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Bike Park Wales – An observation.
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neilforrowFull Member
Discounting those on DH rigs / freeride bikes etc, there were a lot of people riding up the fireroad. We rode up the cut singletrack climb and it wasn’t that bad, certainly more entertaining than a bunch of fireroad…
What gives? Heard one fella claiming the climb was pointless and that they shouldn’t have built it… I disagree, completely.
What the general consensus then?
LoCoFree MemberFireroad is quicker and easier I think, don’t know as have uplifted everytime I’ve been there testing with the 4 wheeled bike project
akiraFull MemberI’d much rather climb on singletrack than fireroad, fireroad is soul destroying but singletracm is involving.
jonnyboy666Free Memberi rode there once in september, i like the down hill trails, obviously, but i didn’t have an uplift pass, i have a bit of mixed feelings on the place.
i think that BPW is good but slightly miss advertised, i went there thinking it was more like Cwmcarn because that was the impression the advertising gives, i was expecting an XC loop that used the downhill trails, what i found was one climb to the top and a choice of downhills but then the same climb, unless you use the fire road, and the fire road simply is quicker.
without an uplift i found the best thing to do was get to the top via the trail climb, pick a downhill track and go half way down, then climb back to the top on the fireroad and pick another downhill etc then at some point carry on to the bottom.
the issue i felt was we decided to do another run based on whether we could be bothered with the same climb again and again.
of course it’s early days for them, i’m hoping they’ll will build a dedicated couple of xc loops for the people who don’t want to pay for an uplift (or queue for the uplift) so they can enjoy a less repetitive climb etc
overall the place is cool. the cafe is excellent and the bike shop guys were very helpful. i think it just needs another year or so of trail building to get it where it needs to be.
neilforrowFull Memberned – yep.
Fair point loco, but we were averaging the same time up as those on the fireroad and we are not xc whippets thats for sure.
I can see it as a social thing; winch up and have a chat, but the climb is not bad at all, even enjoyable in parts. Bit like the whites climb (rip).
jonney – i see your point, but it is a bike park. After the first couple ups, I was feeling the same, but got into it after lunch. I do agree that i would have probably got into it a lot more if i’d got on the uplift.!.
clubberFree Memberwinch up and have a chat
That’s usually why I ride the fire road at Cwm Carn – works for me. I don’t really get anything from riding the singletrack up so unless I’m with people who particularly want to ride that, I don’t.
kayak23Full Memberi think that BPW is good but slightly miss advertised, i went there thinking it was more like Cwmcarn because that was the impression the advertising gives, i was expecting an XC loop that used the downhill trails,
The clue is in the name.
It’s a bikepark,, not a trail centre. I followed the build up to it and never thought it was going to have xc loops. Where did you get that impression?wreckerFree MemberI ride up the fireroad as the SC climb is not quite so involving after 4 or 5 goes. It’s hardly challenging either. The fireroad is quicker, sit and spin and have a chat on the way up. I don’t go to BPW for an XC ride.
neilforrowFull MemberI ride up the fireroad as the SC climb is not quite so involving after 4 or 5 goes. It’s hardly challenging either. The fireroad is quicker, sit and spin and have a chat on the way up. I don’t go to BPW for an XC ride.
Fair point. I was just amazed that our group was the only ones using it. Zero traffic. The fireroad was stacked out. We were definitely in the minority.
hexhamstuFree MemberThe clue is in the name.
It’s a bikepark,, not a trail centre. I followed the build up to it and never thought it was going to have xc loops. Where did you get that impression?Nobody ever gave the impression there would be XC loops, he’s just complaining because it’s not to his liking. I don’t care how people get to the top of BPW. The single track climb is enjoyable if you like climbs, the fire road is a very easy way to the top if you want to ride up gently having a chat.
So why do you care?
wreckerFree MemberFair point. I was just amazed that our group was the only ones using it. Zero traffic. The fireroad was stacked out. We were definitely in the minority.
I think most people ride up it first time, then switch to the fireroad as let’s face it; it’s easier. My reasoning is that I want as much energy as possible to enjoy the descents. The SC climb is still there though and if people enjoy it then great! Glad it wasn’t a waste of money/time! (not mine I hasten to add)
chopchopFree MemberI had a chat with the very approachable Mr Sorrell on a day out at BPW in September and asked if there were any plans to build more uphill trails. He said that any new trails made would be DH as that was the main attraction and most people seemed to be riding up the fireroad anyway.
jonnyboy666Free Memberok, so possibly a bad assumption that there was an xc-ish loop, but it’s designed as specifically a park/downhill centre, and when we decided to go we hadn’t seen any maps as such so wasn’t aware of the lay out, i watched the vids and it looked like most vids of most trail centres, just good trails, a few of us went expecting some kind of loop and it was different.
