our route choice. Kev, having already scaled the worst of it continued up to the top, while Walt and I went back down to the river and waded downstream until we met the official path which proved to be much more mundane and less death-defying.

We quickly passed through the next village following the GR142. The path undulated across several canyons before we found ourselves flying down a smooth ridgeline and dropping into yet another river valley. The last climb proved to be a tough one – the book said it was all rideable but we ended up hiking a lot as not only was it steep and we were very tired but it was also so eroded in places that it was almost impossible to walk beside your bike let alone turn your pedals without catching the side. Not much fun and we were increasingly becoming aware of the sun slowly slipping towards the horizon. It wasn’t too long a climb and we were glad to reach the top. The last descent was lots of fun, a few rocky corners but for the most part we could just cruise down until we reached the riverbed track back to Cadiar.

We were absolutely knackered by the time we got back to the van and headed straight to the nearest restaurant for steak and chips. The winter erosion definitely marred the second half of the ride but all in all it was an excellent route. Once the park authorities replace the missing bridges and fix the landslips I will definitely want to go back and ride it again J

Day stats:

Ride – Cadiar/Juviles/Nieles loop

Ascent – 1118m

Distance – 28.2km

Time – 6 hours (Walking and map checking takes time LOL)

MTB-Borders Spanish Trip part 1

2010-04-16T15:53:00.000+01:00

Monday 5^th April

Bikes – check, spares – check, clothes – check, food – check, passport and travel documents – check, van packed and ready for the off - check. Yipee, the start of our Spanish trip! Organised as ever we were up until 1.30am trying to get everything ready, including servicing a shock at 11.30 at night, maybe not the most sensible thing to be doing the night before we headed of to Spain for 10 days but it all turned out ok. We set of early in the morning and headed north to Edinburgh to pick up Kev. Lucky git got a lie in LOL!

After much discussion about where most of the Bank holiday traffic would be we decided to head down the A1 but before we even left

Scotland

we hit a traffic jam –collective groan! Fortunately this didn’t hold us up much and before too long we were winging our way south. We made it to the Dartford crossing by 7pm and managed to get a Tunnel crossing an hour earlier than booked – result!

Tuesday 6^th April

With perfect timing we hit Paris in the small hours of the morning and drove on through the night skirting Bordeaux at about 10 o’clock the next morning. We developed a good rotation where one person slept in the back of the van, one person drove and the third sat in the passenger seat and kept the driver company. After Bordeaux we pushed on to Bayonne along very straight roads through very flat wooded country and the Spanish border in the Pyrenees. The first sightings of mountain in the distance were met with much excitement even though we had decided not to stop and ride our bikes in them. The countryside around St. Sebastian is absolutely beautiful but we quickly passed through it and on to the Spanish plains around Madrid, counting bulls on the way. Yet again, and more by luck than judgement, we hit Madrid late in the evening and so missed much of the bad traffic although this was still some of the heaviest we had seen on the whole journey. Having finished most of the food we had bought with us and getting a wee bit sick of fast food we decided to keep going – we were nearly there!

Wednesday 7^th April

We arrived in Granada in the small hours of the morning and had a bit of a discussion – should we attempt the frankly hair-raising pass of the Puerto de la Ragua in the dark when we know there have been landslides or stop and wait til daylight. We were all so tired by now that our attention spans were less than 2 hours before we started to fall asleep at the wheel but Kev was feeling up for the challenge so we went for it. The good part about it being dark was we couldn’t see the sheer drops but we could see that there was nothing coming the other way round the hairpin bends that clung to the cliff-like hillside so with relative ease we reached the summit and started to descend down to Laroles. The final short leg that traversed the hillside to Valor we did in thick fog and we began to get an idea of how bad the landslides had been in the area – large chucks of hillside partially blocked the road and other sections of the road had been washed away. Walt drove the last part of the journey up through the village of Nichite which requires a lot of skill just to negotiate the impossibly narrow steep streets and not scrape the sides of our long wheelbase van. The smell of burning clutch filled the air as we finally reached Casa Escosia at 4am. A quick pot noodle then we all turned in for what was left of the night.

Around midday we finally surfaced and were met with sunshine and magnificent views. After a lazy lunch of spaghetti, olive oil and black pepper (all there was in the house LOL) we unloaded the van and took it on a bit of an adventure trying to find an open supermarket. The trip down through the village was much easier in the daylight but we had forgotten about the Spanish siesta so the only open place we found was a bar – oh well, time to sample the local brew while we waited for the shops to open again. The slow pace of life was very infectious and we all felt we could get used to sitting in the sun drinking beer and planning the riding we could squeeze in while we were here.

When we got back to the Casa we couldn’t wait any longer to get out on the bikes and quickly dragged on some bike clothes. We decided on a route around the village which should only take about an hour with about 400m of climbing. We wound our way down through the narrow back streets until we hit the walking circuit of the village. This took us straight onto a technical section of steep rocky trail where we passed some very bemused looking locals. I’ve no idea what they said to us, probably something like – you’re mad trying to ride a bike down this!

We skirted along the bottom of the village through the orchards, vegetable plots and small holdings. The locals were all out enjoying the early evening sunshine as we passed by. We started to climb up through the streets passing whitewashed buildings, some balconies already showing off early flowers. Crossing the main road through the village we headed up the hardest part of the climb, a steep concrete road towards a cheese factory. Finally we reached the top of the town and hit the GR7 walking route that would take us back to the Casa through olive and almond groves along ancient water channels call asecias.

After dinner we fell asleep in front of a roaring log fire (it’s still cold here at this time of the year in the evenings) – a great start to the holiday J

Day stats:

Ride – loop round Valor and Nichite

Ascent – 400m

Distance – 10km

Time – 1 hour

Cardrona Pump n'Jump Track Almost done!!!

