Lovely article. I detest, like properly don’t like, trail centrey-built stuff, but I’ve ridden the Croft Trail quite a few times (what with being employed by a geographically adjacent retail financial services organisation…) and I really like. It takes me back to messing about on bikes in the woods with your mates as a kid.
* “Swindon is blessed” – I know, said no one ever. But honestly, it’s worth a mooch around, especially if you like industrial heritage or trains. Or beer – there are quite a few brew pubs.
“Swindon; it’s not as crap as you think” would be an incredibly apt slogan. I go down there about once a month now and sure, there’s a knackered town centre, but that’s not exactly unique, but there are some lovely parks, cracking pubs and great restaurants (including a lovely Greek one that I discovered on Tuesday night.). Plus oodles of gravelly/old fashioed XC stuff up on the downs and miiiiiiiiiiiiiiles of beautiful road riding. And, lest we forget, a really excellent network of dedicated, separated, cycle lanes around the town.
