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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayaE8jkfX1I
Today was Swinley Forest with my lad and 2 of his mates.. Absolutely brilliant and they killed me. My lad is 11 on Tuesday, i think the others have recently turned 11.
There's no 'off' button with them, it's just pinned everywhere, up out of the saddle and nailing it 🙂
Funniest part was them doing the jumps and watching the middle aged IT nerds rolling them at 1mph, followed by this lot jumping them instead 🙂
I know some hate Swinley, but that goes down as one of the best riding days of all time 🙂
Looks like the kids were really getting into it - it's brilliant to see kids growing in confidence.
Nice one!
Brilliant.
I particularly like the whoop at the end of the first one.
The heavy breathing ,not so much.
😉
Glad to see the kids having a good time. Not sure laughing at “IT Nerds” going slow and not jumping is necessary though.
Yep I’m a middle aged IT nerd, nope I’m not fast and yep I keep the wheels on the ground.
I ride Swinley with another IT nerd, he also keeps it wheels on the floor. We don’t get to ride too much to practice as too busy counting our money.
IT nerd friend is a former Royal Marine who was blown up in Afghanistan, he’s partially disabled, but you can’t tell by looking. Must be hilarious watching slow riders. Sorry for the rant but it does annoy me when people find slower less adventurous riders hilarious.
Actually will apologise for my mini rant above. Had a sh1te ride last night due to an injury I’ve got from road racing, banged my shoulder getting ready for the ride and got no grip, pain is ridiculous.
If anyone was watching me yesterday I’d have looked like a complete noob, even lost it on a small rock garden due to not being able to hold onto the bars. (No grip in my left hand)
Anyway, bad nights sleep with pain, got up on wrong side of bed. Sorry!
What are the consequences of your kids having an accident versus what are the consequences of those middle aged IT nerds having an accident?
Which of the above mentioned probably have dependants relying on them to pay the mortgage and bills?
LOL seriously guys.... You're going there....
Sometimes you need to have a serious look at yourselves regarding your issues an insecurities... .It was a bit of a joke, a bit of humour, not everything on the internet needs to be taken so seriously LOL. Lighten up a bit... It's called friendly banter...
The consequences of them kids having an accident are quite dramatic, as only one of them is mine 🙂
One of the other kids dads is MASSIVE !
Kids on bikes rock. 🤟🤟🤟
No worries W00dster 🙂
GWS fella.
Apology accepted OP 🙂
Took 6 kids round Swinley on Sunday - great fun.
As a wheels on the ground middle aged IT sales person I find myself deeply unoffended. Nice work kids and Weeksy for getting them there physically and metaphorically.
LOL I'm a middle aged IT nerd by the way... I'm also not convinced I attack some of these jumps as hard as they do 🙂
Great stuff!
Kids on bikes make me smile. Even if they're doing wheelies the wrong way down the bus lane on the way to school 🙂
Swinley is fun for people who know how to have it, and kidz do
💪👍
Despite being Oop North been round Swinley a few times and really enjoyed it, even the bit near the beginning of the red which is bermed bend after bermed bend after bermed bend. It's not some kind of winch and plummet rock fest but fun nonetheless and enough there to keep you honest!
Congrats to the groms, they were sending it rad without casing a single one! (That's the limit of my Sick! speak).
Fwiw I'm neither in IT, or in middle management and despite my best, clumsy efforts my wheels stay wedded to the ground much of the time..
Cooper Falls? I bet he does going over those massive drops 😛
Looks like they are having a great time. Thats what its all about. Even better when its family fun 😎
Love it, kids rock. Mine are 15 & 17 and if I can get them out on a ride with me they put me to shame in a big way.
We also find it hilarious laughing at slow, middle aged IT nerds!
Nice work, kids on bikes is always cool, reminds you whj you got into all this nonsense in the first place.
Swinley's brilliant with nippers, no roads to cross and a lack of big climbs makes it a perfect 'my first trail centre' had the boy charging round there since he was 5ish and the wee lady should be ready for the blue soon.
It's relatively all weather as well, a rarity in the South East.
There was 9 or 10 of us out last week, four of us looking like extras from Last Of The Summer Wine. But what great fun, the kids (15/16) were impressed I was doing the gnar on my hardtail, they were all full enduro. It was great to mix it up and push myself trying to keep up and not be laughed at.
We’re going to Swinley next weekend. Never been there yet. I’m an ex roadie, and told I’ll like it for that reason?!
I don't wanna get into it Kid, but a decent chunk who don't like it only don't because they have to pedal too much.... "oh it's not hardcore enough", which translates to "I'm fat and lazy and can't actually pedal"
Then there's "there's not enough elevation", well yes, it's not a mountain, you can only build it to the height of the actual land 🙂
If you like MTBs you'll like Swinley... simple as that... It's an absolute blast. Just don't go into it on some ego trip like so many people who knock it seem to do for some weird reason.
Sure, if i was paying £35 a day i may be offended, maybe not though, but it's free, completely free... Sure you pay £2 for the car park LOL... but it's free, jumpy, swoopy, trail fun... I just can't fathom how people don't love it there.