2010-03-22T10:38:00.002Z

Now into the final week of construction.

Should see the tracks really start to take shape this week.

There are about 25 photos on the Fan pagehttp://www.facebook.com/pages/Cardrona-Mains-United-Kingdom/Cardrona-Pump-nJump-Track/139517814173?v=photos&ref=ts

Go have a look for yourselves.

Fencing, landscaping, shelter construction, mulching and website all to come soon...

Ae Downhill Trails Re-vamp

2010-03-10T13:09:00.004Z

Things are starting to shape up well over at Ae Forest. They are working on new Downhill trails in preparation for the British Champs later in the year.

Have a look at the pics (Courtesy of Uplift Scotland Facebook) and check out the size of them berms and jumps! Gonna be awesome when finished.

Keep an eye on the Ae Bike Shop & Cafe Facebook page for more updates.

Dalbeattie & Kirroughtree Weekender

2010-03-03T09:04:00.011Z

We fancied getting away from it for the weekend so headed over to D&G to sample two of the best trails in the 7 Stanes. Dalbeattie and Kirroughtree are both so different from the Tweed Valley, and hold so much to excite and test us.

On the Saturday we drove over and stopped in at Ae Forest to see our friends there, and have some essential repairs done on my suspension by Steve the top mechanic there. Great place to have an early lunch too mmmm just remembering the tasty homebaking too :-)

After a good feed and my bike being back in top condition, off to Dalbeattie to get riding! The carpark was nice and quiet as were the trails.
First ride on the new Rock Shox too and experimenting with the settings.

This is a great trail, starts of with some little rock sections that open your eyes as to what comes very soon. The first half of Dalbeattie is full of sweet flowing singletrack of Moyle Magic and Barnbarroch, that always makes us smile and whoop with delight. This brings you out at the Infamous Qualifier and The Slab! On this occasion we ride past them continuing on the trail which in my opinion is a much better Mountain Bike trail, but each to their own. I want to keep in one piece for tomorrow and the delights of Kirroughtree!

After this the trail eases for a bit and has some forest road climbs to gain more height, before heading towards Spooky Woods II and Jacobs ladder. By this point my front brake has almost stopped working (don't ask lol) and heading down Jacobs ladder with just a rear brake is fun ha ha! Scary but fun!
After this is one of my fav bits of trail, "Rock don't Roll" where the harder you hit it the better! Use the bikes new suspension to smooth out the huge boulders and keep rolling.

A load more sections with ups downs and a smattering of technical rocks sections its back to the carpark............ What a ride!

Once the bikes are packed we head to Newton Stewart where we stayed in a very handy B&B Eskdale
Perfect distance from the high street and more pubs than you need!

Sunday Morning
Fully cooked breakfast awaits, so we are up sharp and ready to roll! Only to be greeted by fresh snow! No way! Fortunately its nice crisp fresh snow and doesn't stop us heading to Kirroughtree.

Parking out at the bottom of Heartbreak Hill for a change, we unloaded in the snow lol and hit the hill with cold heavy legs! Not to worry as by the time we hit the top we were warmed up. Started this end so we could do the Black Craig and Talnotry Hill sections first for a change. These sections are some of the best here. Actually am talking out my ass, because there are way more good sections than that and its so hard to choose the best lol.

Now its singetrack winding its was down through the valley. Some sections are snow covered which makes it double interesting, as you normally get a few seconds warning to pick your line but when they are covered in snow! No chance you gotta trust and go for it....... Ok one or two slips and slides leaves me on the ground once, but actually that ain't bad for these trails ha ha ha.
Now we get near a section that always stops me!...... Hissing Syd! and yes you guessed it, I walked over parts of it again lol ah well you gotta have something to come back and try again eh? Now its on to Jabberwocky. Cool name, scary trail. and yes you guessed... another failure doh! Like I say (or Toni says) you gotta have something to come back for!

We then join up with the Red trail again and things start to speed up, the rock sections here are less severe and most can be hit with speed and are great fun. I love the trail back to the Trailhead apart from that Killer climb!!!!! Anyway after you top that its switchback after switchback, on singletrack back to the Trailhead with huge smiles on our faces we stop for some tasty homemade Flapjack (Recipe coming soon).

From here the trail gradually climbs through some beautiful woodlands lined with pine needles and mixed with a healthy helping of snow. This climb back up Larg Hill is great, even though its a climb its not a punishing straight climb it goes up and down, back and forth following hill contours and taking in sweet trails along the way.

Ok am going to cut this short..... If i went on talking about every section here, it would take all day and I know most of you have fallen asleep already LOL

But let me say, the Blue and Red trails on the way back out to the Black and McMoab are some of the best in the UK maybe even the planet! In our modest opinions of course, but they just make you go faster and faster, and push you from one great corner and downhill into the next, smile after smile, Mile after mile :-)

O and the New Forks.... Working perfect! Updates after a few more rides.

New Forks

2010-02-22T19:46:00.004Z

Well my Fox forks died and at the thought of paying TF Tuned £320 !!!!! to fix them I decided on buying new ones.

Went for Rock Shox Revelations due to them being such a bargain price of £299 from Bike Scene

They come retail boxed ready to roll, with a very cool Push lock and Shock pump.

Fitted them Thursday, new headset too. Rode them Saturday at Dalbeattie and then Sunday at Kirroughtree. Full review of how they performed to come once i get a chance.

Here's a wee pic before fitting.

