Gisburn Forest is open.

I'll be up there this afternoon but starting from the pub at Tosside about half two. I'll be on a carbon s-works.

Went upto Gisburn this afternoon and using my electricuted Homing-Pigeon sense of direction I managed to get completely lost…the two lads in the Hope shirts/with the kids- thank you for the directions 😀

The short bit of singletrack immediately at the bottom of the big bermed-section- how sublime is that? The big bermed-bit- it felt like a mental haunted house rollercoaster! 😀

The road from Sawley though to the carpark. If you could close the other direction.. 😈

been up for a ride round today, how much fun are the new trails? We had an ace time big thumbs up to the volunteer trail builders (had a packet of biscuits ready for you but didn't see you, maybe you were actually building?) and to the contractors too, we really had a good ride. Nice to see a singlespeed friendly trail centre too, manage to cleam everything except one short climb just after the quarry, I'll have ti next time though – this time I just didn't have the momentum (or a clear exit, someon was in front of me) but next time I will be prepared and will get it.

didn;t see the black trails @ the quarry, but did ride the other black trails we passed including those @ Whelp Stone Crag, and we enjoyed the berms so much we climbed back up and did them again!

The (in)famous gisburn slab was also conquered – I arrived to find Lizzie about to descend it and managed to get the camera out in time

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then I handed the camera over and went round myself

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I reckon the upper slab is around the 28 deg mark, the lower on slightly over 30. would be interested to know the correct figures if anyone *does* take a clinometer up there

big "thanks" again to the people involved in getting it all up and running. I reckon our next christmas weekender might be Gisburn, Slaidburn YHA, then lee quarry on the second day!

A truely great time was had by all.
Thanks Rob and ntb for guiding us around. I was the only one out of 7 who didn't ride the Gisburn slab.

We all came down those big berms laughing like crazy people.

Also the weather fairy was kind to us, not a drop of rain. 🙂

nbt, I thought you might take your ice axes up there to perform the angle of the slope test 😉

If you mean the DH stuff, then it's further on from the quarry, but alot of it was destroyed in the recent clear felling.

We were digging at the bottom of the volunteer built section (the section with the stone pitched staircase at the end).

I thought you might take your ice axes up there to perform the angle of the slope test

I did notice that a couple of the chaps had axe loops on their camelbaks, now that's some fairly hardcore riding if you need axes!

I know now where you were, I remember seeing a crate with a load of mugs at the blocked-off entrance to a new piece of trail – I had been told to expect you after the berms so it didn;t register at the time, sorry!

erny, sent you the .gpx file.

Have fun.

Cheers Stumpyjon

nbt

assuming you camera was level when you took the shots above I've worked out the top slab is around 30 degs and the bottom slab is 35 degs so it looks like I was well off with my initial estimates. Still, need to measure it properly, may be going up on Wednesday so will try then if I get there.

I didn;t have the camera, but it looks level enough, the trees are upright

the trees are upright

always a bonus in any situation 😉

nbt
Sorry, the ice axe ref. was an acknowledgement of your previous posts, re the two sticks of equal length = 45 deg etc. a classic mountaineers test of the angle of a slope (normally done with two climbing ice axes of equal length), due to your earlier post re. mountains, I thought you might 'get it', but hey-ho.

Anyway, I rode down it today with my seatpost up, which was a first (I've previously stopped and put the seatpost down), amazing what a bit of peer preasure does. Not sure about you, but it looks like Lizzie has not bothered putting the seatpost down so much respect to her, It may not be very steep, but it is still a bit intimidating to just go for it.

IF that picture is a true record (and I believe it is) then using the laws of trigonometry the angle of the dangle is 33.87 degrees.

Rode it this afternoon, was actually a bit later than anticipated. Started/finished at pub in Tosside. Rode into Cocklet Hill car park at 5pm just to see how busy it was. Full. Very satisfying, good to see the trails being so popular.

Its about time we had some real way marking. The number of people riding one-way trails the wrong way is frightening – an accident waiting to happen.

PS haven't dropped the seat to ride it either 😀

I know a man who has tho…… 😳

Fizzer
For years it has been two way and the current signage/markers do just that, send people both ways, it's the way it was. All the new directional posts have not gone in yet and the directional inserts are still on order. Basically, we are all riding it a bit premature whilst in transition between old and new. At some point in the very near future they (the Forestry Commision) will establish the new one way trail system and take out the old signage.

If it bothers you too much right now, come back in about a month and all the new one way signage will be up and running. As things are right now, you can't get too arsy with people riding some of it in the wrong direction.

