Co I work for is likely to need me to work out of a location nr Bradford or Doncaster over the next few weeks.

Are there any ‘trail centre’ type locations nearby, where i could go for an evening ride knowing roughly how long it will take and without any great need to map read?

I’m also aware there wll be tonnes of proper riding too, but that would come later, unless someone has some GPS routes of the immediate area for 90-120 min routes they can share? (Also depends on me working out how to use a GPS!)

I suppose road riding is also a possibility…..

Lee Quarry or Stainburn?

If you want stuff for beginners, the best nearby place is sherwood pines or clumber park near nottingham, or you could go for a pootle around Ladybower reservoir?

@rolfharris – clumber park is nearer to Worksop than Nottingham!

If you’re in Doncaster, Sherwood Pines. If you’re in Bradford, Stainburn.

My guess is that you will be nr Pontefract, in which case, there’s not a lot to go on. Stainburn probable.

Depending which side of Bradford you are I have memory map routes for rides around Bingley/Harden/Oxenhope. There is also Ogden water fairly local that has some good singletrack and you could probably make up a loop of an hour or two. Could also park at St Ives and easily do an hour and a bits riding round there and on Harden Moor.

Go on a North Leeds MTB night ride if you’re up on a Tuesday or Thursday.

If you’re in Bradford, just head up to Tong/Fulneck and go for a play in the woods round there. Plenty to keep you busy for an hour or 2. If you’re in the car, start at the Bankhouse Pub – you can do a loop from there.

Bankhouse Inn

EDIT: You could also go to Stainburn if you like your riding a bit more ‘core 🙂

People have an interesting idea of “near”!

Bingley Bash (near Bradford)

The Bingley Bash and variations of are excellent, and very near Bradford.
And as others have said Stainburn has fun tech riding and is around half an hour in the car from Bradford, see here for info http://www.singletraction.org.uk/index.php

People also have an interesting idea of ‘trail centre type riding’. 😉

People also have an interesting idea of ‘trail centre type riding’.

yeah, which only occurred to me after I’d posted :o)

He did ask about “proper” ridng too.
There’s loads of “proper” riding around Bingley, Baildon, Ilkley, Otley, Guiseley etc, unfortunately I don’t have GPS to share the knowledge.
Getting out with a group such as North Leeds would be a good idea, check them out at Bikemagic.

im bradford based and ride alot in the area if. drop me a email if you would like showing around anytime. email luke.ellis at yahoo dot co dot uk

cheers all!

Had forgotten about sherwood pines, always have it in mind that it’s sherwood forest = robin hood = nottingham but I guess that’s pretty close actually.

Dalby? Settle?

If you end up north of Bradford, then Gisburn Forest is worth a visit and will be even more worth a visit later this summer when the new trails stsrt to come online (officially).

recycling this now.

We went ahead and bought a firm up by Manningham Mills. I’ve had a couple of days a week at least up there for the past 3 weeks and looks like continuing for some time. In another couple of weeks when the heat goes off the integration process I’ll be glad of not going out for dinner every night and will be looking to take up some of these offers again.

We stay at the Marriott Hollins Hall which is about 5 miles Nth of Bradford, so anything reachable or even startign from there would also be good. I wonder if they will let me store the bike in my room once it’s been dirtworker’ed?

There’s good riding straight out of the door of where you are staying, there’s the woods around Esholt and Guiseley just over the canal for starters.

If you want to practice jumps and stuff SingletrAction and Bradford Council have built a jump/skills spot in Buck Woods at Thackley, details here , it’s not quite finished but some of it is rideable.
A pump track is coming soon.

loads of great riding on the door step of the hotel. Shipley glen, Ikley moor, Esholt woods, buck wood, Otley Chevin, The bingley bash as well.

I’d say Baildon Moor and Shipley Glen are where you should head for. Both are open access land with many bridleways and lots of paths, which nobody minds you riding on (not even the council, who own them). I would say less than a mile as the crow flies from the hotel. There’s a bridleway down the side of Bradford Golf Club (at the back of the hotel) which takes you across to Baildon, right to the edge of the moor.
Not trail centre riding, but loads of different loops, and you can’t really get lost, and you can easily do 1-2 hours without repeating anything.
I live just the other side of Shipley Glen. If you don’t mind slowish, give me I shout, I could show you around one night.

Colin

“depends on me working out how to use a GPS!)”

or a map?

Ikley moor is a great place for a blast and if you find JD cycles they have a meet up at the shop during the week and sometimes at the weekend!

Worth giving them a ring for a tour of the moor if in Bradford 😉

and dont take your bike to manningham and leave it anywhere lol 🙂

I grew up round there, and whilst there might be trail centres reasonably close they’re still a fair trek for an evening. Get yourself a map or take up the offer of a guide, all the “proper” riding mentioned above is great. It’s not a difficult place to read a map and most of the paths are well signposted anyway.

Definitely keep an eye on the North Leeds thread on Bike Magic, they do a lot of rides around near where you’re staying.

cool, ta everyone! Will be taking you up on the offers in due course.

I’m perfectly competent with a map but if time is limited after a long day it woul be great if I had a gps route to upload onto my as yet untried gps and just follow it without getting a map out all the time.