[Closed] South Manchester Vs Hampshire

You even need to ask? 😉

You know you want to ride my trails again and trust me I can show you rocks, not lots but enough to make it interesting!

You down visiting at christmas?

In the con's of manchester you forgot to say : football

Heavyweights don't fight flyweights in the martial arts. It is not allowed.

You are actually allowed to go north of Manchester. They say its the North but its really code for not the Midlands, the land continues beyond to - West Pennine Moors, Bowland and Gisburn Forest, Southern Yorkshire Dales, South Pennines...

Dont know hampshire from a mountain biking point of view, but its not reknowned for its hilly terrain.

Its got to be hard to beat manchester as a well located place for easy access to good mountain biking.

- Peaks less than an hour away
- lakes less than 2 hours away
- several good trail centres between 1 and 2 hours away.
- scotland nearer to manchester than hampshire

[img] [/img]

You'll be closer to Hora, thus a cheap and plentiful supply of nearly-new frames....

[img] [/img]

Its all cr@p down here. South downs is all chalky and the North Downs is full to overflowing and not very good or hilly either.

The North is apparently much better, stay put.

From Manchester you're less than 2 hrs from the Lake District. Absolute no brainer.

Is this a trick question?

I should have pointed out that with a young family I don't get out that often, and when i do it's only for a few hours so an hours drive == an hours less riding time :/

an hours drive == an hours less riding time 😕

Buy a roadbike and stay put then?

8)

+1 for Manchester.

I'm originally from the South West (which probably puts up a better fight than Hampshire), but Manchester wins out on variety - the peaks, lakes, Bowland, N. Wales etc.

Though you'd be absolutely screwed without a car IMO (v. frustrating when I first moved up).

Oh, and a quick 'big up' (or similarly contemporary call of encouragement and thanks) to the guys at Gisburn. Some lovely lines being built at the moment 😀

don't live in South Manchester then. You work in That Manchester, move to Marple and get the train to and from work, then you can ride from your front door

nbt, quite right. My unreserved apologies.

Hampshire has a world-famous chalk stream. 🙂

I lived in Hampshire. As much as it pains me to say it, I'd sooner live up north if it was purely a cycling decision.

Main difference would be about 3-4 degrees celcius more on average and about 2 inches less rain (each day)

That said, I'd rather live in the north but my family/life is in hampshire for now at least

Hampshire Pros:
...
Riding from the doorstep

If you're really pushed for time, this is pretty much the top trump.
Plenty of top riding within an hours drive as well.

I live in Hants.

It's obviously exceptional because of the fact that I live here.

Ok, so far as mtb' ing goes think of it more like a big XC type environment. Ok we have lots of forests and woods and cheaky singletrack, and the Downs are on our doorstep, but.... Hilly it ain't. The Downs are lovely, no doubt about that, few bridle ways cross them (SDW excluded) so you have to join up cheaky trails to bridle ways and so on. It also gets busy in the forests, new or old "cough" and there are places I don't go because of it. QEP is a really nice place but when you've ridden it 10 times its, well, a bit meh. Then you have the parks over Chichester way and again some you can ride in some you can't.
If its riding from your doorstep you want then you can do that from any location, I do it, link 4-5hr rides off road no problem, but really it's quite flat rolling hills.
Beautiful tho.
Really beautiful down here.

Don't know what you riding places are like, but think, from what you've said, it's similar, so maybe it could work for you.

Righty ho, clubs, best off joining one when you're here so Fareham Wheelers is a good place as any, Palky rides out with groups of 20odd and Tues/Thurs/Sun, great bunch, perhaps you could arrange a trip out with them to get a feel for the place. Then there's the Lordswood lot...and Muddy Moles over Chichester/Havant way..

And so on.

You don't need any bike over 120mm FS here, most ride HT's with 100mm or SS29er rigids which kinda gives you an idea of the terrain.

BOL

manc ftw

Fewer thieving scumbags down here...[and that's a Northener speaking]

May I politely point out that the highest hill in Hampshire is a lofty 286 metres?

🙂

Hampshire, without a doubt. The beer's better.

And Scott, the trails were great! If a bit sandy, the fact you were on a rigid single speed and I had 6 inches of travel says it all...

