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  • What are your WORST 3 trailcentres
  • lucien
    Full Member

    Following on from the “BEST” version what are the worst ones?

    For me

    Penmachno – the long route (grim, pain and no reward)
    Afan – Skyline (whaaaay too much fire road)
    Llandegla – BMX track

    Gribs
    Full Member

    The only one I’ve really hated was the Dead Water trail at Kielder. Boring fire road climb to the top of the hill, followed by another fire road straight down the fall line. Other sections were ok but that ruined it for me.

    The Marin trail also had a bit to much fire road slog for my taste but at least felt to have some pay off.

    Spin
    Free Member

    2nd vote for Kielder posted about that the other week
    Ae
    Carron Valley

    honourablegeorge
    Full Member

    Marin Trail, especially for that big long fire road descent, followed by a road climb, and all those masses of fire road slog for no payoff.

    Dino
    Free Member

    Cut gate

    crikey
    Free Member

    Calderdale: massively over-rated grubbing about on footpaths.
    Peak District: spoiled by traffic jams of unimaginative weekend warriors.
    Penmachno: Wildly over-stated soggy track in Wales.

    MrKmkII
    Free Member

    yeah, that kielder was awful – isn’t the first section of downhill on tarmac 😯

    i actually quite like carron valley, and so does my girlfriend! so there! 😛

    i like kirroughtree but it’s probably a bit overrated. i remember mbuk once saying it was really easy to get round but i always find it a bit of a slog. i wish there were bigger descents!

    EDIT: are calderdale and the peak district classed as trail centres now? if we can choose anywhere where people cycle then i can think of far worse!

    OmarLittle
    Free Member

    The “mtb trails” in Pollok Park are pretty short. The first time i went there i cycled to it and met a mate who had driven up from Stirling. The ride from the carpark to the trail head was longer than the actual trail. And the carpark was pretty much less than couple of minutes away!

    Better than nothing as it will be good for kids i suppose but not really what we were expecting and certainly not worth a trip from Stirling.

    crikey
    Free Member

    are calderdale and the peak district classed as trail centres now?

    I struggle to see the difference between PD and C and other ‘trail centres’, apart from the signage…

    cakefacesmallblock
    Full Member

    I just must be confused as to what a trail centre is 😉

    EDIT ; Inexcuseable sarcasm, Sorry.

    grum
    Free Member

    Grizedale NF isn’t too hot, though I’ve warmed to bits of it recently.

    The 10 Under the Ben track at FW was mostly quite dull, not tried the WC track.

    Most of the others I’ve done we’re pretty good.

    Pooley
    Free Member

    Not been to many, but one I didn’t think much of was Skyline at Afan, much too much fire road bashing. Good final descent tho’, it must be said

    B.A.Nana
    Free Member

    See, I think Grizedale is good, considering the resraints in the design brief.
    Wharncliffe could be something, if FC would pull their finger out.
    Every TC has it’s inspired little jems of sections, sometimes that can be enough, even if the rest of it is a bit 😐 .

    SurroundedByZulus
    Free Member

    I’m not really a fan of Kirroughtree to be honest.

    ChrisL
    Full Member

    Carron Valley put a hole in my car’s sump and I didn’t think it was particularly great before then, either.

    I’ve had three tries at Dalbeattie and it still doesn’t do anything for me. the off-piste stuff that I got shown the last time I was there was nice, though.

    I found Llandegla fairly dull too, plus there were some nasty breaking bumps there. However I hear good things about the new bits of trail that have been added there recently.

    The fire road climb followed by a loose fire road descent at Kielder is pretty annoying but is easily avoided once you know to do so.

    Metasequoia
    Full Member

    Calderdale; that well know trail centre with it’s packhorse routes built in the 13th to 18th centuries specifically to disappoint 21st century mountain bikers. The foresight was truly remarkable 🙂

    Apologies for the sarcasm, I was driven to it- must get get back to some ‘grubbing around on footpaths’

    whinosp
    Free Member

    The Raven trail at Brechfa. Soe fun bits, but overall I just don’t get it.

    doof_doof
    Free Member

    brechfa
    brechfa
    and brechfa

    shortbread_fanylion
    Free Member

    Controversial saying that on here SBZ! I like it but don’t get the love most seem to have for it – not enough big climbs and descents for me.

