[Closed] So the Wild Boar Chase

Any takers?

Think they're all still lost in the woods from what I heard...

Yeah, seems all the locals removed all the signs, riders all over the place! very annoying!!

Defo some missing signage and some pointing the wrong way too.
Was good though.

We really enjoyed it, seemed well organised and very friendly, first part was more fire road than single track, but still took in some nice bits. Lovely cakes at the finish!
Didn’t realise people were getting lost! There were a few places we noticed that had different signs to the orange arrows, but we had downloaded the maps and GPX of the route so didn’t have any problems.

yeah wasnt bad actually.. think the locals took most of the Full boar down as they ended up in the middle of a golf course!!

I ended up doing the Wye Boar and the signs were ok on that. From what I gathered speaking to marshalls it was the signs on the Bixslade Loop section that comprised the Full Boar that were removed by [s]idiot NIMBYs[/s] people.
A couple of pics from the start-
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First time out on a full sus bike with many gears for me and quite interesting compared to my alfine geared inbred.
I obviously scored good trail karma for fixing two riders broken chains with my spare powerlinks (so that's why they come in a three pack...) as I didn't crash this time out!
I enjoyed it, and the cupcake as you crossed the line was definitely well received.

I was with a group of about 30 the missed a right turn and did a few extra miles because of a missing sign but apart from that I really enjoyed it. Bit more fire road than I expected but fun nonetheless.

ahh, yes i was part of the group that didnt take the right turn that was removed! yeah the fire roads went on a bit.. gave up after back tracking for an extra 5 miles or so ended up doing well over 30 for the forest boar. think it was straight over at the fallen tree as opposed to the awesome descent to the left which we all took. (worth it)

Statement from the website http://fodmbe.org.uk/wild_boar_chase.php:

The organisers would like to apologise for the thoughtless actions of the local people that removed the direction arrows on the Bixslade Loop, thus detracting from the enjoyment of the event. As locals ourselves, we can only apologise for not anticipating that this would be done to the event. Ironically, the main purpose of the event is to raise money for local good causes. All of the organisers and helpers on the event are volunteers.

saw that, its a shame. although i am interested to know if anybody rode the event in the morning before the start to make sure all in place?
never mind.. hopefully next year wont be hindered by the locals.

Was told by a marshal that the course had been ridden in the morning and all the markers were up. I was ok as I had a gps of the route. Did anyone else see the family of wild boar just off the road along from speech house. Mum, dad and 6 piglets.

I'm glad to see that the general feedback is OK despite the issues...

The proportion of fire roads is due to restrictions - but if you kept your eyes open you will have seen opportunity to explore. There's lots of good stuff, as vez152000 found (tho the intended descent on the Forest Boar is also good - if you have a gps)

The small boar was ridden that morning, on the Forest Boar marshals reported signs being removed within 30 mins of replacing them... but whatever - if the event is held again I'm sure the Lions will address the issue.

A good event, even with the missing signs! Took a left at the fallen tree to a great downhill section, so not bothered by it. Will be back next year, but maybe with a garmin! thanks to all the volenteers

drjohn, I'm sure you did all you could to signpost the route. Personally I entered the event because I've recently moved to the area and it was a great introduction to what's available in the Forest, so big thanks from me.

head909
Took the same great DH section at fallen tree.
Up to then all OK
Looked at map last night and were not too far away.
Thinking of garmin too
Thanks to all the organisers

Used a gps so quickly saw the error of our ways on the Bixslade loop and had a cracking ride.

Thanks DrJohn and the Lions.

It looked like everyone was enjoying themselves as they came down to the Kona Cafe, and most were still smiling at the finish line! I took over 350 photos of the riders, they can be seen (and bought either as a print or a digital download) from [url= http://www.edgelandsphotography.com ]Edgelands Photography[/url]

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Sorry to hijack slightly but can i have some recomendations for GPS's

Garmin Oregon 450

An interesting ride , from the Benny Hill start, being lost several times to some cracking descents and lovely Bways (I think nearer to the Wye valley).
Obviously I would have liked a bit less fire road in the first 12 miles but I appreciate the restrictions.
It certainly wasn't easy!
Fair play to the organisers for having a go - I'm sure the glitches can be ironed out for next year.

edgelands - Wouldn't it be better if you sorted them into rider number? That way they'd only have to be sorted once, now 400 people have to look through 400 thumbnails. Sorry, can't be bothered. I'll wait for one of the other photographers to upload theirs.

Yes was a good event that had a little bit of everything.

I think the marshals did really very well. Signs were being moved as the ride was in progress and they were having to react to the changing situation with riders getting lost on golf courses and on main roads. For someone to give up their Sunday is one thing, but to have to deal with all of the problems is something else. I'd like to say thanks to the organisers and all of the volunteers as I really enjoyed the riding despite the problems.

The course was quite old skool in nature, lots of fireroad and country lanes and tracks. Cupcakes and lucozade at the finish was appreciated!

[b]wonny j:[/b]

The course was quite old skool in nature, lots of fireroad and country lanes and tracks.

Just right, for my venerable, old skool, Pace 🙂

The last organized mtb event I entered was the Polaris in 1995. It left me scarred, I swore 'never again' 😉

The route sabotage wasn't too much of an issue. The group I was with figured it out fairly quickly and we got back on track with minimal fuss.

Had to carry a few times up some of those steep rocky ascents (the one out of Mork after leaving the tarmac in particular, comes to mind).

Thanks to the organizers and the volunteers. I really enjoyed the day.

edgelands - Wouldn't it be better if you sorted them into rider number? That way they'd only have to be sorted once, now 400 people have to look through 400 thumbnails. Sorry, can't be bothered. I'll wait for one of the other photographers to upload theirs.

So long as you have some idea where you were in the field it is pretty easy - found our pics in a few seconds (and bought one of them!)

Did the Full Boar route and really enjoyed it. Yes we too got a little lost right near the end due to missing arrows, but easily and quickly retraced our steps back to the actual route

Loved the old school feel to the trails, all naturally occurring stuff. Was blimmin hard though, seemed to be climbing nearly all the time

a1exf, think I saw you a couple of times, we passed and you passed us back a couple of times (guys on Zesty and Superlight)

[b]dja25:[/b]

a1exf, think I saw you a couple of times, we passed and you passed us back a couple of times (guys on Zesty and Superlight)

Page 3, top right photo on Edgelands photos (DSC_4407). That was me.

Can't swear to having noticed a Zesty or SL on my travels that day. Too busy feeling knackered 😉