All good fun though. Won't be down at Christmas, they're all coming up here.

not sure what the race scene is like near manchester but you got gorrick and southern xc events and many more besides. think we are fairly well catered for in that area? within 1hr of hampshire

Technically speaking, both your cons for Manchester are the same

Of the two I would say Hampshire. But I live in Surrey and work in Hampshire so might be a bit biased. I have been to Manchester btw!!!

[quote=trailbreak-martin said]Hampshire, without a doubt. The beer's better.

+1

I live in South Mcr and have to admit that the flatness is a pain. That said North Manchester is a mere 20mins by bike and there's some big enough hills there for a good pootle. Then you have North Wales, Peaks, Pennines, Lakes, Gisburn etc etc etc all within 1-2 hours. No contest really.
Oh, and +1 for the move to Marple comment. Great area, good schools etc and fantastic riding on your doorstep. What's not to like? Never been to Hampshire so v. one-sided opinion in truth, but as far as I can see Manchester must be one of the best located places in the world for the sheer variety of quality riding that's available...

I live in deepest darkest Hampshire and yearn for my home town in the lakes at times. However I have the coast 15 mins bike ride from my front door, I have e South Downs 30 mins drive and QECP to play with when I want to. Also have the trail ride series down here which I tried out for the first time on sat which opened up more trails to me in Newbury. Its nice down here, when I have to move I will be gutted but the only place I will go if I do move is the North.

Hampshire, without a doubt. The beer's better.

That's not difficult as there is no such thing as a good pint of Robinsons.

British Cycling and Spirt England are creating and managing 15km of trails at a sort of mini trail centre with a pump tract and jumps at clayton vale about 10 mins from manc city centre next to the velodrome. Also I'm in Denton and hope in the peaks is in a car 15 mins from my door step and there is loads round there like Jacobs ladder. I think manc is pretty good place for mountain biking

[quote=oldagedpredator ]<snip>there is no such thing as a good pint of Robinsons.

Oh I don't know. the mild is a very nice pint, especially when serves by certain bar staff in my local after a night ride eh [b]Scaled[/b]?

Hampshire > Portsmouth the geographical equivalent to the anal cavity.

I grew up in Cheshire and moved down South 20 years ago. Moved back to Manchester a couple of years ago and whilst the riding in the North West is great, the weather is frankly dire in comparison. Luckily I lost my job and came back down to London.
Once you're used to Southern sunshine it's hard to accept anything else if you like being outdoors IMO

Hampshire's great because its my home county. I now however live in Dorset which is better for riding and has a better seaside : )

Manchester is miles away, cold and rainy so unless you have family and friends keeping you there, come on down and dont forget to bring your sunglasses and suntan lotion ; )

If it is.taking you 90 mins to get from south Manchester to Degla, then you are going the wrong way.

Brooess you did the right thing.

Op you lose rocks but get flowing trails...

Plus Manchester is full of Oompah Loompahs in heels.

I'm a Scouser who lives down South, just outside Hampshire really...

There's less theft, less thugs, rides within 1 min of my door, there's Swinley Forest, Afan down the M4 along with Cwmcarn, there's no stupid ****ing mancunian accents and the stupid posturing and waving of the shellsuited hands about while wearing a stupid hat.

Your kids will thank you for the higher standards of education, the increased wealth and the far far nicer place to live.

Just to balance things out- I lived in St Marys and the Flowers Estate in Southampton- lorra lorra crime round there. Like everywhere really- your only a few streets away from those that want your stuff.....unless its certain parts of Surrey then they are too busy stealing bigger stuffer manipulating the markets.. 😆

hora - Member
Just to balance things out- I lived in St Marys and the Flowers Estate in Southampton-

We have countrside down here and everything.

My nearest 'estate' is 10 miles.

You talk 'funny' though

hora - Member
You talk 'funny' though

Happily i still talk with my Scouse accent, however yes, down here that is percieved as 'funny'

Then you have North Wales, Peaks, Pennines, Lakes, Gisburn etc etc etc all within 1-2 hours. No contest really.

