Thought those who are not local to Bristol would appreciate a heads-up on the conditions before bikefest although there isnt much to say. In general its all good, compacted surfaces and dry. You can stop reading now if you wish.

The section over the wooden ramp to the quarry is fine though there is some loose stones and twigs off line though I suspect the whippets will have it all cleared after the first lap so us fat blokes can bimble round in comfort. Its “MIP part 2” on strava. I’m hoping a few of the larger rocks designed to slow you down where the path crosses with pedestrians/bridleways will be moved a bit to create wider thoroughfares as they are very tight at present (but I guess thats the point?!) Didnt ride the zig zag descent and the climb back up but I’d guess thats going to be the usual loose surface and gloop at the bottom if it rains.

The section alongside the quarry remains the same fast surface. The berms on the outside of the corners appear to be smaller than last year though they werent really berms to begin with. They seem to just mark the trail edges now. The horrid muddy climb to the Oktoberfest finish is now gravel though there is a mud path on the right hand side which is steeper but faster in the dey as the gravel is the large chunky stuff.

The red section as you turn right straight after the oktoberfest finish was also a bit loose in places though I suspect again it will be fine after the first lap. Again it seems the berms have eroded a fair bit since oktoberfest. The rock garden descent section is quite badly eroded too and there is a fair more rock than previous years. They are sharp and pointy too and anyone running much less than 40 psi (not sure why you would mind….) will be prone to pinch flats.

The beggar bush lane section of singletrack is very dry despite on/off rain we have had for the last week or so, it does drain well so I would expect it to be fine even if there is rain betweeen now and the 8th.

Hope that was of some use/help. I may ride it again next week if its dry, I am not hungover etc…