The Duchess Drive

2010-02-13T18:41:00.009Z

We had arranged to meet at the Selkirk rugby pitches and for once we weren't actually late! Enjoying the winter sunshine we headed out along the riverside path towards Bowhill. I can't believe how much land the river has washed away during the last flood - whole sections of the path have vanished! Fortunately the ground in the valley was partially frozen which made the going a bit less muddy but we were still sliding about over the wet roots.

We climbed up through the woods surrounding Bowhill at a relaxed pace - ok, my pace was relaxed, too much admiring the light in the natural woodland while discussing Scottish Access Laws and not enough concentrating on efficient pedal strokes LOL. At least the others got to wait in the sunshine ;-)

Once we left the shelter of the woods and hit the open moorland we picked up the pace a bit - mostly to catch the cheeky walkers who had overtaken us while we got our breath back but also because the wind was a bit too Arctic to hang about too much. The track was mostly clear of snow but there were still deep drifts about and we had to scramble over a particularly big one to get through the first gate. The view kinda creeps up on you at this gate as it's the first time you turn round and look back on yourself and are rewarded with a panorama that stretches all the way to the gleaming white Cheviots some 50 miles away in England.

After a quick swap of bikes we headed on towards the summit. We had a minor detour when we realised our intended path was impassible with snow but quickly reached the top to be met with more ... you guessed it...snow! Only a short section this time and we had a play on it when we discovered it was perfect for body surfing (Winter Olympic sport number 1!) - he he he, such kids!

Once we rounded the hill we got a great view of the Yarrow valley - the Minch Moor Road clearly visible as a ribbon of white snaking up the other side of the valley. Guess we wont be riding that route for a while :-(

Now the fun really began and we had a blast chasing each other down the first part of the descent, some of us making it down in one piece and others loosing the battle with the frozen ruts. We cut off the main path and headed down the route used by the last Merida Marathon. It was easy to tell this would be a great descent in the summer with the ferns gown up and the ground hard and dry. Unfortunately the moles had been out in force and it was more like trying to descent a mogal field (Winter Olympic Sport Number 2!) We got to the first gate so caked in mud that there was no tread left on our tyres and the bikes were double their normal weights making them almost too heavy to lift - it was a good thing we had one farmer with us who knew how to open a gate tied up with string or we might have had to lift the bikes over ;-)

After all that shaking about the shock pump was whipped out to firm up a couple of forks before the second part of the descent down to the bottom of the valley. At this point I ran out of time and had to head home and leave the others to attempt the Rocky Road. Unfortunately this turned out to be more of a Muddy Road so they rerouted down past the Yarrowford Youth Hostel and back along the river to Selkirk. It was definitely a fun ride and I'm looking forward to getting out again tomorrow - where to go? Decisions, decisions...

Weekend of riding!

2010-02-07T18:17:00.007Z

First weekend in ages I have managed to ride both days. I seriously need to get some fitness back, but that's another story lol

Saturday headed out from Yarrow up the Minch Moor Road, usually a tough climb on the best of days but well worth it for the height gain. However today, the lower climb was slippy and wet which was fine, and then as we rounded the corner!!!! Snow! Still deep drifts on the trail. Hard to walk through and impossible to bike through.

Oh well a bit pushing (think half an hour) and we were passed it! The sun was out at least so we still had a good time.

After we reached the Southern Upland Way, it was full steam ahead up Brown knowe. Great climb this as we usually get a tail wind and its good quality surface for riding. The descent from Brown knowe is a favourite of mine and just keeps pushing you faster and faster yee ha!

At the next spot where we usually re group and head over a style, today there was no chance! How deep was the snow here during January??? Today it was as high as the style, so we decided on a slight detour and a bit trail finding.

Well worth the riding on a sheep track, avoiding the what seemed like more sheep shit than i have ever seen and we were at the top of Russel's descent again!

Now this is a quality descent, made by enduro motorbike riders. Its swoops down through the woodland, taking in some great singletrack sections that test us out every time. Last time down here it was covered in snow and today it was slippery over the roots and through the natural berms. Half way down the trail changes as we enter an old woodland section, skirting the fence on a singletrack strewn with rocks and branches brought down with the weight of the snow on them, this is so much fun! Grinning like cheshire cats again and covered in mud LOL if people heard the whoops of excitement at us making it over the obstacles and through the tight technical sections, they would think the local loons had escaped! A nice section takes us back to the cars. Home for curry and beer, and too look at the maps for more hidden trails!

Sunday and its a late start as we drag ourselves out and load the car, our tired muscles and bruises from minor excursions yesterday make us feel alive and remember the fun we just had yesterday :-) Hills here we come!

We head to Yair Bridge and find the car park full of walkers cars, so we decide on a slightly different first climb to avoid the main Southern Upland path. This however involves a tough climb, on cold legs with heaving lungs. Once we reach the forest road, its back to the chat after i catch my breath.

Heading straight up the 3 Brethren its so misty, you can't see the top which some might say is good as you can't see how much of the climb is left ha ha.

Once at the top, walkers galore looking at us like we must be mad, but its us who now have the fun to come! Downhills await with who knows what else as the ice has melted since I was last on this route. We soon found out! Mud, and wet slippery roots ready to catch us out if we don't give them respect.

The first descent down a line of heather, onto some nice singletrack and onto the quarry. This is used in the Selkirk Merida (Now CRC Marathon) and everyone who rides it, loves it I think.

The next forest road has been re surfaced which makes life so much easier again. Then onto the clear fell singletrack, Testing stuff today but awesome fun :-) by the time we reached the top of Craig hill I was beat! No energy left, but feeling that pain you get from hard work, that muscle pain that makes you feel good so wasn't all bad. I knew i had one last hill to clear and it was all down through the Buzzard lair!We saw him today a few times but didn't come close cos I think we had the hounds with us for protection. Unfortunately on the last section a tree is down and we will have to get back there to make a trail past it. Still one of the best descent in the whole valley mind. Wow am tired now, home for food now.........