it wasn’t a complaint to say what i said, and we did have a good day, we all just felt that the build up led us to believe it was something more than other trail centres, we expected riding loops AND a park where most places are riding loops only, hence my expectation of it being similar to Cwmcarn meaning both options.
also, when we were in the cafe at the start of the day before riding we overheard the guy running the place describing it as an “all-mountain park” to a few people “not just a downhill centre”
iain1775Free Memberday before riding we overheard the guy running the place describing it as an “all-mountain park” to a few people “not just a downhill centre”
It’s both, the downhill trails are all over the mountain 😉
Sounds like you just didn’t research properly before going, there is a trail map on the BOW website, from that its obvious that the trails are all downNorthwindFull MemberYou get the same thing at Glentress mind, really nice singletrack climb with features, no slower than grinding up the fire road, no idea why anyone would ever not use it but they do…
tonyg2003Full MemberI did a couple of fireroad and singletrack climbs two weekends ago. The very bottom of the singletrack climb is very muddy, then it gets better and is a bit more interesting, finally it gets muddy again at the top. It’s an OK climb (nothing is like the old White’s level). Which one you choose probably depends on what you are there for. I guess most people are there for the downhill and want to get up as quickly as possible with minimum effort in order to do and enjoy more downhills. Hence if the uplift is full the fireroad is the choice of most.
jezketleyFree MemberI enjoyed the single track climb, not sure my riding partner did. But it was more sociable to go up the fire road and chat to other riders on the way up. Gave the place a nice vibe. I wouldn’t build another trail up if I were BPW. Its the downs that sell, and its an easy pedal up anyway.
hh45Free Memberso how do the blues and reds compare to ‘traditional’ trail centres? Such as Whites Level (red in Afan grading) and MBR at CYB. I know the blacks are ‘proper’ DH runs but cant quite get a feel for the reds and blues.
The explanatory blurb makes them sound quite challenging but that could be to stop newbies riding them on a £200 hardtail. Afan’s language is exaggerated in my experience as well..
jonnyboy666Free Memberi rode all but the black stuff, i’m not a downhiller as such and was on a 5″ bike, the blues were easy and the reds were slightly harder, that said the blues seemed longer and i think flowed a little better than the reds which meant i rode them harder.
after a few runs i found i went harder on the blues which flowed better and preferred them for no other reason than going faster, both blue and red were quite smooth which meant speed was plentiful.
orangeboyFree MemberI’m normal a rider that likes a challenging climb
But that’s not what bpw is there for , I chose the fire road as its quicker and I can ride with my full face lid on my bars or arm. Not somthing I’d want to do on a single track climbchiefgrooveguruFull MemberIt’s a brilliant place! Great atmosphere too, I thought… Although almost all the trails head downhill it isn’t a ‘downhill’ trail centre because the trails are much more like the descents at other trail centres than proper downhill tracks. I’d say the grading is similar to the other welsh centres, maybe a bit harder. It isn’t like Antur Stiniog that’s for sure – rode that the day before and it’s proper gnarly in comparison! My 140mm hardtail was totally out of its depth at Antur but very happy at BPW. I still rode the lot full-faced and goggled and armoured up because you can when you don’t have to climb.
hh45Free MemberThanks people, I guess we’ll go there after Christmas instead of Afan then.
philwarren11Free MemberRide the singletrack up then melted welly onto blue belle is very XC in my opinion.
Fire road is easier, with one climb and 23 downhill sections why wouldnt you want to take the easiest/quickest way up? Its what BPW is about.
SamBFree MemberI’m off there this weekend, looking forward to a good uplift session 🙂
Two questions:
– DH or 4X bike?
– is Trail X any good? I can’t find any pictures or videos online…SamBFree Member^^^ Thank you! Look a decent size and more A-line than DJ, so may stick with the big bike. Good to know 🙂
robbonzoFree MemberJust been this weekend. Loved it. If you have the uplift booked id say take the DH bike, although there are way more trail bikes than anything else. It would be good if they had an additional uplift van for people paying as they go, we waited ages and gave up and just rode up the fire road every time.
The blues offer lots of flow and you can link up to red lines to keep it interesting. We had a great 2 days there.mattjgFree MemberI’m glad they built it (the ST climb), it’s moderately engaging and it’s nice to have a choice. Also when I was at BPW it was raining so it was good to get under the trees.
Riding the climb (vs uplifting) didn’t bother me, I quite liked the change of pace from the descents which are longer and faster than typical trail centre fare.
Big DH rigs aside, it would be a shame if anyone opted against BPW due to lack of uplift. They’re the best man made trails I’ve ridden.
mattjgFree Memberso how do the blues and reds compare to ‘traditional’ trail centres? Such as Whites Level (red in Afan grading) and MBR at CYB. I know the blacks are ‘proper’ DH runs but cant quite get a feel for the reds and blues.
I think they are a notch up. Not necessarily more difficult per se but there is a lot of detail, you have to pay attention on the reds, much more than at CYB I find.
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