i think you are just bi**ching for the sake of it (how un-STW of you!). The pebbles are making it more all-weather than the mudfest it used to be. I was up there on friday (only 3rd time this year) and quite enjoy the variety of it all. Yes things could be improved – less braking bumps, a few modifications here and there but there is no such thing as the perfect train centre. The team of volunteers who look after the trails are doing a first rate job.

Cannock… And its ace great use of topography and a bit more technical than degla

Cannock Chase is my ‘local’ real riding spot…I tend not to ride FTD or Monkey Trail since they became so well used/abused but have the occasional slide about on the polished pebbles- its great practice for riding in icy conditions, you learn to rely on balance and the bike moving rather than the grip of your tyres and the full suspension..(if you use it). There are so many other trails that you can easily ride a full day without doing the same trails twice. Not all trails are created equal, having been to the Austrian Alps this summer Llandegla as a trail centre has nothing on the likes of X-Line at Saalbach or Wargrain Bike Park but we have to make use of what we have easily available to us.
As for 29er and Lapierres..dont see many CX bikers over there

Perhaps you should have entered the Dressage class.
It takes place every Saturday & Sunday morning, in the Birches Valley Cafe garden.
All the classes are represented. The French & Halifax classes are popular.

There’s even a motorised class, for those with roof mounted carriers. It’s very popular. Takes place in the car park.

I quite like the challenge of trying to ride fast on the pebbles – some of the sections where they are would be a bit too easy without them.

Perhaps you should have entered the Dressage class.

Off on a tangent.. Tried riding horses? I like it. You (seriously) should try it.

Seriously though, would you go to the toilet/shop/cafe and leave your bike ontop of your car? I wouldn’t leave my bike out of sight ontop of my car. I bet theres been a few nicked off the top of cars at Cannock?

Whichever way you cut it large fixed pebbles in a trail isn’t going to be the best experience is it? Its the best due to the situation locally/politically. Always makes me laugh when people defend a local trail centre/bike/inanimate object as though its their wife you are offending.

You really should keep away from natural riding, imagine encountering a smooth round pebble in the wild! The horror!

. Always makes me laugh when people defend make excuses because they find a local trail hard to ride

Maybe they are just offering their opinion? Like we have to suffer yours?

You really should keep away from natural riding

You would have to pry the natural trail out of my cold dead hands

For me it’s all about variety. The smooth pebbles weren’t intended to be an overriding feature but they seem to have attained that status. Very much like the way the trails on the Chase weren’t conceived to push the location into full trail centre status but they seem to have done so (for better or for worse).

Not wanting to sound partisan but I do enjoy our trails, don’t ride them all that often but like the way they ride and the feel.

People quote flow a lot and if you watch Rowan Sorrell’s video about Penhyyd I assume what people are craving is his new school analogy which has it’s place I for one would be disappointed if this was the future of trail centres. There is enouigh separation between trail centres trails and ‘natural’ trails as it is.

Personally I don’t really like Llandegla for example. As a result I go very infrequently but appreciate that others do like it and that a lot of effort has gone into it and it wqould therefore be inappropriate to slag the trail off, it seems that not everyone has the same attitude.

So wait – hora is crap and this is somehow the trail’s fault? 🙂

I haven’t ridden the chase in maybe 6 weeks now, are these pebbles a recent addition to help keep the trail from falling apart? I’ve never felt there was a lack of grip on upper or lower cliff before.

Not sure. On Llandegla I really like the Cafe and the staff. The only part of the trail I liked was the cork screw (just after the big warning sign on the black) where it dips then twists quickly spits you out upwards. The rest of it is too wide/meh but a better surface. I notice the pebbles were concentrated on what I presume is the high wear areas- over humps/into corners etc etc?

I didn’t like Llandegla much either, though a lot of this could be down to it being so hyped up on forums and I was just a bit disappointed. Cannock isn’t bad for what it is.

Be honest, without that surfacing it’d be ALOT better wouldnt it.

It would be a lot muddier…

Good to read that the official trails are keeping the tourists away from the good stuff

Those pebbles are a bitch eh 🙂

Those bloody pebbles are my nemesis 😀

Hora,

Is there any particular co-efficient of friction you are looking for?

Are you sure your frames head angle was correct for the conditions?

Chin up, you poor thing.