Sounds great. Love a bit of pedally
Looks like the sort of place that would be good on my fixed gear so I would go there if I lived close to it.
What are the consequences of your kids having an accident versus what are the consequences of those middle aged IT nerds having an accident?
This is the depressing side of ageing. Thinking too much about the consequences and not trying things. When I was 12 I was jumping straight off of garage roofs on a BMX whereas now at 50+ it makes me wince just thinking about my knees and back.
Swinley is best if you do it at a non-stop pace, when it starts to become an exercise in concentration as well as you go through the relentless berms of Stickler...
Swinley is best if you do it at a non-stop pace,
Nah, Swinley is best when you ride it like it's fun, just messing about on bikes and not taking it too seriously 🙂 popping off roots, jumping little bumps, dragging your front wheel on a mates back wheel on the way down while shouting "Get a move on fat boy"
that's when Swinley is fun... IMO too many people forget why we do MTBing, we do it for the smiles, for being outside, for sitting on logs eating flapjacks and laughing about "how i nearly crashed on that log"
we do it for the smiles,
Have never been able to finish Tank Traps without a stupid grin on my face.......
Always enjoy a bit of swinley. Was there last weekend and even my mate on his cx enjoyed it. It’s proper old-school xc like I grew up with. Was at Mountain Mayhem over the weekend and the route is a similar sort of thing, but without jumps.
It’s hard work, pedally some would say, but that’s good for the body and soul.
Don’t need too much bike either which is a bonus for the kids. Must take my nipper there.
Kids on bike?
Everyone having a lovely time?
The Collective chaps have done an amazing job making the QE Park
Blue a proper fun trail, a bit like a longer version of some of the good Swinley bits. Brilliant for kids who want to charge round some berms, but its a lot lumpier than Swinley, so you gotta climb up to get there. My lad moaned about the climb when he was younger, but now disappears off and leaves his ol’ man behind 😕
IT nerd friend is a former Royal Marine who was blown up in Afghanistan, he’s partially disabled, but you can’t tell by looking. Must be hilarious watching slow riders.
Owned. Completely.
Beautifully put.
Owned
Really? Are you serious? Oh, you actually are.
This place, hysterical
Dam right, kids should be at home playing computer games do they can grow up to be IT nerds on the endless paycheck and mortgage treadmill.
[Seriously, are people just grumpy because it's sunny outside and they're stuck in work?]
Owned. Completely.
Knob. Completely.
[Seriously, are people just grumpy because it’s sunny outside and they’re stuck in work?]
Abso-****in-lutely
(Middle-aged IT nerd, "working" when he'd like to be in the forest somewhere playing around on a bike)
Some droppy fun.
We also spent some time on the drop of doom entry into the Corkscrew, then little lads really have no fear and they were a bit daunted at first, but then, launching it nicely off the top LOL... crazy boys.
Massive piles of chicken followed in KFC and my lad had a very happy 11th birthday party.... If this is what all of his parties entail, i can't wait for the next one !
Swinley is a lot of fun. I havent ridden there for years but it would be nice to have it on your doorstep.
Nice! Take em to the big one at the end of old Stickler (I think that's where it is)
Coincidentally, I found an old video I'd done of me and dezbjr at Swinley. I nearly posted some, but I had the camera and all you could hear was me going "woop" "giggle" "Wahay" etc. Too embarrassing. For reference watch that 8 year old girl one ST posted a few weeks back. 😆
Another brilliant day at Swinley, £2 for all the fun in the land!
3.5 hours of blues, reds, punctures, jumps, crashes and arrgghhhhh of screams from the laughs the youngsters had. Sure it wasn't lap record pace, but for smiles it's hard to beat having bike fun in the woods with a bunch of 9-13 year olds
Not just fun for the youngsters. Was over there this morning with the monthly cycling club offroad ride. One of the chaps must have been well into his sixties and he thought it was great as did the lads on their CX bikes. Despite it being fairly local I must admit I dont go there that often as I prefer Pirbright etc mainly because it's quieter but it did make a nice change.
It was a bit busy on some of the Blues but in a really funny way, shopping bikes, 1980s bikes, bikes that couldn't be any less appropriate if they tried, but all riders were chatting merrily with us and having a blast. Fantastic!!
I'm a middle aged IT nerd, I hit jumps (ok so not big ones but plenty of medium ones) and I also love Swinley.
As said, you have to be fit enough to smash it all the way round which means pedalling, otherwise it's less fun but still fun. Bits of blue drag on unless you are leaning over trying to extract every bit of speed or air, then it's engaging.
Nice vid OP but yes it's not nice being laughed at on the internet if you're slow.
It's been a while since I've been there, but I used to love riding at Swinley back in the mid 2000s. However unfashionable it may seem, it was always one of my favourite riding spots. One of those places where you can make the riding as easy or challenging as you please.
Does it turn muddy in the winter?
Nice vid OP but yes it’s not nice being laughed at on the internet if you’re slow
Is this one of them times where we're being offended for people who don't even know they were being mocked, never will know and never will care.