If you fancy joining us, go to the MTB Border Forum

Until next time, keep on riding folks!

P.S. Sorry about pic quality, but forgot camera and were left with mobile phone only.

Forks?

2010-02-04T08:37:00.002Z

Having major dilemma's about forks! Mine are needing some major work. New uppers, seals etc and its gonna cost about £220!!!! So am thinking New ones? or just get them fixed?

Advantage of getting them fixed is they will feel like new (hopefully) and last another couple of years. But new ones could breath a whole new lease of life into the old bike.

Then that brings up another question...... What ones to go for? Do I stick with Fox or go for Rock Shox or even Magura? Ah the possibilities are endless lol

Ok gonna do some searching, will keep you all posted ;-)

Keep riding!

Still Snow!

2010-01-31T19:36:00.001Z

Yep that's right, just checked there is still Snow out there!!!!!

Been a while

2010-01-31T18:02:00.010Z

Happy belated New Year..... Like I say its been a while!

Last day in January 2010 and am just doing the first of many posts this year. Now that the snow has moved on (for now) We are all starting to get back out on the bikes more, and boy are we unfit! Its amazing what a month of little activity and over indulgence does to your fitness eh?

Went out yesterday on one of my favourite route, a local one round Yair Forest, same route as we use for our Forum fun day event. Its still a classic route, with killer long climbs but O the reward is awesome :-) Singletrack downhills, and I mean proper singletrack where only a very agile Border Terrier can squeeze past if she is desperate enough LOL (that's another story)

Some of the trails still have ice and snow in patches, but nothing that stops us riding them. Only a select few were out, well actually only the three of us and three Border Terriers, they to have had far too much to eat and need to burn some cals.

Only on crash, ME over the bars.... my own fault, managed to clear this technical little climb, relaxed for a tine downhill section, wasn't carrying enough speed and woops! Stopped dead on a large root and over the bars I went. Bruised knee, again!!! and bruised ego as usual.

Here are a couple of pics for now.

Ok until the next time, Keep Riding.

Glentress Black Saturday

2009-08-27T14:01:00.002+01:00

Just a quick post.

Anyone who fancies a ride at Glentress, this Saturday 29th Aug, feel free to join us.

No racing here, just a gentle ride to get out and have some fun!

Meeting Hub carpark 10.30am to do the Black route.

Check MTB Borders Forum for more info or changes.

Cliff Bars!

2009-08-12T15:29:00.005+01:00

No biking for me today as all my stuff is still drying out from yesterday's drenching! However, opting for a spot of retail therapy to lessen the withdrawal symptoms from biking endorphins, I found myself in a shop called Home Bargains which has recently opened in Galashiels. There's the usual end of line and bankruptcy products but I found a couple of good things.

Firstly a bike pump going for £1.50 that fits both valve types without having to unscrew everything - how long it will last I don't know but it seemed sturdy enough.

The second, and these really is a bargain, are Cliff Bars going for 29p each! I bought a box, but am already thinking I should have got more, especially as the use by date is sometime in 2010! I really don't think these will be in stock for very long at this price, but I'm sure Dave at the Gala bike shop also stocks them along with Honeystinger bars and gels ;-)

Right, off to wash the bike, and maybe quality control check a Cliff bar ;-)

Innerleithen

2009-08-11T18:51:00.007+01:00

I managed to get out on my bike yet again today, life is good! We headed for the biking Mecca of Scotland that is Innerleithen ;-) and had a bit of a dilemma as to whether we should ride the Innerleithen XC route or the Rockies, a steep and rocky (obviously!) route that runs down a ridge from Caberston Forest back into Innerleithen. I have never ridden the Rockies and was keen to give it a go, but it's not one for wet weather and with a forecast of showers we decided on a speedy blast round the XC route instead. "Where's this spirit of adventure you were harping on about in the last entry!" I hear you mutter under your breath, but it turned out to be a very good move.

Inners car park was surprisingly busy for a Tuesday, although mostly with mad down-hillers with their boiler suits and big hit bikes. I have to admit I would like to give DH a shot, on a bike with about 3 miles of travel and all the appropriate padding of course! I have ridden some of the tamer DH trails at Inners and at Ae, most memorably on my hardtail dressed as an angel, but really I'm very much a nervous novice. I have a lot of respect for the top guys and gals who fearlessly hurtled past me doing about mach 10 at the British Champs last month and a wee part of me would love to be able to do it too, well we can all dream ;-)

The first climb out of the car park is always a killer with no warm up to remind your muscles how to ride a bike, and by the time we'd reached the top of the switch backs it has started to spit with rain too. Wanting to keep as dry as possible we opted to follow the old XC route through the trees and so missing out all but one of the slippy rock steps on the official trail. The bit beyond the forest road through the mousetrap is one of my favourites but although I still enjoyed it I wasn't really feeling the love today, my reactions slow and sluggish and generally I was not feeling at one with the bike. The rain gradually got heavier and heavier as we continued the climb towards Minch Moor until I gave in and put on my waterproof. It's always a dilemma when you're climbing in the rain, coat off and get wet or coat on and sweat! I'm glad I did put it on though as the midges came out in full force until we cleared the trees.

When we reached the summit it was lashing down and blowing quite hard so we didn't stop to admire the view, in fact we didn't stop again until we got back to the car! We were absolutely soaked to the skin by the time we hit the first forest road and although the forestry workers have been cutting away the hillside to allow the puddles to drain on Plora Craig, there were still so many that we gave up trying to avoid them. As we neared Janes Lane the rain started to easy and by the time we got back to the car it stopped all together - typical! Ah well, I guess riding in the rain makes you appreciate the dry even more, lets hope we see the sun and dusty trails again before the Autumn hits with a vengeance.

