OK Folks... about a week and a half to go and there's no trail updates? What's going on?
Anyway... I'm signed up for pairs and have spent most of December riding around my local Innerleithen trails in the snow to get prepared... just in time for it to start melting.
How icy is it up there?
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/strathpuffer-icy-today-29-dec
is the latest information from the very helpful local riders.
After some major bad luck my quad is but a pair! The wife is noth that impressed but hey, we're there for the fun of it not a podium place.
im solo - ive spent most of the time since august running rather than riding as ive been away from the bike .....
could make 24 hrs fun !
There is however a forum member that rode Laggan yesterday and did a nice write up. iirc he mentioned he was riding the 'Puffer route today so there may well be an update following that ride.
Yeah - I saw his Laggan post and hoped he'd respond here with his Puffer findings 🙂
Suffering a cold at the moment! perfect timing.
Training had been decent up till then but cest la vie.
Permafrost was on its way out on the 2nd making the course a little draggy but more frost last night and snow forecast so who knows what we'll get. I'm looking forward to the challenge no matter........
so alek - i need to get the snow bike up and running , stick the ice spikes on my merida and put muds on my 29er ? - fit crampons to my spd shoes and bobs a good un for all the conditions 😉
I was round the 'Puffer at midday.
The ice has gone. Still some very small pockets where it could return if the temps drop.
It started to snow when I got to Loch Na Crann but it stopped so there was only a light dusting which obscured some places where there may have been ice (but probably wasn't). View Rock descent was safe. A very small bit of ice. I rode over it deliberately and it crunched, so it won't be there long now.
Basically the track is in much the same condition as a damp summer. That's today of course. It is the 'Puffer so tomorrow will be different. 🙂
I was hoping for similar conditions as last year. That was great!
My preparation hasn't really gone to plan. Off the bike for last 3 months and far too much festive feasting has me slightly concerned 😮 all the more now that there's only 1/2 of the original team going 🙁
What's a bike?
i want grim baby GRIM GRIM GRIM !
the ice of 3 years ago for me please - coupled with heavy snow perhaps !
got ice spikes for tires AND spikes for my shoes !
Bring on the mud and pad destroying grinding paste...
Gloop is the new snow.....
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The worse the conditions the better the race...
Snowing today.
(BTW Where have all the other posts gone?)
Brian I left a message on the other thread about your hub - is it 36 hole and for sale or you got plans for it ? Crc are knocking them out at sensible prices ATM anyway.
Was your plan some threaded bar with 10 mm flats filed on at the drop outs ? Would be good to get my sandman running !
The mandatory equipment list has now been updated.
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We had a look round yesterday and all looked perfect.
Very little ice, other than on the trail just after you pop through the high fence. And that was just bit of ice on the corners. You grip again after a few inches of slippage.
Where it would normally get muddy, the deep frost had kept it firm but not solid and rutty.
We had a light dusting of snow up top, whilst we were up there.
View from the top as per below photo.
If it's snowed more today, it will of obviously changed a bit again.
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trail_rat - Member
Brian I left a message on the other thread about your hub - is it 36 hole and for sale or you got plans for it ? Crc are knocking them out at sensible prices ATM anyway.
I've got plans for it 🙂 Can't remember how many holes - it's in the shed, I'm in bare feet, and there's 2" of snow (I've gone soft) - so I'll check in the am.
Not really for sale, but if you need one right away grab mine and replace it when the one from CRC arrives. I'm not going to be needing it until well after the 'Puffer.
BTW if there's 2" of snow at my place there's probably 4" on the 'Puffer - I'll take the Pug round tomorrow.
I'll be there. Probably the slowest soloist. I hear it's snowing quite a lot that way. Metcheck says snow and -2 to -10. Ho hum, glad I've grown a beard for it!
Beware just after the fork on the fireroad that splits off to the right heading towards the puffer course as its sheet ice (after the climb from the loch)
3 fell last night and luckily nobody was hurt.It looked fine with the dusting of snow but there must have been about 100ft of ice.Take it easy!