The only one I saw that made me admire/double-take was a green Chromag

that was me! im on a stw thread, feel famous now

I notice the pebbles were concentrated on what I presume is the high wear areas- over humps/into corners?

The pebbles appear to be concentrated on the high wear areas because that *is* the Chase. The sandy topsoil disperses to expose the pebbles underneath. During the Triassic Period most of what is now the Midlands was beneath a vast turbulent river which was powerful enough to carry alluvial deposits northwards from what is now Brittany, hence all the rounded pebbles and sandstone. The layer of pebbles is over 500ft deep and any vegetation is literally just growing inbetween the stones.

Every day’s a school day eh

that was me! im on a stw thread, feel famous now

Sooooo…. why didn’t you roll over that huge fallen tree then? You are on a 29’er- one of its benefits over 26’ers 😉

Yep that was me with that quip 😀

Every day’s a school day eh

thank you – I was on top of Lee Quarry the other weekend and there was a sign showing the soil deposits etc behind with ‘this used to be a tropical rain forest’ 😯

Don’t be silly rocketman. They’ve all been individually designed and made at the PebbleCo pebble factory before being bought by Chase Trails and installed by hand in their correct location. If you pick them up they’ve all got a serial number stamped on the bottom.

Sooooo…. why didn’t you roll over that huge fallen tree then?

I couldnt have done that now could I, I would have banged up my RaceFace NW chainring.

All this talk of off piste stuff at Cannock…I feel ashamed that I’ve never ventured further than a lap of the pebbles and braking bumps.

I happen to be up there this Friday…if anyone has a gpx of some of the best (pebbles optional) off piste stuff they could email me I’d be most grateful. 🙂

If you pick them up they’ve all got a serial number stamped on the bottom

🙂

No gps files please, best way is to tag along with a local group and respect the less than official trails 😉

One of the big factors in the conception of the trails was to offer riders a year round guaranteed rideable trail. Back in the early 00’s there was an undercurrent of ill-feeling to what was largely local riders in decent number using the trails but there was an increasing number of visitors who were turning up on the Chase failing to find many of the decent trail who then left criticising the lack of riding 😮

There are other factors as there were a collective of interested parties involved in the concept of the trails, these were just my drivers.

One result of having the waymarked trails was to help reduce pressure on other more sensitive parts of the forest but then over the years rider numbers have increased significantly so the impact on the off-piste stuff hasn’t really lessened in my view.

It’s ironic now though given my comments above that the waymarked trails are now being criticised.

The pebbles are imported from other parts of the Chase, without the addition of surfacing the trails would be a mud bath in the winter and would be ruined long before they ever got down to the underlying material and even then would sit too low on the surface to ever drain properly.

At least the worst you have to put up with a puddling, and an element of grinding paste, FtD and the Monkey don’t get particularly muddy (except when frozen trails start to thaw in winter)

I haven’t ridden the chase in maybe 6 weeks now, are these pebbles a recent addition to help keep the trail from falling apart? I’ve never felt there was a lack of grip on upper or lower cliff before.

^this

I’ve read this thread and can’t help thinking there must be another Cannock somewhere that Hora’s talking about. I’ve been several times and don’t ever remember thinking there was a lack of grip…

…or maybe he’s just got the wrong forks for Cannock 😉

No gps files please, best way is to tag along with a local group and respect the less than official trails

Understood.

I only have early Friday morning available so don’t expect any local groups to be out at the same time. Besides, the last time I tagged along with some locals after a request on STW it didn’t go according to plan 😳

There were a couple of sections on the old FTD that I really used to like, but they are now in disuse.

There was a braking bump and small-berm infested descent that popped you up to the right onto a fire-road that took you to a sharp left and a short and steep climb up to the top of the open section.

If you kept off the brakes and rode it at a speed that kept you up in the berms, you could ‘pop’ up onto the road, almost jumping. If you killed your momentum at any point, you’d have to pedal. There was always an audience of riders at the bottom as well, so doubly satisfying when you railed the last couple of corners and flew up onto the road.

There was also one of the last descents that switched back and forth through the trees and had a very naughty small but tall tree stump in the middle of it about halfway down.

Sadly these sections are no longer part of the main route and I don’t know the area well enough to find the last one. The first one is actively closed / blocked.