Saturday 8th August 09

2009-08-10T12:48:00.010+01:00

Like loads of bikers Saturday is my main day for heading to the hills and I always look forwards to it. My riding buddy and I didn't have any set plans, but decided when we met up to try out some new trails - you know the ones you always see on the way to somewhere else and say to yourself - I wonder where that goes?! Plus when the sun is shining and the trails are dry it would be a sin to head for a trail centre.

I love exploring but it's always like playing Russian Roulet when you try to find new trails, sometimes you find a gem and sometimes you end up walking for miles through a bog! With than in mind you have to take your spirit of adventure and sense of humour with you, and don't forget plenty of emergency Jellybabies for when the going gets really tough!

The start of our journey into the unknown wasn't so good when the newly cut trail heading up a local hillside turned out to be a newly dug ditch! Oh well, I'm sure our half hour trudge through the wet moorland was good cross training!

We were very glad to get back on our bikes and head down a nice wee bit of singletrack we'd found on an earlier ride. We passed into new territory again as the trail became less defined and it started to ascend up a tough but ridable sheep track through the bracken. By the top we had to open the Jellybabies to recover and were left feeling, all in all, it would be a better descent!

Happy to be at the top of the hill we started down a lovely bit of twisty narrow singletrack that flowed almost the entire way back to the valley floor before joining up with part of the Merida marathon route. This was another nice trail but yet again, with more up than down, we felt it would be much better ridden in the opposite direction! Our final descent was a blast down a rocky access track back to the cars. With a good day in the hills behind us we were left tired but happy and with some good ideas for the forum funday route and potentially a new format for how it would run.

Watch this space and I'll try to keep you updated :-)

GT Red Route

2009-08-07T20:59:00.005+01:00

THURSDAY EVENING

I wasn't sure about riding today after yesterday's wee adventure, but when two hot biking chicks invite you for a quick tour of Glentress Red route how can you say no? The weather was glorious again and I figured I could always turn back if my injuries were too sore - ha! Like that was gonna happen! As soon as I was on the bike my smile returned and any minor twinges were quickly forgotten as I caught up on all the juicy gossip on the first climb. I always think it's amazing how fast climbs go when you're having a chat ;-)

We had an absolute blast all the way round the red. Lots of stopping to admire the stunning views and chat, but these girls are fast on the bikes, especially down the well known GT trails. We took turns leading the way and daring each other to ride the techy bits. It's so much fun riding closely with other people and we were all grinning like maniacs by the time we got back to the cars.

We did have one debate that ran for the whole ride.

Which is better - SPD's or flats?

I'm an SPD person all the way and have yet to be convinced by anyone that flats aren't a waste of energy. I wonder what everyone else thinks? Is this a debate for the forum?

Glentress Black

2009-08-05T22:09:00.005+01:00

I've been following the thread on the forum about the black route at Glentress with interest and occasional disbelief ;-) but for a while now I've been thinking really I should have a crack at the time trial myself. Up until now I've only ridden the route with others and we've always made sure there has been plenty of time to have a chat, eat lots of flapjack, admire the view from one (or all) of the many shelters and occasionally session a hair-raising bit if we're feeling very brave or stupid. Average time for the route - a conservative 3.5 hours, not very impressive compared with the sub 2 hour brigade but always good fun!

I'm on holiday for a couple of weeks and with almost perfect weather I decided today was the day for the BIG ATTEMPT! The bike was working more or less, I'd packed the Jellybabies, decided against shaving my legs (or wearing lycra) and eaten my Wheatabix - I was ready! On the drive there I decided there was no way I was going to beat the route record from the forum, but if I could ride it in anything under 2 hours 30 mins I would be very pleased with myself.

I started my stopwatch as I passed under the trailhead sign and I was off! Although I thought it's probably quicker not to ride the wee rocky bits on the way up to the Buzzards nest carpark I couldn't resist - why is it that when you overtake someone right before a bit like that you then don't clean the section? Or is that just me? LOL. I also discovered I'm quite competitive and whenever I see someone in the distance I feel the need to catch them. This happened quite a few times resulting in my average heart rate being about 180 - woops, maybe not sustainable for the whole black route. I backed off once I'd passed the free-ride area packed to the gunwales with uber-cool big-hitting types wearing their baseball caps sideways and their jeans round their knees.

I had a good run through the next few sections, although I still haven't figured out how to clean Russell's rock without smacking my chainring, I know there's a gap but I just can't persuade my wheels to go through it while keeping my feet on the pedals! I made good time up to the first shelter reaching it in exactly an hour. I stopped to get something to eat and look at the view (I can multi-task!) Then set off down Brittany Spears, I love that wee section, but not the climb up to the aerial - booo, there's one steep bit that kills me for the whole climb! However once you're there it's all downhill - he he he! The boundary trail had lots of puddles as usual but I didn't see them, not because I was going so fast, more down to wearing shades - couldn't see a thing in the woods LOL!

I reached the top of the Deliverance descent at 1 hour 30 mins and was feeling pretty good. I had a blast on that descent, I didn't use to like it on my hardtail but now I have my full sus I think it's great! Or I did right up to the point I came round a corner and was faced with two loose rocks (boulders!) right in my line. What is it they say about not looking at the things you want to miss - it's so true! One minute I was grinning about how good the trail was, the next second I was doing a superman impression. It was a good crash, my left hand was cut through my glove and very sore, my right arm had gravel rash and there was grass sticking out between the rim and tyre of my front wheel - I was impressed my tyre still had any pressure left as I run tubeless. Still, everything appeared to be working and after putting some more air in my front tyre I was off again - all be it quite a bit more cautiously. I decided to cut back onto the red route after Ewok village, partly because my hand and wrist was so sore I was having trouble changing gear and partly because I'm scared of the wormhole LOL.

