[Closed] Best All-weather riding area in the UK

Velodrome.

If we ignore trail centres, I'd say Dark Peak area or maybe N Wales ... anywhere with lots of rock.

NOT Ignoring trail centres Swinley is fine even if it's wet, it's sandy so drains well. Afan and Cwmcarn are generally clag free, Afan is grippier in the wet I've found

woburn sands is great all year round

woburn sands is great all year round

Ironically, I would say its worse when its really hot and sunny as gets a bit too sandy.

coastline trails in East Lothian, sandy loam soil content and free draining...
there theres all the beaches for all year round too! 😮

I agree with Jedi and Jamie... Make some trips to woburn

anywhere rocky is ok in winter so that means head north to wales, lakes or Scotland.
Has both natural and trail option in most locations.
Probably some trail centres in between here and there worth considering
Our mud tends to be boggy rather than claggy so most stuff remains rideable unless it gets deep

Cwmcarn seems to be easier to ride in the wet, plenty of grip, rolls quicker when slightly damp too.

Woburn or Thetford (away from the over-used Black (sic) Run) are my winter venues of choice in the SE.

Swaledale! Naturally fast draining rocky trails and barely any mud!

Is woburn a better venue than chicksands? I went to chicksands for the first time on saturday and had a right laugh despite crashing on the 4X, everyone was polite, no egos and I even got to see Tom dowie fly around the 4X at warp speed.

Greensands bike park.

Not anywhere in Scotland that's for sure. It snows here.

Peak and Lakes rocky stuff fine in wet weather. Cannock Chase doesnt get muddy, but the pebbles can be very slippy (oh no !) and there are alot of stupid Brummies in MET parachutes whooping about 1 foot roll ins.

Is woburn a better venue than chicksands?

Woburn has more XC trails and no 4x. I would say they compliment each other rather than compare.

Well Dumfries is pretty central for Kirroughtree, Dalbeatie, Mabie, Ae and Drumlanrig, plus a little over an hour away you have Glentress, Innerleithen, Kielder, and Whinlatter (plus the northern lakes). Oh and lots of other forests around here with decent fireroad riding.

I know Cwmcarn & S Wales pretty well - interested to hear in some good wild natural stuff. Woburn Sands looks like a good idea too. Swinley bugs me as its just such a honeYpot (good for racing though).

Oh and lots of other forests around here with decent fireroad riding.

Don't geddit...

😐

+1 Jamie. Definitely two different beasts, depending on what you want to do. The short DHs at Woburn are fun too.

Lakes. Doesn't matter if it's raining or not. It will probably be raining though.

Any Southerners ridden Bedgebury?

Woburn has more XC trails and no 4x. I would say they compliment each other rather than compare.

+1 Jamie. Definitely two different beasts, depending on what you want to do. The short DHs at Woburn are fun too.

Would you say the Xc at woburn is better than the Xc at chicksands?

Is the DH doable on a hardtail (cotic simple) I don't want to go over the edge of a 15foot drop!!

4 of us go out 2 of us more into trails and 2 more into the dual/4X, would the trails keep the other happy?

Does it cost a fiver like chicky?

Think we'll def make a visit as it's only another 10 to 15mins further for us to travel.

Thanks for the help guys.

+1 for rocks.

The beacons can be good for this reason, but if it's wet enough the sandy soil turns into grinding paste which is still very rideable but really ****s your bike.

Swinley I like generally but if it's really wet like last year, the sandy bits just go totally soft and it gets very hard to ride.

Woburn DHs are doable on a hardtail - most of them are only 20 secs long with a quick push back up. I rode there with James of Genesis on his proto Alpitude a few years back. Lots of little drops, hips and downwards snaking singletrack - a lot of trails to choose from as well, so something for everyone. There are a few biiiig drops, but they are all obvious.

Can't comment on the XC at Chickie, but there are some nice loops around Woburn. I would tell you where, but I've only ridden XC there a few times and have been following a local...

Get yourself up to the Lakes!

Swinley I like generally but if it's really wet like last year, the sandy bits just go totally soft and it gets very hard to ride.

I think Swinley suffers more from the shear number of riders rather anything else.

I'm pretty sure it would hold very well if they were just less riders.

Perhaps although certain bits of gravelly sandy trail surface were like old snow last year and hence virtually unrideable.

Spain! Less rain, less mud and probably quicker, easier and cheaper to get to than N. Wales, N. England or Scotland. 😉

Most of the Lakes is pretty rocky so can be ridden in any weather.

I like Spain! 😀

Not so keen on Swinley tho. I think scu98rkr is right - it suffers from sheer volume of riders.

RepacK - Member
Any Southerners ridden Bedgebury?

i rode bedgebury in the early summer, nothing really technical but ok for a few hours. has a nice cafe!

lots of stuff to ride a little further out around robertsbridge/battle muddy but mostly rideable. just stay away from the trails next to the rivers.

i would offer to show you around but my fitness sucks after missing most of the summer due to three smashed fingers...

Yeah Woburn is all fine on a hardtail til you start doing the bigger stuff which I imagine would be more fun on a big bike. I don't like it there in the wet though, the sandy mud is so annoying.

Overall I prefer Chicksands as the dual is so much fun. The Chicksands XC is crap though, nothing challenging at all.

Woburn is a bigger venue than Chicksands and the sand is a bit of an arse in the summer but as long as you stay on the higher trails it's very ridable all year. Not too sure i'm liking all the press on here though as the permissions debate is still a little fragile.

So Spain then - wheres good for a quick fix? Long w/e stylee..

Just been for a quick spin on my local stuff around Bingley and even after last night's downpour I didn't come across much mud.
Not the best in the UK but it's right out of my door, which I like.

the outdoors is quite good for this sort of activity

the outdoors is quite good for this sort of activity

About as helpful as brick to a drowning man.. 🙄

Spoilt for choice in Spain. I used to work near La Manga Club *spits* and there is some great riding round there and in nearby mountain ranges.

For guided rides companies like Switchbacks and Pure Mountains are reputed to be very good. I'm also keen to check out riding in the north with Basque MTB.

Donks - do you know what the current situation is with access to Woburn at the moment?

Now that winter is upon us and the tourist bikers are all abed for the winter you should head for the Surrey Hills. Rides well all year round and the glag is light and wet, not sticky and heavy as there is no clay in it at all.

well all i can say is we are all still riding it and it's being tolerated so as long as it doesn't get Swinley numbers turning up then touch wood.
There was someone from the Greensands committee or something with progress updates but nothing new or definitive. Jedi may know more? There was even some talk of plans for a mini trail centre around the Stokgrove park area?

I ride Surrey fairly regularly so Im looking for some new stuff. Seems a lot of the good stuff is in them thar rocky northern hills!

Cool - thanks. I've not been over for a while and my membership has well and truly run out. I've been doing some work with Aston Hill though so appreciate the difficulties that Woburn is facing - there are soooo many factors involved in making somewhere legal to ride bikes.

I did hear the rumour of the Stokegrove Park trails as well, but nothing more.