Picture of the course looks good. luring me into a false sense of security. I sure there will be 5ft drifts come next weekend!
Was snowing last night. Probably about 2 inches on the ground. Some ice underneath as martin says - the rocky bit after the skeleton was mince-tastic for me.
This is my first event, but I'll be within the comforting blanket of a quad (I'm not that daft).
If the conditions are like they are in that pic, come race day(s), it'll be awesome 🙂
(Not that I didn't enjoy last year's snow-fest, it'd just be nice to go 'fast', rather than 'sideways'...)
Right now there's been a heap of snow dumped in this area. Sorry 🙂
Went round this afternoon.
There's about 1" - 2" of snow on top of a compacted layer. Most places are ok, but
Martinxyz's warning is bang on. I expected ice at Icy Corner, was riding slowly and nearly came off 3 times despite having studded tyres. There's also a thin layer of snow over polished ice on the top part of the fireroad. Trying to ride on clean snow there wasn't any grippier - I was sliding with studs.
Just after the deer fence - icy
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Click on photos to see the full set.
Long slab - icy
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Photo from same spot as Sharki's
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Pah, it'll be fine. Conditions will be completely different by next weekend!
hmmm cheers brian - ordered the hub from CRC - likely have it before id got yours 😉
that aint snow 😉 - only issue i have is my ice spikers are baby wheel sized !
trail_rat - Member
...that aint snow - only issue i have is my ice spikers are baby wheel sized !
This is snow, and this is real baby wheels 🙂
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So if the forecasts are to be believed it is going to be snow free and very wet :-/
yep,a mudfest by the looks of it.
rain coming in from the west/southwest on wed,thurs and fri with temps from thursday through to sat eve around 5c.a good selection of clothes will be on the cards then.
ugh.
Yeah, think it's going to be a wet and muddy one... any snow/slush left on the trails will be gone leaving a sea of brown after the first lap.
Still, 5c should feel positively balmy after the last 6 weeks!
Was pretty icy on Sunday, but there should have been a lot of melting by now.
If the [url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/weather/forecast/16?area=Strathpeffer ]Beeb[/url] are to be believed, it's going to be ruddy boiling hot and wet!
Shorts and t-shirt weather, almost 🙂
think ill take the sandman and the spikes on the other bike ....
i dont believe the bbc !
that should ensure its deep mud and rain 🙂
think ill take the sandman and the spikes on the other bike ....
i dont believe the bbc !
that should ensure its deep mud and rain 🙂
Apologies for this "what pads for the puffer" type question, but how long should sintered brake pads last in the mud, bearing in mind that I'll only be going round 1 in 4 laps?
was getting 4 laps to a set last year on xts
hope i do better than that this year - i only had 3 sets !
Roger, Take a couple of spare pairs, per end with you. Done it the past few years as part of a quad and gone through 4 pairs each time. Make sure they are bedded in prior to use though!
I'd agree with trail_rat - about 4 laps to a set is a good guide. Laps took me around an hour.
If your team is fast, you could be on for 2-3 sets of pads then.
Cheers all, I'd best wander off to the shops then 🙂
Just been round at lunchtime today.
Fireroad from start to first singletrack - ice, but reasonable grip on ice tyres.
Singeltrack ok
Fireroad from singletrack past Loch na Cran to top - layer of thin frozen rutted snow. Plenty grip but difficult to ride on because of the ruts and the resistance of the snow - couldn't freewheel the downward bit.
Icy Corner still a wee bit slippy, but enough snow cover to give grip.
Singletrack from the top to the woods - icy snow, rides ok.
Woods almost clear.
Didn't risk riding the slab before the deer gate - could see someone already had an interesting time there :)- but it seemed ok when I walked down it.
Deer gate onwards - rideable icy snow. Rode the long slab ok, bit exciting at the bottom though - otherwise ok to the Bridge of Thighs.