I'd kind of given up on my time trial, but checked my watch at the Tourist Trap and was surprised to see the time was 2hours 20mins, I could still make it! Suddenly my competitive spirit kicked in again, the pain ebbed into the background and I pushed for the finish! I love the last red section and rode as fast as I could. I popped out onto the fireroad at the bottom and checked my watch - 2h 29m 45s - aaagh I wasn't going to make it! I sprinted back to the hub, just my luck there was a guy walking (?) his bike along the bit just before the trailhead - get out my way! Can't you see I'm in a hurry! And I finished in 2hours 30mins and 20secs - gutted! Oh well, there's always next time :-)

New Blogger!!!

2009-07-23T12:57:00.002+01:00

After a long long wait, MTB Borders Blogg will be getting updated! We have a new and improved Blogger who is gonna take us to a new level and keep all you blogg fans happy and informed.

New Kit

2008-06-23T21:24:00.003+01:00

Well they arrived and have gone down well. First race in the new kit was 10 Under The Ben. Here are a couple of pics from the event.

MTB Borders Jerseys

2008-05-02T08:55:00.001+01:00

The New MTB Borders Jerseys are on their way !!!! Everyone will be ready for the new season of racing.

Full picture and details will be here very soon ;-)

http://www.mtb-borders.com

Christmas Ride

2007-12-17T10:24:00.000Z

Saturday 15th saw the First annual MTB Borders Christmas Ride and night out.
It was a cold and frosty day but that didn't dampen the enthusiasm of our hardy riders lol Check the decorations and see just how hardy they are he he he
These were the only pics that can be published, as the ones from the evenings escapades are too risky !!!!!

MTB Borders Christmas Turkey Ride

2007-11-26T22:04:00.000Z

Thursday 27th December 10am

Glentress Black/Red Route should be ideal ! especially in the snow As most people are off work between Christmas and New Year I think a ride is in order to burn off the excess Turkey It's either that or sit around the house watching the Wizard of Oz or making small talk with the In-laws LOLEveryone welcome, bring friends and don't forget the Turkey sandwiches !
Check the Forum for details

New Web Sites

2007-10-16T18:20:00.000+01:00

Here are a couple of New Web Sites from some of our friends, check them out and be sure to spread the word !

http://www.trailshots.co.uk/

http://www.mountainadventure.biz/

New Tomac Bikes

2007-04-16T21:57:00.000+01:00

Hello All,
Just a note to show you some of the coverage from the Sea Otter press launch of 2008 bicycles.

http://www.velonews.com/tech/report/articles/12051.0.html

http://www.singletrackworld.com/article.php?sid=2387&PHPSESSID=aaf69572933b20460131e32362886a43

Please note that the trail bike is called the Snyper, not the Spyder as shown in the stories. Also, there are a lot of inaccuracies in the story, so hopefully the pictures will at least be interesting to you. Most incorrect is the statement about the suspension being identical to the Santa Cruz Heckler. More to come on that later.

How to water-proof your Bike

2007-02-27T18:28:00.000Z

Whether it’s melting snow, a blast across a cool stream, water is your bike’s worst enemy. The tasteless, clear liquid first performs as a carrier agent for dirt, creating a sandy paste that steals power from bearings, eats away at your brakes and grinds off years of life from your drivetrain. With repeated exposure, water will outsmart your O-rings and contact seals. Once it has broken down the last barriers, the water and sludge mixture pollutes any grease and oil it can find until it corrodes every moving part on your mountain bike.

Heavy stuff, eh? Well, don’t let a few combined hydrogen and oxygen atoms get in the way of your fun. MTB Borders has a few anti-moisture tricks and some good ol’ preventative maintenance tips that will keep your bike going until somebody figures out how to reverse global warming.

Catch 22: It takes water to keep water from ruining the bike. Immediately after mud rides, use a low-pressure garden hose and wash the grit away before it hardens like cement. Let the bike dry completely indoors overnight before relubricating your key parts. Protect the frame’s finish with bike polish or spray wax.

Lube aids: Load the pedal’s latching mechanism and springs with grease and they won’t pack with snow and mud easily. Spraying the underside of fenders and coating the pedals with a non-stick cooking spray like Pam helps shed the mud, too.

Double seal: Cut sections of rubber inner tubes to stretch over the headset cups, shock springs and the seatpost-to-seat tube junction. Lizard Skins makes stretchable covers that quickly install with hook and loop strips. If your fork came with fork boots, use ‘em.

Brakes that last: Standard brake pads wear quickly in inclement conditions. Ritchey, Kool-Stop and WTB sell special, hi-abrasive pads that are designed for longevity and superior winter stopping. Beware, wet-compound pads will not stop as well as harder dry-compound pads in warmer weather.

Cold weather ointment: Don’t even think of subjecting your ride to the elements without first giving it a fresh overhaul. All suspension pivots, headset, shock, fork and componentry should be relubricated with waterproof grease. Don’t forget to grease the seatpost where it inserts into the frame.

Positive communication: Moisture can work into the cable housings and freeze them solid. Occasionally unhook the housings from the frame guides and pull back the sealed housing caps. Blow them out with compressed air or use a clamp-on lubrication device to inject a “dry” lubricant into the housing until it flows out the opposite end. WD40 will work in a pinch.

Link lore: Use soapy water and a brush to wash sludge off the chain. The chain must dry overnight before you apply lube or the oil will hold moisture inside the pivots. Wet lube works best because it fills the rollers with a liquid barrier that repels water and keeps grit out.