I beg to differ. 🙂 (as a midlander who cut his teeth riding The Peaks and has lived in Hants for 20+ years now)
We have South Wales, the Mendips, the Chilterns, the Cotswolds, the Downs (north and south) the Purbecks and untold hills and forests in between. Plus I can get anywhere in the world to ride with 2 big airports a train ride away. Or hop on a ferry to France.... No cars involved....
Yes, I suppose if 'better = higher' then you're right but there's more to MTBing than the highest hill IMO. And there's more to cycling than just MTBing as well, isn't there?
Don't get me wrong, I love riding in the North just as much as the next rider but simply saying 'no contest' is blinkered and misinformed to the extreme 🙂
And there's also more to life than just cycling too. The south has better weather and less chips on people's shoulders 😉
Neither is better of worse in the long run, it's personal preference, no more than that.

Just to balance things out- I lived in St Marys and the Flowers Estate in Southampton- lorra lorra crime round there. Like everywhere really- your only a few streets away from those that want your stuff.....unless its certain parts of Surrey then they are too busy stealing bigger stuffer manipulating the markets..

SMMB + wot m8

Manchester wins hands down surely? You'll get at least twice as big a house and a man cave fro the price of a southern terraced house. Move localy to Manchester to get some better 'from the door' riding.

The grass is always greener though. I lived near Guisbrough for a year and a half and missed the singletrack at Tunnle Hill,Minley,Cesars, Crowthorne, Swinely, Porrige Pot, etc. Now I'm back and have itchy feet for some propper hills to climb and downhill tracks to ride again.

Now I'm back and have itchy feet for some propper hills to climb .

**cough**
Cotswolds
**cough**

🙂

I live in Hampshire and while I love it here I was going to suggest you move to the Lakes and commute rather than come down here. Reading the whole thread and now I'm not so sure! It is nice down here and there's some great riding if you like XC (and trees, I frickin LOVE trees), but if it's hilly rocky gnar you're after it won't be for you.

I grew up in Hampshire and live in Surrey. From an MTB perspective the choice is a no brainer in favour of Manchester.

If you start to consider other non-biking factors you may or may swing back in favour of Hampshire (just seen @Weeksy's post - 😀 )

Rogate/QECP both within riding distance - i quite fancy a bit of a dig too.

Also don't forget Stoghton DH off your list. Its As good if not better than rogate.

To be fair Hampshire is a pretty varied county.

Big difference from the 'posh' towns up near Surrey and somewhere like Portsmouth or Southampton or the more remote 'bumpkin' areas.

Even terrain can be vastly different, going from the Swinley type wooded trails to open chalk hills to sandy forest down near Ringwood/New Forest.

I grew up in a hamlet in the Bourne Valley in North Hampshire and even they have changed massively in the last 20 years with new money/London rejects moving in and swamping the villages. If i go home now i barely recognise anyone 🙁

If i go home now i barely recognise anyone

Yeah but you can recognise the locals by their fingers and webbed feet ?

PeterPoddy - Member

**cough**
Cotswolds
**cough**

Highest point is 330m 😛 barely a molehill.

Scaled - i've done that move.

Yeah- miss the rocks and bigger hills, but right now, i'm enjoying the new variety of terrain -woodsy singletrack, QECP, the south downs and lots of events and races both off and on-road in close proximity.

Only change i've made is on my ss from 32:18 in the Peak to 32:16 here!

Beer IS better down south too 🙂

Personally I find tight twisty wooded Southern singletrack gives me a much bigger buzz than big rocky Peaks days out.
I also think I'm fitter - better and more consistent weather means more and longer riding days.
Oh and your drivetrain will last about 10 times longer!

nbt: i'd rather you didnt announce it on the internets that I tried a pint of that pisswater you refer to as mild*

The joys of being down south i suppose is decent cider, although i have found addlestones on tap at the mark addy

*alright so it was quite nice,

missed a few for manchester.

all within 90 Minutes

Lee quarry
Gisburn
South Lakes
Calderdale
Sheffield and Greno Woods
Rivington
North wales
Pennines
Mary townley loop

the list is huge.

My best mate moved down south with work and hates the riding down there, He says the hill behind my house is bigger than most down south.

