There are many factors which go towards making the perfect trail ride. For me, since I live in a great mountain biking area, it really needs to start from home. There’s no point in spending more time loading the bike into and out of a car and driving to the start of a ride andContinue reading “The perfect trail ride?”
6,000 feet of climbing.
No, I haven’t just done a mountain bike ride with 6,000 feet of climbing but this week I’ve climbed a total of 6,104 feet, almost exclusively off road. I set off today having already completed 4,470 feet in 2 rides so made sure that I climbed enough to get me over 6,000 feet. There’s noContinue reading “6,000 feet of climbing.”
Adding interest to a ride.
It’s important to me to keep my riding exciting and I have a few techniques which add interest. Timing the whole of a ride keeps you focussed and working hard but you can equally time sections and allow periods of relative rest. Sometimes I create a challenge by targeting a usually uphill segment, which isContinue reading “Adding interest to a ride.”
Challenging myself with lots of climbing.
Having cancelled my plan to ride over 100 km with perhaps as much as 6,000 feet of climbing last Saturday I started to think more about my current fitness. Would I really have been fully prepared for such an enterprise? Since my big ride is postponed for an unknown amount of time it has givenContinue reading “Challenging myself with lots of climbing.”
A small world.
My mountain biking world seems rather small these days. I used to occasionally ride trails centres in North Wales or the Lake District with friends but they’ve all given up riding, now. I was going to expand my horizons this coming weekend with a ride of over 100 km but I’ve called it off becauseContinue reading “A small world.”
Exploring again.
On my last ride on Sunday I used a high level route over Redmond’s Edge and commented that I needed to have a look at some downhills which I haven’t ridden in many years. Now we have the very best type of conditions for exploration because the ground is almost totally dry so I wouldContinue reading “Exploring again.”
A different way up.
After a ride of around 45 miles on fairly level ground, much of it along canal towpaths, I wanted to do another slightly longer ride than usual today but incorporate some climbing. I had the idea to ride a long climb to Hordern Stoops, which is a high point when you take the tarmac roadContinue reading “A different way up.”
Preparing for my big ride.
I had to have some work done on my car yesterday. It’s a rather specialist vehicle which my local garage don’t want to work on so I had to take it to the experts about 18 miles away, north of Preston. Previously I’ve left it there and ridden my mountain bike home and back againContinue reading “Preparing for my big ride.”
Back on it.
After feeling very tired yesterday, which I’m sure was an after effect of my second Covid 19 vaccination, I felt fine today. I wasn’t sure that I’d have my normal energy levels during a mountain bike ride so I didn’t set any other target for my ride than to go to the top of GreatContinue reading “Back on it.”
You don’t need your brain. It’s just a bike!
I decided not to ride my mountain bike today. Yesterday I had my second Covid 19 vaccination, the Oxford/Astrazeneca variety, and it’s left me feeling very tired. The first dose seemed to have no effect but today I’ve felt sleepy all day. That doesn’t mean that bikes haven’t been in my thoughts, though, so afterContinue reading “You don’t need your brain. It’s just a bike!”
Mountainbiker 