[Closed] Natural Riding is Much Better Than Trail Centres?

This is a brilliantly pointless thread, but for my 2 euro cents, trail centres are too easy.

Learn your trade at Nany Y Arian, and ride there when you only have an hour or so. But ASAP, go and ride some actual mountains, with rocks, and risk, and all that.

Regarding easy/hard, my friend friend has a good saying:

[center]"if you are finding it too easy, go faster".[/center]

I have never ridden at a trail centre 😳

So, I can't really compare.

Thing is, you cant ride all-out on most natural trails as you don't know if there is someone round the corner walking up the hill.

Trail centres allow you to turn off your brain a bit and just have fun without worrying about routes or permissions or walkers/horses.

As i say, both are good 😉

Tim wrote:

Trail centres allow you to turn off your brain a bit and just have fun without worrying about routes or permissions or walkers/horses.

Not the case at my local "trail centre". You get dog walkers on the trails, families, joggers the lot!

This one always brings out the ' I'm macho and plunge off cliffs before breakfast' brigade. Each to their own, preferably both. There is no need to slag off those with different tastes to you. Ooops, that what I just did though, isn't it?

In short, trail centres are good, and so are natural trails...

...brilliant!

Thing is, you cant ride all-out on most natural trails as you don't know if there is someone round the corner walking up the hill

And what stops this happening at a trail centre?

And what stops this happening at a trail centre?

...erm signs saying "bikes only"?

One thing is for sure, I'd rather have these "purpose built" trails, than no trails at all! How many people here ever went to Wales before the trails were built.. it's a good thing all round!

...erm signs saying "bikes only"?

Never seen (or noticed) those at a trail centre, other than on a full on DH run.

If it's FC land, walkers have right of access to the whole place.

Come to think of it they aren't "bike only" only signs are they, but they do clearly label the trail as a bike trail. I've never seen any walkers on trails when I've been to Afan, CwmCarn or the 7 staines.

I've seen walkers heading up singletrack descents at Hamsterley. They're singposted as bike trails at the top, but there's nothing at the bottom and even at the top there's nothing to warn people against walking down them.

There's definitely no entry signs or similar at the ends of trail sections at Glentress. I believe there's something indicating when trails are bike-specific, too. It may not be as unambiguous as "BIKES ONLY" but it is reasonably clear.

I have encountered walkers on the bike trails at Glentress and Traquair, though. Mostly they've been apologetic when this has been pointed out. Mind you, I've seen MTBers on the walking trails at Glentress more often!

I've yet to ride a TC where Ive had to: stop/get off to go through gates

Tim - Member

your all too anal

I think you'll find that's 'you're'.

😉

Try trailquesting

Is it wrong to ride round a trail centre with a mapboard?

Trail centres are for carebears & natural trails for real men in lycra 😀

What I really find depressing though is I know a bloke who paid £4k + for a Cube full suss at London Bike show last year and ONLY rides locally to me (Suffolk) and no where else, not even Thetford appeals to him when I offered to show him a few trails on Brandon side. What a waste, people like that should be fined!

One thing that makes me laugh is "trail centres are too busy". I ride regularily at Glentress, one of the busiest trail centres, and you know what? Once away from the carparks I see more people on my local XC loops.

joe@brookscycles - Member

"This is a brilliantly pointless thread, but for my 2 euro cents, trail centres are too easy.

Learn your trade at Nany Y Arian, and ride there when you only have an hour or so. But ASAP, go and ride some actual mountains, with rocks, and risk, and all that."

Find some better trail centres. Can't recall hearing anyone at Laggan or Fort William complaining that things are too easy. Actual mountains, rocks and risk are all available at trail centres.

miketually - Member

"And what stops this happening at a trail centre?"

Nothing. But you can't believe it's as common at trail centres as it is on non-purpose-built trails...

What I really find depressing though is I know a bloke who paid £4k + for a Cube full suss at London Bike show last year and ONLY rides locally to me (Suffolk) and no where else, not even Thetford appeals to him when I offered to show him a few trails on Brandon side. What a waste, people like that should be fined!

Why? It's his money to waste.

I like options.

When i feel like a trail centre i ride one

When i feel like natural trails I ride some.

Great.

One thing that makes me laugh is "trail centres are too busy".

That's what I was thinking.

I rode Mabie on a Sunday afternoon on the BH weekend recently and only saw three groups of riders all the way round.

I met more people on when I rode the Garburn Pass on a weekday afternoon earlier that week.

I had Lee Quarry to myself earlier.....

'Regarding easy/hard, my friend friend has a good saying:
"if you are finding it too easy, go faster".'
In the same way as if the music is crap ,play it louder...I presume.