I should add that the FC have no control over internet forums where the word gets out early about new exciting stuff that everyone wants to go and play on. Don't blame them for not having it all immediately up and running for you and me (not that I'm saying you are, but it will all fall into place fairly soon).

stumpyjon, can I have a copy of that file please?
northernreetard at hotmail. com

Thanks

Nana – bit touchy?

B.A. Nana, sorry, yes, I did get it, I learnt the measuring trick from my skiing background though, using ski poles. The posts for the markers are in and have yellow arrows painted on them to show the right direction, very useful that was. We did meet a pair of horses coming down the track just after the reservoir though – thankfully it was a climb for us so we were barely moving

As for the pics, Lizzie didn't drop her seat as she forgot, I didn't drop mine as I rarely bother. Of the 4 others in the group who did it, I think it was 50/50.

Brainflex, not problem I'll send it tonight.

fizzer, Nana made a few fair points, the forestry guys are busting a gut to get it finished, there have been delays from the sign manufacturers and they've not been given any help with the literatutre either. So on top of a full time forestry job Martin is trying to get the maps etc done as well. The guy's a hero.

It's great everyone loves the trails so much, but would be even better if a few more people made the dig days, seems to be down to a core of about 10 of us at the moment, even if everyone just put in one Sunday it would make a big difference.

As for the slab, my seat will be up and down like a tart's draws (got a Joplin) all I need now is the bottle to ride it.

LOL – that was the question i was going to ask – what do you think the conversion rate was; from enthusiastic trail rider/internet commentator to useful volunteer trail builder.

Sounds like it was the usual low rate…..

I live in Clitheroe and went up to Gisburn Forest bout 10 days ago. Its fantastic and just what this area needs. Congrats to all the trail builders and all involved.

I did the slab first time, which I was happy with but carried speed around the berm and got some serious (unintentional) air as I was riding it blind and didn't know what to expect. Haven't grinned that much for a while!!

In response to the slab angle debate, I reckon the angle is 'just about right'. Small enough to tempt us mere mortals but big enough to test those with more skill… whatever the numerical angle, just ride it 😉

Yep just ride it.
If I'd stopped to look yesterday I might not have ridden it!

Si, I was right behind you, that was the peer pressure that got me down without stopping to faff with the saddle. 😀

fizzer – Member

Nana – bit touchy?
I actually thought my reply was quite restrained, considering how your choice of phrase might be interpreted.

Its about time we had some real way marking.

stumpyjon

Any chance of the gps file please?

nbt
Ah, ski mountaineering, that didn't occur to me.

The posts for the markers are in and have yellow arrows painted on them to show the right direction, very useful that was

Actually, that was me last week with a yellow crayon out of my puncture repair kit. I should point out now, that I've put all the arrows inside the cut slots on the posts, so when the proper plastic inserts go in, my arrows will be covered up. Unfortunately, I got half way round and realised not all the posts were in and one was facing the wrong way and on the wrong side of the trail (BTW the foresters know about it). So it all went to pot a little bit at one point. I also marked some of the old posts, which I knew were going in the bin. There are still another 60 posts to go in, I presume some of those will be no entry signs to stop people going the wrong way and stop walkers/horse riders.

I'm affraid it's going to be a few weeks yet before the signage is properly established. Like stumpyjon says, they also got messed around by someone.

Brainflex, Pudding, files sent, have fun.

thank looks ace and it's just up the road from me – happy days and well done to all involved!

Thanks Stumpyjon

stumpyjohn – any chance you can send it me too – yoshimi176 at hotmail dot co dot uk

cheers

buuger missed the dig day 😥

yoshimi

file sent.

taka

never mind there's another a week on Sunday, there's still plenty more digging to do 😉 .

Stumpy, many thanks for that pal

Danny, when you going ?

Can anyone who's ridden the new trails comment on how doable they are on a Singlespeed running very lightly treaded tyres at the moment? Should I wait until I've re built my full susser?

Used to ride the old red route on it all the time but I assume things are a little more hardcore.

It's all singlespeedable, I rode everything bar failing one steep climb / very tight corner. I'll have it next time though. One of the chaps with us was running kenda small block 8s which didn;'t seem to slow him down or cause him undue problems at all, although he did have gears

Thanks, I might give it a go on the SS if I get chance then.

Stumpyjon any chance you can email me the gpx file pls.

stuart_home AT hotmail DOT com

Thanks.

I was thinking about sunday morning if you fancy it? earlier the better for me