Quantock Quake 2014 - Entries Open

Following the success of last years event I am proud to announce that Discover Moor and Active Adventure South West have teamed up to bring you the 2014 Quantock Quake.

Entries have now opened and places are filling up fast. The event this year will take place on the 7th September and start at 10.00.  Entry fee - £27.50 per rider.

There is a slight change in format this year with the short route remaining at 20 isn miles but the long loop being extended to around 35 miles.

If you would like to enter and take on the challenge of 20 or 35 miles off road cycling in the stunning Quantock Hills please follow this link:

www.quantockquake.co.uk

Once again the event will be supporting Exmoor Search and Rescue and the Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, a percentage of the entry fee will go to these two worthwhile and important charities.

Checking out the trails at Cardinham Woods and Lanhydrock

In preparation for a weeks mountain bike guiding for Plymouth College starting on the 23rd June I thought I would check out the new trail centres at Cardinham Woods and Lanhydrock.

Lou and I travelled down to Cornwall last night so we could get on the trails before they got busy with half term users.

Lanhydrock trails were really good and a great place to take beginners. The skills area has everything you need to teach all the basic riding techniques and the short sections of blue trail that leave the green trail mean you can ride small sections and head back to the carpark when required. This being very useful if the groups fitness levels are lower than you expect. There is also a short section of red that starts as a dual track, great if your group pick up the skills quickly and need a test. From this trip I think I will take the students here instead of Haldon Forest.

When we had finished at Lanhydrock we quickly loaded the bikes onto the rack and headed over to Cardinham. Its not that far and with a confident and sensible group you could easily ride between the centres.

Cardinham's blue trail and red sections were really good. Its 7.5 miles if you stick to the blue and roughly 8 miles if you choose the optional red sections. The trails here flowed superbly and good riders can really get something out of the trail. However, if you are new to mountain biking there are no real technical sections on the blue trail to catch you out and a leisurely pedal taking in the forest atmosphere can be had. The only downside of taking a beginner group would be the trail length, there are options to cut it short but not like Lanhydrock. The red sections were nice with a stiff climb on the Hells Teeth section followed by a fast bermed descent.

We had ridden both centres by 12.30 and headed back via Saltash to drop in to Silverfish for a quick catch up with Richie.

Yeti Cycles Tribe meeting planning at Cannock Chase

Today I travelled to Cannock Chase in the midlands with Pete from Silverfish UK and Simon to scope out the trails for the 2014 Yeti Cycles Tribe meeting. We met up with Dave from Leisure Lakes Bikes who is local to the area and knows the centre well.

Pete has asked Simon and I to act as guides at this years meet, taking Yeti owners round the trails and offering riding tips. The two day meeting will also provide prospective yeti owners to demo the new models. 

We rode the main red graded trails, 'Follow the Dog, and 'The Monkey's Tail'. During the ride we stopped and looked at various options for shortening the route if necessary, where the escape rotes were, various features that may trip people up and sussed out nice short loop for the demo bikes to go out on. This short loop enables potential Yeti owners to test the bike in varied terrain without taking it out for a long period, this enabling more clients to try out the bikes.

Sorry about the lack of exciting photos but we were having too much fun riding the excellent trails at Cannock Chase.