It's urban, do I need a gun to dodge the hoodies, do I need a tube, will I die?
But joking aside, got some **** course oop north tomorrow for a week and it's 14 mins from my hotel apparently. Trail centre? Pay to park? Can I actually get some pedals on or is it all hips and whips? Got my bike and kit packed, do I need a camel back for a loop etc etc.
Parking is free. Compact trail centre, never more than 2 miles from the car park. Go for a mess around rather than a big day of pedalling. When are you coming, I’m 10mins away...
It’s quite compact but good fun. I tend to go early at the weekend and parking can be hectic. Free to park and use so give a bit back and use the good cafe.
The main area is a selection of built berm and jump lines, with one particularly long stretch of massive jumps. Venture into the woods and there is a shortish Singletrack trail that is really quite good fun. Certainly edit *can* be “sessioned” to enjoy the fun parts but the whole loop is good with a number of options.
It’s not a trail centre as in a long loop, heading off remoteish, much more compact than that but for the size of the place, you will definitely lose a couple of hours trying to nail the lumps and bumps in the woods line.
Certainly can’t be “sessioned” to enjoy the fun parts but the whole loop is good with a number of options.
*can be sessioned
Free parking. Decent looking cafe although I didn't try it. Pump track, bmx track and jumps. Short red loop, jump focussed but all rollable. Loads to keep you entertained really. I was impressed.
When I was there someone had smashed themselves into the ground on the black drop off, think he spent 4 hours waiting for an ambulance, hopefully he's OK.
The parking is free as it's hoped the cafe will fund the venture. If that's not a good enough reason to buy cake I don't know what is.
You need a reason to buy cake???
The parking is free as it’s hoped the cafe will fund the venture. If that’s not a good enough reason to buy cake I don’t know what is.
Tell that to the guy we saw brewing his own coffee in the side doorway of his T5 in the car park 🙄
Stiffen your suspension up (add some air and/or compression damping) and pump your tyres up harder than usual! There's nothing sharp to puncture on.
It's like a giant set of pump tracks. All man made, smooth berms, jumps of all types for all skill levels, a few drops (one pretty big one and couple of crazier unofficial lines). Most of the jumps are tables and easily rollable. Where there's doubles, triples, gaps and the like it's optional with easier lines!
Don't miss the BMX track, main jump line, bridge jump line (the biggest jumps and hips there which are full on), the easier longer one next to it and obviously the fun to session woods stuff! There's even a few cheeky steep booters hidden off the woods trails, which are part of the original trails before it was an official spot. keep your eye out for the short cut to loop back the best bit of the woods trails about 3/4 of the way round before the quarry drops section!
I’m thinking of doing the same next week. I have visits to Wolverhampton / Manchester / Leeds 3 days consecutively. Thinking about sticking the hardtail
In the boot of the car (as long as the hotels I book don’t mind me keeping it in my room) and doing Cannock one early evening and Leeds the following early evening.
Sounds like Leeds urban bike park is a lot of fun and a 140mm travel forked hardtail will be perfect.
Tell that to the guy we saw brewing his own coffee in the side doorway of his T5 in the car park 🙄
Maybe someone should! Free parking is the right thing, I'm all for keeping it as accessible as possible, and it's largely a big success with lots of different people riding there, but if you can afford a T5 you can afford a cuppa at the cafe.
Lots of burms and jumps though we find we do 10+ miles since they added the forest trail. Got this shot of my lad near the big jump.
Leeds is great fun. The top bit will be full of families & kids on everything from Strider bikes upwards.
The very furthest bit (the Black-rated jumps area) will be full of big bouncy bikes.
But the main "XC" trail itself is really flowing and it's very rare you get any sort of traffic jam along it. Sometimes there'll be riders sessioning parts of it, the trail has several little cut throughs to double back. Starts with a mile or so of almost all gradual downhill, rolling jumps, berms etc. The return leg has some short sharp little climbs but still flows nicely.
Only done the new trail once, it was still bedding in a bit but looked great.
An hour or so is usually enough for us, then we get bored and go to Wharncliffe.
wrightyson, let me know when you are there, I will meet you if you want.
That looks/sounds a riot to ride!
Envy from South of the border 🙁
If you’re staying in the city centre get a train to Ilkley and go ride on Ilkley moor. It’s one train, 25 mins get off at the last stop. The moors are a 5 minute pedal from the station.
It’s impossible to get lost up there and there’s a great network of singletrack. I live in Ilkley if you want a guide
Enjoy it?
It's a cracking place and the team that run it are friendly and really committed to the project - it's amazing to see how much has been done since we raced CX around a half-built circuit two years ago! My son and his friends love the place and take very little persuading to go and I did my BC L2 MTB certification in conjunction with the team there too 🙂
Echoing comments above, please support the place and use the cafe and shop. These facilities live and die on the support of the riders that use them, so take the opportunity to stick a bit of cash their way and enjoy the great riding they've built!
Bonus shot of my boy on the new section of trails, in the Crank It XC race from a couple of months back:
rode there on Tuesday with wrightyson.
I really enjoy the place, I think he did too. it is just very good fun riding there.
which is what it is all about, isn't it.