Flat warning: Water can soften rim tape and the tube will push it deep into the nipple hole—deep enough to cut the tape and tube in the hole’s sharp edges. Heavy duty rim tape only weighs 8 grams more than wimpy rim-tape, but will last through the winter.

http://www.mtb-borders.com

Howdy fellow wheel nuts. How’s life?

2007-01-26T18:20:00.000Z

Howdy fellow wheel nuts. How’s life?

We’re at that point in the year where Christmas seems like a distant memory and the next holiday seems like a long time off. The winter blues can set in, especially when the weather seems so determined to rob us of enough opportunities to get out there. But fear not, just remember that the days are getting gradually longer, Spring will be upon us soon and every day will be a bike day before we know it. In the meantime, just keep your bikes at the ready so that you can take advantage of any decent opportunity to get out on the trails. There’s no better way to keep the blues at bay than to get on your bike and have a blast.

Now that the festive season has passed I’ve finally had the chance to sit back and realise just how quickly the mtb-borders.com community is growing. With hits from all over the world, and a steadily increasing band of loyal visitors its amazing to think that this site was just launched in October ’06. The site was started simply as somewhere I could post routes and share news with like-minded individuals, but its popularity has made me realise that it could be so much more.

To celebrate the success and thank you for your support, I’m thinking of organising a bit of an event for Spring/ Summer ’07. A Borders gathering; perhaps a day of hitting the routes together, culminating in a few beers and a BBQ in the evening. Its still just an idea, at the drawing board stage, but please keep an eye on our forum page for further details and the chance to tell us what you think. Alternatively, drop me a line at info@mtb-borders.com with your ideas and I’ll be sure to share them with the forum. I’ll also be launching a few polls on the forum page, just for fun. Free stuff is always good, so I’m working on getting some competitions (with a twist – none of your multiple choice malarkey here!) going later in the year too. Also, I’m working on expanding the links page so that very soon www.mtb-borders.com will be your one-stop shop for biking news and information, without the need to trawl through search engine results pages. And all this for free-gratis, can’t be bad, eh?!
Speaking of free-gratis, if anyone is still waiting on their free stickers for photo submissions then please be patient. As I said, the success of the site has been overwhelming (and it turns out there are some serious David Baileys amongst you) so its taking a little longer to get the stickers out than usual. We’re loving the photos you’ve been sending us (check them out at the your pictures page), and are still offering out stickers to those that send us their pics of bikes, bashes, crashes, your mud-soaked mates and fun had at home or abroad (to remind us of what’s to come!); send them in and if we like them we’ll use them on the your pictures page and reward you with a free MTB Borders sticker for you to display proudly. You’ll not only get your sticker from us, but you’ll achieve world-wide fame from appearing on www.mtb-borders.com!
Basically, don’t forget to keep checking us out as this year goes on. It may be a case of miss us, miss out. Sign up to the forum or send your details to info@mtb-borders.com and I’ll keep you informed. This site is built and maintained by me for you but mostly for FUN so keep in touch and help shape the future of mtb-borders.com.
Happy biking y’all, pedal on and prosper.

First Glentress Outing for New Commencal

2007-01-18T23:00:00.000Z

Tuesday saw the first Glentress outing on the New Commencal. At least the weather was perfect for biking, crisp and dry.

First impressions are that it climbs well and descends well. Only major concern was the flat bars and stem (designed for racing I guess) but this will soon be rectified with some nice lite riser bars. This is my first bike with Fox Forx and I have got to say I am firmly in the Fox camp from now on ! They just feel more plush and smooth compared to other brands. As a result of this they instill a great deal of confidence and you can attack the jumps faster and harder. Just wish the gear cables hadn't rubbed the paint on them already before I could get some protection in place !

for bigger versions of these pics and many more visit http://www.mtb-borders.com/yourpictures.html

Happy New Year !

2007-01-03T00:22:00.000Z

Happy New Year my biking brothers (and sisters)! Welcome to 2007.
Hands up all those who indulged in a few too many turkey sarnies and mince pies over the festive season? (Yup, my hand is in the air too) Well, what better excuse to get on your bike and get sweaty? Santa certainly didn’t bring the Borders any better weather; gales and torrential rain for weeks now, but perhaps the big man and his red-nosed companion brought you some waterproof gear so you have no excuse for not getting out there, eh?
And if Santa didn’t bring you the biking wear you asked for then why not check out the January sales and grab a bargain. Edinburgh Bike Co-Op and Chain Reaction are just two of the places that have fantastic sales. I just treated myself to a fantastic New Commencal bike with some Sexy Fox Forks – a total steal!
Once you’ve got yourself kitted out get out there! Although some of our favourite natural trails are mud-bound at the moment, despair ye not - just get out and ride to ensure you don’t go rusty before Spring has sprung.
We’re loving the photos you’ve been sending us, and are still offering out stickers to those that send us their pics of bikes, bashes, crashes, your mud-soaked mates and fun had at home or abroad (to remind us of what’s to come!); send them in and if we like them we’ll use them on the your pictures page and reward you with a free MTB Borders sticker for you to display proudly. You’ll not only get your sticker from us, but you’ll achieve world-wide fame from appearing on http://www.mtb-borders.co.uk/!
Send us your thoughts and questions through the forum page (its very new), we love to hear from like minded individuals who are out there living it. We want your questions, stories, jokes and tips – don’t be shy now.
Here’s to a happy, healthy and successful 2007 for us all,
Keep Pedaling.

Chain Reaction Cycles TransScotland 2007

2006-12-16T23:29:00.000Z

Great News folks, A wicked event planned for this year. TransScotland 2007 !!!