BoT onwards - all the singletrack was ok - icy snow to the Revolving Seat
The descent from that was ok, couple of small slippy ice patches.
From there to View Rock generally ok, but some hard glossy ice in the woods.
First part of View Rock descent ok, but just as it steepens there's about 60m of glossy ice which I rode carefully.
After that it's a breeze 🙂
Edit: double post removed.
How did that happen - first it ate my post, then it doubles it?
Anyhow I'll post pics shortly
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looks like it may be entertaining getting campervans up the fire road then?
Thanks for all the conditions reports epicyclo, can you tell how thick the ice is on the fire road, I'm wondering if it will melt completly with the forecast rise in temp?
Rich
Scuttles off to screwfix to get some self tappers.
rich c - Member
looks like it may be entertaining getting campervans up the fire road then?
Thanks for all the conditions reports epicyclo, can you tell how thick the ice is on the fire road, I'm wondering if it will melt completly with the forecast rise in temp?
About an inch.
As for the forecast rise in temps, we've had about 2" of snow last night 🙂 None of the sleet we were promised has fallen. (Yet 🙂 )
So that ice is going nowhere then...
this should be interesting.
I'm just ducking out for a quick look
still snowy/icy ? thats baws - i might have to resort to the 90 just to get to where i want to park ..... ill be holding up all the trafic on the aberdeen inverness road 😀
heavy thaw on up here, most of what fell last night is gone now, especially some bits on the puffer that see the sunlight.
disadvantages: makes the firetrack harder to get up if the snow isnt frozen, it was a real mission getting to the top.
still loads of ice about, clear skies tonight means it could get nippy and freeze the melt water.
can't wait to see people suffering this year rather than doing it myself!
It was nice and snowy at lunchtime when I nipped around.
Hmmmm, out of Epicyclo and Cullen Bay who do I believe?....
Might take my body armour and full facer and just give it yee haw everywhere! 😀
It was 5 degrees in Aviemore at 21:00 and it's forecast to be 10 degrees on Saturday, even if it doesn't get that warm it's a lot warmer than of late so I'm expecting a mudbath but with the odd ice patch to catch you out as the ground will still be cold. Oh and heavy rain for Saturday.
Deep joy
smashing
jojoA1 - Member
Hmmmm, out of Epicyclo and Cullen Bay who do I believe?....
I've got the photos...
but the young master doesn't BS and he was out later than I was, so I'd believe him 🙂
It's wierd. Here in Elgin it has been well above freezing all day. It's 3 deg just now, SO WHY IS THERE A GROUND FROST???? The roads are covered in ice crystals again. The ice is not going nearly fast enough. Rain tomorrow though. That should sort it eh? I'm poker facing the weather and leaving Highrollers on.
Drizzly sleet near Contin at the moment. Snow disappearing fast.
Warming up eveywhee bar the East and North of Scotland it appears.
8-10 deg in the central belt, even higher down south. Still 3 degrees up on the NE coast and North. Not high enough temps to be melting good ice though.
PS. you can get a frost at 3 degress or less I believe, depending on various other conditons
Anyone riding the trails today/tomorrow to check them out?
Could be fun .....
yeah, huge thaw on right now, im doubting whether there will be any snow left come saturday!
im going out on a ride there tonight so il update later
It'll be mud, mud, glorious mud, nothing quite like it for freezing the blood etc....
I was hoping for ice.
Curled up in a bivvi at trail side taking pics of the carnage and smiles..
Hey ho!
Just come back from there, parts are starting to thaw, the main climb is still snowy but throughout the day more singletrack was breaking through.
We're going up in force this year. 10 riders (2 quads and a pair), 3 support crew and 5 "fans".......if anyone sees a camp with a white campervan, black transit and Scout patrol tent (plus various wee tents) feel free to pop in and say hello.
Woke up and walked by my bike this morning to notice the rear tyre was flat - nice....
Just about to leave, really looking forward to this.