My main gripe about out trail centre moaners...
Trail centres are a free add on. We've lost nothing. You prefer the peak great ride there. End of story.
PS I haven't ridden in the Peak for ages but I loved it when I did
Crikey
I think that mountain biking is becoming so fashion led that people buy big burly bikes and then look for somewhere to ride them, rather than buying a bike to suit the terrain they are actually riding on. It's like me buying a snowmobile and then complaining that I can't ride it in Manchester.
What a daft thing to say. Should I not have learnt to ski because I can't do it in Birmingham?
No, but wouldn't buy skis then complain that you can't use them in Birmingham would you? Whereas people buy big bouncy bikes then grumble that the trail centres or the natural riding isn't gnarly enough.
It's a subtle difference...
I honestly can't believe how many whiny ******* there are on here. Moaning because the extensive network of free purpose built trails we have in this country isn't [i]exactly[/i] to your tastes? And the trails in BC are mostly like they are because people who wanted to ride trails like that went out and built them. Funny eh? BC also has ridiculous amounts of free space with very little in it. Complaining that the uk is not BC is just daft.
I've ridden in the Alps/Pyrenees, bike park and technical XC, and I've never been bored at a trail centre in the UK. For such a small country we had a great selection of biking available, 'natural' and man-made.
Some of the FC centres can get a bit samey, but still good fun.
BTW, _tom_ have you done the new 'B-line' section at Llandegla?
Crikey. So your actual problem is people moaning about having nowhere to ride their big bikes rather than them actually having big bikes?
"My trail centre's too cynical/boring/predictable" reproach is getting more common.
I've said it before but we all buy bikes we want to ride rather than should ride. We see on the road daily, 4x4's on the school run. Sports cars traveling at 80mph rather than their 130mph sweet spot.
Same with bikes. I have 5 MTB mates, 3 of which have very expensive bikes ... 160mm travel+ built for all mountain and all they do is bitch how easy it all is. Well i say lets be honest with ourselves and admit we could loose 10mm travel? downgrade to a HT? Anything to make the whole thing more exciting?
I bet a common theme here is like me, buy HT, then FS, then back to HT.
Anyway i'm drunk so ignore me
My only bike is a Pitch with 160mm forks and I enjoy easy trail centres on it as well as XC in the Lakes and black runs in the Alps.
I just like riding my bike, pretty much anywhere.
Anyway i'm drunk so ignore me
Done.
[i]I_Ache - Member
Crikey. So your actual problem is people moaning about having nowhere to ride their big bikes rather than them actually having big bikes
[/i]
Yes, that's about it.
I'm disappointed that especially where I live, people are buying big bikes then riding in places where they shouldn't be; sensitive landscapes, and causing damage to said landscape because they seem to think it's ok. That sense of entitlement will result in access to other areas becoming more difficult to obtain.
Not to dig up another older argument, but the situation is beginning to resemble the off road motorbike problem; I've got a bike that can, so I will and sod everyone else.
Agree with Crikey
plus Trail centres are a bonus to the generally awesome trails we have thanks to our ROW network - granted its not as good as scotlands access but its mileage ( however small compared to footpath ) is huge vs trail centre mileage.
People are def riding too big a bike for a lot of trails here - then they whinge re how easy they are or they moan about the weight and get fatigued as they arent fit enough for long all dayers! I ride HT/FS but I enjoy the skill of a HT more but FS allows me more comfort and speed but its still not 100% me...
I have ridden all over the country on our BW/RUPPS/BOATS and had some epic adventures - solo and in groups. All it takes is some effort - buy an OS map - learn to plan / read it and go and have fun. I love plotting routes and its part of the fun - even getting lost etc has its moments.
In fact the internet has made it so much easier as in the past you had to go on the ground so to speak to see what the track was like - now you can ask on here and get a myriad of answers !!
A trail centre makes it easy for those who are time pressured or lack the hill skills - but you only get these skills by going out there. I have ridden all of them bar dalby - some great tracks BUT I would rather ride a lot of natural trails in the lakes / powys over the best of what say the 7stanes or coed y brenin has...
International Richard - MemberWell i say lets be honest with ourselves and admit we could loose 10mm travel? downgrade to a HT? Anything to make the whole thing more exciting?
I've got a downhill bike, a 160mm full suss, a hardtail and a cross bike, they're all great to ride in different ways. Losing 10mm or "downgrading" won't automatically make things more exciting, any more than full suss bikes make things dull.
(my most fun ride round the archetypal trail centre lap, glentress red, is the 160mm full suss. Does it need a 160mm full suss? Course not. But need has nowt to do with it, fun is fun)
I agree with your points Crikey and snowpaul but I do hope you realise its not bye bike that causes these attitudes, these people will have these attitudes no matter what or where they ride.
I have a 160mm Specialized Enduro and love it. It certainly rides better on some trails than others and it is a lot heavier than say a stumpjumper but i never use the weight as an excuse for being slow uphill*, I use it as a reassurance when coming back down.
*That's because I'm slow and unfit. Obviously a lighter more xc bike makes me faster but that's not as fun coming back down.
+1 northwind, i ride the same stuff on both my bikes (120mm ht and 180mm fs) and its fun on both, just different - ht feels a bit more on edge which isn't always as nice as the "comfort blanket" feel the fs has! Just depends on what mood I'm in as to what bike i ride, rather than the trail.
Saying that the ht is much easier to jump, wouldn't take the fs to the dj's!