"In May 2007 some 350 team and solo riders will line up on the start of the UK’s premier mountain bike stage race. Ahead of the riders will lie seven gruelling days of action packed mountain biking on some of the world’s best trails. Simply finishing the TransScotland will require cunning, fitness, imagination, exceptional team spirit and the hunger for outdoor adventure."

Best of all it starts and finishes in the heart of the Borders, Selkirk.

For more info click here Chain Reaction Cycles TransScotland 2007
or here Mountain Bike Borders

Homemade Headset Cup Press for Under £5 !!!

2006-11-22T21:13:00.000Z

Put away the hammer and the blocks of wood — there’s a better way to install your own headset:

Here is a cheap way to install headset bearing cups. This tool can be constructed for about £5.00, whereas even a consumer-grade headset cup press from one of the big bike tool manufacturers runs about £50.00 to £70.00.

The tool is simply a length of 1/2 inch all-thread (threaded rod, available at any hardware store) with an assortment of large washers and two nuts.
For my tool, I used a 14 inch length of all-thread, a stack of 2 inch diameter fender washers and two 1 1/2 inch diameter nylon washers along with two 1/2 inch flange nuts. The two really large washers pictured are galvanized steel. It can be helpful to collect different sizes of washers (even some that fit inside the headset cups) to help hold the cups in alignment as they are pressed into the head tube of your bike's frame.To use the tool, insert the all-thread through the head tube. Place the headset cups in the proper orientation to be pressed into the frame. Stack appropriately-sized washers on top of the cups, followed by the nylon washers. Thread on the nuts and crank away with two wrenches! It helps to grease the portions of the headset cups that go into the frame, the washers that touch the tops of the cups, and the nylon washers (both sides of them). Make sure the cups are aligned as they go into the frame and also make sure they are fully seated before removing the tool.
Now stand back and admire your work !

For bigger pictures and more info head to http://www.mtb-borders.com/

New Trails Coming Soon

2006-11-10T23:05:00.000Z

New paths and trails are appearing in Yair Forest all the time. Hopefully they will be linked up soon and new route maps will be made. In the mean time (until I get round to it), I have posted pictures of many of the new trails on the site
http://www.mtb-borders.com/newtrails.html
Once the new route maps are finished I will get them on the site.

don't forget for all your Mountain Bike needs and info go to
http://www.mtb-borders.com

New Tomac Bikes (soon)

2006-11-02T08:54:00.000Z

Joel Smith, former director of North American sales and brand management at Answer Products, has licensed the Tomac brand of bicycles from John Tomac and will relaunch the brand with new bicycles mid-year 2007. “Starting my own business and basing it around a great brand and name like Tomac has been a dream of mine,” said Smith. “The focus will be on producing bikes that you really, really want to own. In my 20 years of mountain biking, there have only been a few that fit into this category. My plan is to make more.”The company will be headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, where Smith resides. “The common misconception is that there is no mountain biking in Nebraska, but you’d be extremely surprised,” Smith said. “The biking and the biking culture are really good in Lincoln. Riding is also close to town.”The Tomac brand was originally formed by a partnership of Doug Bradbury, founder of Manitou suspension forks, and John Tomac, one of the most respected and accomplished racers of all time. “Bradbury and Johnny T. will still be heavily involved in the company,” said Smith. “They both have such a strong understanding of the bikes, the market and the industry that they are strong resources for me, especially during the start-up period.”The Tomac website, www.tomac.com, will be relaunched in mid-July with information about the brand direction and future bicycles.

OS Maps For Sale

2006-10-30T23:17:00.000Z

Interested in anything here
mail us at info@mtb-borders.com

Brand New OS Maps
£4 each or 3 for £10 or buy them all for £30

Explorer 336 - Biggar & Broughton
Explorer 335 - Lanark & Tinto Hills
Explorer 324 - Liddesdale & Kershope Forest
Landranger 64 - Glasgow, Motherwell & Airdrie
Landranger 65 - Falkirk & Linlithgow
Landranger 67 - Duns, Dunbar & Eyemouth
Landranger 71 - Lanark & Upper Nithsdale
Landranger 72 - Upper Clyde Valley
Landranger 74 - Kelso & Coldstream
Landranger 75 - Berwick-upon-tweed
Landranger 79 - Hawick & Eskdale

Outsider Festival - Aviemore

2006-10-29T21:51:00.000Z

This sounds like a good event http://www.outsiderfestival.co.uk/home.htm based in one of the best Mountain Bike destinations in the UK, Rothimurchus Aviemore.

For 2007 the Merida series will join 'The Outsider' Festival (22 - 24th June 2007) - a major new annual event for Scotland. Held in stunning Rothiemurchus Forest, Cairngorm National Park, near Aviemore, it is a key element of Highland 2007, the year Scotland celebrates Highland culture. The Outsider will be a celebration of life, of landscape, of outdoor activities and the Highlands.

With a strong green agenda and set in one of the most pristine, natural and beautiful landscapes in Britain, The Outsider offers a brand new festival experience for the 21st century.

The Outsider will be the first festival to offer international music acts, sport, adventure, outdoor activities, nature, environment, health, good food, debate, film, comedy and cabaret, all in one weekend event. The Outsider is aimed to appeal not just to those who already participate in outdoors activities but to the much wider audience who enjoy and respect the environment, and also enjoy the celebratory atmosphere of outdoor festivals.

For more info go to http://www.outsiderfestival.co.uk/home.htm

New Web Site !

2006-10-28T16:03:00.000+01:00

Hi everyone ! Just a quick post to let you all know about my new web site www.mtb-borders.com where you will find great new Routes and lots of handy local info about Mountain Biking in the Scottish Borders and Tweed Valley.
It has so much stuff you better check it out before you miss something !!!!