I've enjoyed the trail centres I've ridden in wales but there are some crap ones like the bore fest that is timberland trail in brizzle.

'Regarding easy/hard, my friend friend has a good saying:
"if you are finding it too easy, go faster".'
In the same way as if the music is crap ,play it louder...I presume.

Aye, in the same way as not being able to think of a good analagy so just making one up.

Could be worse...I could lack the ability to spell.

I like to think of riding like drinking alcohol... I have different drinks I enjoy lager, beer, wine spirits in much the same way as different bikes I ride.

And then I have different places to drink - bars, restaurants, home, other peoples houses, outdoors, pubs etc.

All have their place in my life but I do some more than others but it depends more on who I am with which really makes it enjoyable.

🙂

Another crowded artificial red.

[img] [/img]

[url=

overcrowded yesterday in the rain.[/url]

Rorschach - Member
Could be worse...I could lack the ability to spell.

worse it is then - first thread of yours on the list and I didn't even have to go beyond the title

http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/is-thge-arse-falling-out-of-mtbing

Rudedog - you obviously haven't read his profile either 😉

I'm with the don't care either way brigade. Hamsterley is only 20 minutes away by car but that is 40 minutes + set-up/arsing about ie. 1 1/2 hours, instead of which I could be on my bike straight from my front door into very similar terrain. I would undoubtedly enjoy it (and do occasionally) but it's purely a time/riding balance and more often than not the 'time' factor wins.

...bloke who paid £4k + for a Cube full suss...ONLY rides locally to me...(Suffolk)

That's ridiculous. It's like spending £40k+ on a sports car and only driving it on roads with 70mph or less speed limits.
Whoever would do such a thing ? 🙄

Where I live and started mountain biking in Sardinia there are NO trail centres, only natural trails. One UK visitor commented that this 1000 m singletrack descent was the "best natural trail he'd ever been on"[url=

Sisine from Su Irove Longu[/url]. A Slovenian said another nearby 1000 m vertical descent was a singletrack worthy of the Alps. And no mud. Peter

but for me there's no real challenge there anymore

Interesting, this is how I sometimes feel when riding natural trails. I start longing for a berm, jump, northshore to spice it up.

Sounds like your 'Natural trails' are a bit shit. Guess you need to find better natural trails,
Or go faster,
or get a fully ridged to make your shit trails feel G-narly
or ask Gee atherton & steve peat to pass you the baton as you are a real riding god 🙄

(uturn)
I like a bit of a change myself tbh. SS hardtails for the flatter familier trails of home, full sus 5inch for rocky steeper all mountainy style stuff. I'm no riding god but if it's gonna be an easier ride, i take a bike that will maximise the enjoyment. and like wise if I'm off to sierra navada.
(/uturn)

Natural trails for me .I to read a map and find my own routes with decent views chucked in.I'm not bothered about jumps and stuff because it's not what I do .Trail centres are good though because it keeps other trails quieter and those who can't read maps and like to be spoon fed can use them

it's nice that you like doing what you like doing, but why so sneery and patronising towards different people liking doing those sometimes different things that they sometimes like doing?

you're not a very happy person today are you?

(and, as above, 'natural' trails often aren't any quieter, some of them are packed!)

X

That's why you chose quiet trails that aren't busy! I can't see the point in driving to trail centres and riding on pallets and boards when there is so much natural stuff th explore.Sarn Helen or the Ridgeway tostart with plus the thousands of miles of other paths that exist.I started mtbing to explore the countryside quicker than I could on foot and 26 years later that still holds true.

Sounds like your 'Natural trails' are a bit shit

I live in the Peak District. I've ridden there on and off for 20 years or so, as well as the Lakes, Wales, a bit in Scotland, Austria and Spain. I love riding natural trails. I love planning a route and setting out with my map and some friends. It's a different experience from the trail centre one, which for me is all about the thrill of the riding. Nothing more, nothing less. I don't get the same continuous level of thrill and challenge riding natural trails in the Peaks.

or get a fully ridged to make your shit trails feel G-narly

I have a fully rigid. Trails that my full susser cruises over do feel much more challenging - and fun - on my fully rigid. On occasion I have pretended my road bike is a CX bike. Blame the bike or blame my attitude.

I've served a reasonable "real" mountain biking apprenticeship I think. If I only ever rode my MTB at trail centres and uplifts in the big mountains from here on in I don't think you'd hear me grumble. In the meantime I'll tootle around my local crap trails 😉

...but why so sneery and patronising towards different people...

Are you new here ?

I think trail centres are brilliant, the busier the better - they keep the real trails quiet for the rest of us.