In terms of technical difficulty how does The Beast compare to The Dragons Back. Is there stuff that’s much rockier/harder? I’ve ridden the Dragons Back and quite happy with that and fancy trying the Beast next. Im not too worried about the distance/height gain – I’ve done longer before but don’t fancy something that’s much more tech. Is it graded black for length or difficulty or both?

Any advice? I already know about missing out the huge fire road loop past the half way cafe!

There’s one section on the Beast (just past the stone bridge) which has rough rocky steps on an exposed hillside. That maxes out my comfort zone. Other than that, they’re very similar (most of it is the same sections anyway).

There’s one section in the first third that gets a little spicy at speed and if/when launched, but all totally rollable and good fun. Nothing to worry about.

I think that there are two sections on the MBR bit of the Beast which are harder than anything on Dragon’s Back – that’s Cain, which is slower, rocky/off-camber but all rollable and Abel, which is faster, with a couple of smaller drops which could catch you out if you try to roll them too slowly. But there are no bigger drops and jumps that are unavoidable, and the tougher bits don’t come as a surprise when you’re trucking down something at speed.

Having said that, since when has getting off and pushing past a few metres of trail you don’t fancy been verboten?

When I did it back in August I could do it all comfortably, wheels on the ground, so you shouldn’t worry about it. IfI were to do it again I’d go a bit faster and do the drops instead of rolling them down.

Thanks everyone. The Beast it is then! I’m certainly not against walking the odd tricky section – do it all the time! But I draw the line at walking down miles of singletrack!!

It is quite ‘tech’ but not black or not modern black grade anyway. Most of it isn’t even BPW red.

Way more fun if you have good fitness

Iirc , if your doing the Beast – when you ride past the cafe you come to a fork in the rd , its marked right for the trail .

It just takes you right round the hill on double track for the sake of it . Go straight up instead – its a good steep climb but gets you to the next section much quicker .

The fireroad loop does give a great view of Cadair Idris. There’s a bench looking out towards it that’s perfect for sitting and having a snack on before getting down to the business of the descents.

There are 2  moderately tricky sections, but only a few metres. Do the beast.