[Closed] cannock chase

it's pleasant little ride, find some locals and go and play on the off piste stuff as well and you can make a good day of it 😀
riding is always worth it!!

yes,cause if you don't,well you'll never know for sure,eh ?

Jedi, take it from me (and Bushwacked for that matter!) that the Monkey Trail is awesome! We rode it last weekend, fair to say that we were both remarkably impressed how good it was.

Anyway, what you up to weekend of 17th/18th July? B's birthday is Saturday, mine is the Sunday, was thinking of perhaps heading back up to Cannock on either day (probably Saturday) to ride the trail again, perhaps followed by a BBQ later...

I really like it. I'm about 55 miles away and I think its worth that drive. Dunno how much further it is for you. The M8/lower cliff descent is some of the most fun I've had on a bike, getting faster each time 🙂

its a 2.5hr drive for me.
mboy, i will let you know 🙂

you should be alright on it jedi, you can miss some of the black bits out.... 😯

It was just over a 2 hour drive for me. Can't wait to get up there again. Had a great few hours riding (and then slept very well!)

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Is Cannock ok for a reasonably confident 12 yr old girl?

It depends on how confident she is, my 13yr old lad loves the Monkey Trail.

Follow the Dog probably would be ok for her but the Monkey is a bit full on in places - but you know her riding more than I do and I've seen a 13yr old who out rides me by a long way!!!

That M8 / Lower cliff descent is awesome and there is another bit which i can't remember the name of but really reminds me of one of my all time favorite places to ride. 🙂

Nice one neil's-on-wheels.

It's made my mind up another bit of uninspiring benchcut trail with little rhythm and no natural features. Was it built by Clixbys as it looks like Dalby and Whinlatter, with the same tight turns?

Doesn't mean I wouldn't have a go if passing though!!

Clixbys played a big part in the build, but lots of other bits built by volunteers on weekends, its a great trail even wth the tight switchbacks which i finally cleared all of last week!!

Fine for a 12 year old. There's nothing difficult that takes you by surprise. Plenty of time to look at it first, watch other people doing it and make your mind up.

thecrackfox ......glad to see you'll be staying away , leave the trails for the locals ;-))

thecrackfox

Having this

bit of uninspiring benchcut trail

I live in the mountain bike mecca that is somewhere between the east and west mids. Biking is thin on the ground at the best of times and this is one very welcome trail.

mintsauce5 - ooohh get you. 😮

neil's-on-wheels - fair comment. I live near Dalby and find it okay, compared to the natural trails locally. Sounds like a dream compared to the erm is that the mid midlands? 😳

Not worth the drive from Hertfordshire,for an experienced rider.Fun,but I always feel like I've wasted fuel/riding time while driving from Stoke.

East midlands is seriously shite for riding. We have Woburn and Chicksands and thats about it.

feel like I've wasted fuel/riding time while driving from Stoke.

you can NEVER waste fuel getting away from stoke!! 😀

LOL Stoke.

It's made my mind up another bit of uninspiring benchcut trail with little rhythm and no natural features. Was it built by Clixbys as it looks like Dalby and Whinlatter, with the same tight turns?

Tbh that clip really doesn't do it justice,it's far better than it looks on there.....

I totally agree with emac that the video above doesn't give a true account of the terrain. Before anyone ignores the "Monkey Trail" on the results of watching that, I would search the forum for other responses before you make your mind up as whether to travel there.

PS. I live on the outskirts of Stoke and travel the UK with work and its no better or worse than anywhere else I have visited. 😀

Drove over yesterday from Cambridgeshire and it's the best riding I think you'd find in any direction if you drove for 2 hours!

The Monkey was a lot of fun, although a bit soft in places, it's a weird dust/sand hybrid so keep your pressures low.

Drove over yesterday from Cambridgeshire and it's the best riding I think you'd find in any direction if you drove for 2 hours!

As someone who will be doing likewise at the end of the month I am going to hold you liable if it's not 😉

never been there but used to live in the area before i went back to mountain biking do pass by visiting family tho so next time will take the bike seeing as you all seem to recommend it but is a fully rigid single speed going to be suitable for this area?.

That looks dull as dishwater. Pie botherer at the end made me laugh too.

Done it many times with no bounce and its fine although it is more fun with. Not done it singlespeed as I am fat.

i'm fat too but getting thinner and quicker (slightly) so i'll give it a go and see what happens (or not as the case may be!).

have done the monkey twice this weekend, seriously fun, only half an hour from my parents though - maybe not worth hours and hours drive.

That looks dull as dishwater.

If you do it fast enough and like getting air it's great fun 🙂

MMB- it's do able on a single speed, but you will need a couple of cyclocross dismounts and sprint up a couple of the switchbacks. On the plus side, I can run up with a bike on my shoulder faster than gearie boys can pedal it.

If you are running a funny wheel size it can get a wee bit tight on some of the berms and the outside edge of corners that you would normally use are all ****ered and crumbling away.

It's jolly good fun though.

I'll have to give it a go on a boingly geared bike, but I get the feeling it will make a lot less "interesting".

^ it's all easily doable on singlespeed...I'm only on 26" though

I'm old & fat and I can do it (nearly) all on SS, although there are a couple of switchback exits I lose traction on. I'm a relative newbie to flats - if I was clipped in I would probably manage to ride it all.

I think the best sections (the original Monkey) are still being worked on, and are due to be linked in fairly soon.

hmmmmm what ratio are you ss boys on? the gradient isn't the issue really it's the traction on the switchbacks

or I go back to dinky wheels so they fit around the ****in corners 😀

Interesting - I watched the vids posted and I thought - that looks flat and dull. I thought I would look up some glentress ones to post in comparison - you know what - they looked flat and dull as well - even bits I know well and know to be good fun.