Anyway, as I said, Cannock is a great place for a half-day blast and long may it continue. It is also not over-easy to ride – a clipped bar end at moderate speed can result in a fair amount of pain (something that I can vouch for a few years back).

I’ve read this thread and can’t help thinking there must be another Cannock somewhere that Hora’s talking about. I’ve been several times and don’t ever remember thinking there was a lack of grip..

Yet within 1 minute of me posting the topic on a Sunday afternoon someone guessed where I meant. Weird that.

The first one is actively closed / blocked.

Talking of which….There was a unsignposted left turn down a slippery/slidey then loose drop down to meet the trail again.

The red trail L-shaped down two very fast straight mini fire rounds down the side of it. I liked that loose off-piste excursion 8)

Yes, that was me!

The polished kipples have always stood out to me – more the fact that they form a narrow elevated level in some corners that can make you have a a real ‘moment’. On the whole, though I still like it for a blast – and as I don’t go there that regularly (even though it is my closest trail centre) I don’t want to stand accused of criticising it!

Yet within 1 minute of me posting the topic on a Sunday afternoon someone guessed where I meant. Weird that.

They must have the wrong forks too 😀

I’m genuinely no riding God, but I genuinely couldn’t relate to the comments above to my half dozen or so experiences of riding at Cannock, 3 or 4 of which have been in recent months. Maybe I’m just a superb judge of riding conditions so never get caught out*

*this may not be a valid explanation 😆

[quoteDuring the Triassic Period most of what is now the Midlands was beneath a vast turbulent river which was powerful enough to carry alluvial deposits northwards from what is now Brittany, hence all the rounded pebbles and sandstone. The layer of pebbles is over 500ft deep and any vegetation is literally just growing inbetween the stones.[/quote]
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What tyres for French pebbles 😉

For me, in general the best ‘trails’ are ones that flatter the rider. Say the hard/technical ones- just hard enough that you know it’s bloody hard but also reward you soo much. Flatter, make you feel better than what you are. Where you find yourself ‘railing’ a berm. Something that you didn’t think you could do- you probably look shit compared to a pro but suddenly you feel dug-in/loving it. There are a few areas in Cannock that really could have that feeling. One M9? (which made me angry/shouty) was the last long switchback descent on the monkey trail- just before you cross back over the road (and up the metal bridge).

Talking of which….There was a unsignposted left turn down a slippery/slidey then loose drop down to meet the trail again.

Gets a fair bit of traffic that cheeky shortcut.

There will be a new descent soon which will cut out those fireroad sections completely, from the top of 5-ways down to the upper cliff climb.

I’m a big Cannock fan. The Black Monkey section has some of the most technical trail I’ve ridden, the entrances to some of the rock gardens are horrible.

the entrances to some of the rock gardens are horrible.

The turn in’s? Yes.

The very last techy bit of the day (between two trees)- I bloody jammed my bars into that one 😆

Cannock is a top place to ride…dog n monkey arw great for the budget amd effort that the locals out in. Off piste is fantastic but you need a strange local to show you the real gems. Monkey is great fun on a cx bike. Only problem with the main bits is that folks keep wanting to nick my jones or fat bike for a play…tis good for attention whore but as im shy I tend to play either early or late

If anyone wants an off piste tour at some point morw than happy to show folks some stuff.

Tazzy you werent there on Sunday with a strange beard?

I’m a big Cannock fan

Me too. It’s fast, fun and flattering, but I’m a long way off finding it too easy so always find it interesting and involving; there’s always room for improvement in my riding. If the berms are loose or the braking bumps bad, it’s me that needs to up my game.

I genuinely can’t see where your coming from Hora. Yes there are some loose stones and some parts of the trail that arn’t in tip top condition but thats part of the charm. If all trail centres had perfectly smooth immaculate surfaces there really wouldn’t be much to differentiate them. I like that The chase has a more natural feel than the likes of Llandegla and CyB because of the above. You get braking bumps and puddles and stones on the inside of corners when you ride natural trails, you don’t get them so much on heavily armoured manicured trails. Remember variety is the spice of life.

I love the chase and try to ride there at least once a week. I think what ST and the other volunteers have done with the available topography is brilliant. I only wish I had the time to help out and do my part, I genuinely feel guilty that I use this brilliant resource and don’t give anything back.