    The least favourite I’ve done are Penmachno, Whinlatter and Grizedale.

    bruneep
    Full Member

    Kirkhill fun park 🙄 What a waste of time and money.

    grum
    Free Member

    brechfa
    brechfa
    and brechfa

    You’re doing it wrong.

    yetiguy
    Free Member

    didnt like dalbeatie much, maybe i was having a bad day

    whinosp
    Free Member

    You might be right grum. I ride it on my hardtail, but have passed many people on very big bouncy bikes, all padded up. Not sure why.

    The Gorlech trail is fun.

    Oh and I don’t like the centre by Beddgelert.

    Or Beulah, where I always crash and scar myself, or have a major mechanical.

    float
    Free Member

    cannock chase, too many braking bumps 😉

    5lab
    Full Member

    take it none of you lot have been to bedgebury then..

    nonk
    Free Member

    Penmachno: Wildly over-stated soggy track in Wales.

    depends when you ride it to be fair crikey i live fairly close and if you get it in nasty weather it can be a boring slog but on a dusty summer evening of which it had more than a few this year it is mind blowingly good.

    honest.

    michaelmcc
    Free Member

    The Raven trail at Brechfa. Soe fun bits, but overall I just don’t get it.

    I friggin love this trail! Whats your problem??

    Agreed you must be doing it wrong.

    fastindian
    Free Member

    the secret to loving Penmachno is shimano mw80 boots and waterproof overtrousers! 😆

    davidtaylforth
    Free Member

    Llangdegla is the worst I’ve been to. Didnt really enjoy it at all, there was a few very short good bits, but that was it. Didnt seem like there was much climbing or descending, felt like I was riding round centre parks.

    doof_doof
    Free Member

    You’re doing it wrong.

    Go on then, do tell!

    highclimber
    Free Member

    Coed Llandegla, Grizedale and Coed Llandegla

    user-removed
    Free Member

    I like bits of Kirroughtree – it feels like a proper day out rather than a spin round a trail centre.

    But ther is one section in particular which is basically a series of pointless meanderings up and down and looping around, gradually ascending, followed by a mile of riding in a wide, wet ditch.

    That bit ^^^ is just before the lovely swoopy, bermy section before Shredder (is that the right name?!).

    My memories may be coloured by the fact that last time we did it, the shop was closed, so we did the whole loop on one small tangerine and 500ml of water between the three of us.

    davidrussell
    Free Member

    half the scottish ones listed there can hardly be classed as trail centres – kirkhill FP is not a trail centre! Likewise Pollock park.

    and ChrisL – what were you driving at CV? we used to razz around trailbuilding at CV in everything from clios to lowered audis and not so much as a knock on the sump. The road in was more like a bombing range than a road though 🙂

    cycl1ngjb
    Free Member

    For me…..

    North Face Trail at Grizedale (IMHO more fun to be had away from the signed trails)
    Tarw Trail at CYB
    Pheonix Trail at Mabie (admittedly I have only done this once, which was after 6 days solid riding & I was quite tired)

    djglover
    Free Member

    1 Cannock
    1.1 Swinley
    2 Grizedale
    2.2 Llandegla
    3 Gisburn
    3.3 Hamsterley

    rOcKeTdOg
    Full Member

    cannock
    marin
    skyline

    bigyinn
    Free Member

    At least you’ve got some trail centres. There’s **** all down south.

    tonyg2003
    Full Member

    +1 bedgebury. Like riding round a muddy park compared to a proper trail centre. Swinley although OK for the SE wouldn’t even get a look in if it was located almost anywhere else in the UK

    Mugboo
    Full Member

    Kielder, Llandegla & Skyline.

    Kielder for making me cycle up a big hill without rewarding me with a big descent. By the time I got to the good stuff I was still angry!

    Llandegla, well you’ve no doubt heard it all before.

    Skyline, zzzzzzz

    h4muf
    Free Member

    Sherwood pines!!

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 195 total)

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