So I conclude that cannock is more fun than it looks on those vids.

All of the Monkey is doable on a 32:16

34:18 on a 29er, that'll explain it (and the weedy legs...and the fact I'm piss poor at going uphill)

Dunno how you do it on SS, surely the switchbacks kill all your momentum?

i'm running 32:16 0n a 26" chameloen so this sounds doable and fun too! i'm really looking forward to it now lovely stuff!.

Cannock is probably quite average and boring to those who travel far and wide, stick with Afan or Glentress etc... and let us poor suffering locals continue to make do with this tat on our doorstep.

Don't come here I tell ye, don't come.

Tony, if you have spare time to ride then wait till its all open, Chase Trails are still working on a big long nice bit of singletrack, the rest is decent enough, nothing technical but some lovely narrow tree flowy bits, what they've done is nothing less than outstanding given the terrain, local surface materials and topography as apart from some machine made stuff it was all made by countless hours of volunteers Sundays. It would be worth doing it once finished PLUS taking trip up to the DH area, lots of good little trails up there now.

Its nothing at all like Scotland or Wales , no where near, its in the West Midlands FFS. TJ PLEASE STAY NORTH OF THE BORDER. 🙄

Scruff - did you read what I posted?

TandemJeremy - Member

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So I conclude that cannock is more fun than it looks on those vids.

I'm in Stoke and like the Chase but I wouldn't drive from Herts or simlar to ride there. Unless... I was making a road trip of it. Maybe if you did the Chase on Sat and a North Wales centre on Sunday IMO it might be worth the time/fuel cost. Or TBH if you could hook up with some locals the Chase really has got enough area to ride 2 days. Maybe FTD/Monkey one day and then a ling ride round the Chases natural stuff.

I've never had a good day at the chase! Nothing to do with the trails, (they're excellent) its just the people i ride with.

mmb - Member

i'm running 32:16 0n a 26" chameloen so this sounds doable and fun too! i'm really looking forward to it now lovely stuff!.

Rode it today on a 32:16 chameleon. Nice choice, bro. Failed on a couple of the tight climbing switchbacks, but other than that rode everything. Never been good at climbing switchbacks, me

Not had chance to watch the vids yet, will do so later, but wouldn't advise anyone to make a special trip. The whole trail seems to have been surfaced in some loose dust that with the lack of rain has lost cohesion and the braking bumps are massive, the trail is really braking up - the monkey just as much as the dog trail. I don't have a problem with trail erosion but to have SO MUCH damage on a built trail doesn't ring true, something's been built wrong I think

Having said that I really enjoyed the trail and would recommend riding it if you're in the area - just not making s special trip

captain_spaulding - Member
I've never had a good day at the chase! Nothing to do with the trails, (they're excellent) its just the people i ride with.

You'd have hated today then mate. Just me, Wes and Jay

scruff, my mate atkins loves it. so does barny so i reckon it will be fun.
i liked our ride there all those years ago too

There's a few of us from MTB-Britain going on Wednesday if you fancy it 🙂

nbt, the trails built with locally sourced material. This allowed the project spend to be kept under £250k and avoids importing foreign material. This helps to maintain a less engineered feel but the disadvantage that sand and gravel does what sand and gravel does when it gets and stays dry.

It's an oddity for us to have this little rain in summer. I think there is lots to offer at cannock, you have to admire what they have done both with the volunteer effort and the lack of altitude. The off piste stuff makes it for me tho.

thanks Stu, I thought it would be something like that. it's obviously very dry down there, it's really dusty. Like I said I really enjoyed the trail, I'd certainly consider another visit if it was in a more solid condition 🙂

Yeah some of the off piste stuff is great. The descent known as "pebbles" or something is really good - loose, fast and steep.

stay away on 22 or 23 of july as i will be there......and there will be a long queue waiting behind me on the climbs 😕

Ive not tried the monkey trail, Done FTD though which was alright. Like someone said before you just have to do it faster and it should be more fun. Can be quite boggy in places after rain. Ill be there 10th and 17th july if anyone fancies meeting up. I would be glad of a bit of local knowledge of the area so i can get some decent riding in. My g/f lives local to cannock so ill be there quite regular. 🙂

I found coming off the Monkey trail and doing Follow the Dog made me realise how good the Monkey is when compared to FTD.

there was a lot of folk riding around yesterday with battle scars....reckon the monkey was winning.

snakebite - Member

there was a lot of folk riding around yesterday with battle scars....reckon the monkey was winning.

Yes, a lot of the trail was just washing out to dust on the downhill side, I had a couple of "moments" where the front wheel was close to washing out. Luckily I know I'm a bit rubbish so I was going slow and managed to save it 😉

how as the wedding?

Wedding was great ta. 387 photos. At least a dozen worth printing, a 3% hit rate 😀

[i]Yes, a lot of the trail was just washing out to dust on the downhill side, I had a couple of "moments" where the front wheel was close to washing out.[/i]
Rode it for first time in 3 weeks yesterday and I,m quite pleased its all cutting up giving it a more natural feel, hope the trail builders leave it to disintergrate further and just shout out from the sidelines with loud hailers CONTROL YOUR BRAKING STOP SKIDDING YOU MUPPETS.

Rich

Rode it for first time in 3 weeks yesterday and I,m quite pleased its all cutting up giving it a more natural feel, hope the trail builders leave it to disintergrate further and just shout out from the sidelines with loud hailers CONTROL YOUR BRAKING STOP SKIDDING YOU MUPPETS.

Bang on with the comments about poor skillz causing the surface to break up, but if you want a more natural feel ride more natural trails - if you ride a built trail, it's a different experience.