I'm in Denton and hope in the peaks is in a car 15 mins from my door step

Is it heck - maybe by helicopter or in the small hours of the morning in a Porsche 911 Turbo, but no way is it 15 minutes drive from Denton to Hope under any normal conditions. I live closer to Hope than you and it takes me significantly longer than 15 minutes to get there.

Anyway, I'm moving to Hampshire, it sounds like the mountain biking's way better than round here.

Again, here's the rub - At the weekend I have to leave the house at 7am on a saturday morning for my riding, if it's my turn to drive i have to pick my mate up (+20 mins)

I have to be home by 1300ish for family things so 90 mins each way is 50% of my leisure time

My best mate moved down south with work and hates the riding down there, He says the hill behind my house is bigger than most down south.

Do you live by asda?

At the weekend I have to leave the house at 7am on a saturday morning for my riding, if it's my turn to drive i have to pick my mate up (+20 mins)

If you lived in Marple, you could have ridden up to Mellor Cross and be in the wild in 20 minutes. Setting off at 7am you could do the jacob's ladder loop from home and still be home in time to wash the bike before 1pm.

Or not wash the bike and stay out for a pint!

Trouble is i wont be able to talk the mrs in to moving to marple 🙁

But she;d be happy to move to hampshire? manchester or hampshire won't matter if she wants to live in town again and you have to drive to the ride once you move down south. It's not manchester that's the issue here, it's where you live "in Manchester". What's her issue with Marple? there are loads of little towns round the south and east that have good access to riding and a railway into town

oh and midday pints, eh? Oh you decadent southerners

It's a family thing mate, my parents, her cousins, my grandparents all down south.

We moved up here to be closer to her Dad who died this year, the riding isn't the deciding factor.

To be honest I've no idea where i want to live, riding my bike is my favourite passtime and the thought of leaving the Peak District behind is freaking me out way more than it should!

At the end of the day, scaled, humans are very adaptable creatures. That's the reason we're the stupendous badasses of planet earth.

So the first couple of weeks bimbling around Hampshire will be sort of embarrassing, but give it a month and you'll have started to see an attraction. Give it a year and you'll be on here telling us all about the flowing singletrack and how cider shandy is such a nice drink.

Is it heck - maybe by helicopter or in the small hours of the morning in a Porsche 911 Turbo, but no way is it 15 minutes drive from Denton to Hope under any normal conditions. I live closer to Hope than you and it takes me significantly longer than 15 minutes to get there.

I stayed there and it took us 15 mins timed fair enough it was 1 pm on an Monday afternoon but we did it. And I wish it was in a 911 turbo unfortunately it was in an Astra estate with 2 kids

 

Hampshire
Coz me and Dez live here . Now thats decided, within 45 mins from Debz's house we can ride.-
Swinley / Tunnel Hill /Porridgepot etc.
Stanmer Park ( Big Dog )
Kingly Vale
Whiteways
Devils Punchbowl and surrounding woodland.
North Downs
South Downs
Surrey Flats ( no hills .- honest )

My brother lives in Sth Manc ( Gatley ) and the riding is good , and different . We have more trees , more singletrack , less rocks, more mud .

No ones mentioned Lords Wood 😉

heres a small list i have put together 1 hour from me:

XC:
QECP
South downs way
Hindhead
Lordswood
New forest
Kingley Vale
Whiteways
Stammer Park
Styning
Peaslake
North Downs
Swinley forest
Tunnel Hill
Longmoor
Blackdown

If we up it to 90mis as above:
Loads!

DH:
Gravity Project
Rogate
Hindhead
Lordswood
QECP (in 2013)
Stoughton DH
Watchmoor Bike Park
Tidworth

If we up it to 90mis as above:
UK Bike Park
Puddletown Woods
PORC
Bulltrack
Aston Hill

Go down South to please your missus with the concession that you get extra weekends away for riding!

I stayed there and it took us 15 mins timed fair enough it was 1 pm on an Monday afternoon but we did it. And I wish it was in a 911 turbo unfortunately it was in an Astra estate with 2 kids

Well, google maps has the road distance from Denton to Hope at 25 miles so you managed to average 100mph, which is quite impressive even for an Astra estate. Respect 🙂

Scaled, what you mean by near Asda?