You may be surprised. Lots of v.good runners there as to be honest you don’t need to be a particularly great biker to navigate the course. I know there were a few fell runners there, some x-country runners and triathletes/ironmen.

If i did another, I would probably do the bike on a CX machine. I did the race on my (then) Lapierre Spicy!

Have fun.

I did it a couple of years ago. Wouldn’t do it again!

The weather up there has its own climate so check before you go. There is snow there now and it will likely still remain for when the race comes round.

Clothing wise you want something warm but breathable. Merino stuff maybe. For the run you want lightweight trail shoes. You will run through mud. You will run through bogs. You will run through water.

The run is all uphill for the first mile or so. The second run had a vertical scramble in too – hands and knees job.

I don’t know what bike route they will use – probably the “new” red, as the old one is now closed for tree felling.

It is a bit late now, but train harder than you think you need to. Its tough.

I have both, but since last summer, have stuck with the clipless, mainly because they got stuck on the cranks and I couldn’t remove them so I was “forced” to do the Eastridge mini enduro clipped in. Much to my – at the time – horror.

Amazing what it did for my confidence though – i’m now faster, more committed, have better power transfer and generally have more fun as you are definitely “in” the bike a bit more.

I do occasionally go back to flats, but wholeheartedly prefer being clipped in.

I think that post may be the nail in the coffin for those who were previously sat on the fence about entering the UKGE races!

“Why is forcing us to have insurance we don’t need moving us toward making the series better?“

Premier doesn’t always mean better. It means first in importance, order, or position; a leading series.

“but if such [hobby] riders don’t enter these races to make up the numbers then the races wont happen.“

They will. It will just be that the other series are where such riders reside. “feeder series”. Parr has said as much.

Anyway, my post is just IMHO. I raced 3 events last year; 2 x mini enduros and 1 x borderline. I was going to go for a UKGE round this year but 1. my winter training has been rubbish and 2. all these new rules and increased costs mean that because of 1. I’d really be wasting my money.

It might be a big deal for some this season, but the fuss will die down. UKGE is, and has been, pitching itself to be the premier UK series and this is a move to edge closer to that.

Within a couple of years it will probably consist of the cream of the crop of UK bikers; ex-pros, ex-elites, top 10 placing riders in other series. The kind of talented riders that have the time to train, the skills to mix it at the top level. The kind of riders who have a degree of sponsorship, or at least shop-backing.

You only have to look at the top 10-20 riders in any given event to see the same names, and a lot of these names will have bikes supplied to them by local sponsors, shops etc. At that kind of level, a hundred quid or so to insure yourself becomes irrelevant as you aren’t spending your cash on bikes, spares, clothes etc.

Maybe I am wrong, but Parr has said as much that he wants the series to be the pinnacle. As others have said – if you don’t like it, don’t enter. I don’t mean it disrespectfully, but the majority of those moaning are probably hobby rider standard anyway. Those who aren’t moaning probably fall somewhere into the category of riders I mention above.

Awesome bike.

I rode one 18 months ago on a demo day at Llandegla and it blew me away and changed my perception of 29ers.

If you manage to get a demo and its the right bike for you, I did see a little while ago that Jenson USA had them in stock (frames at least) for a decent price. Don’t know about import duty mind.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Full face will be going with me, for sure. Will also be running tubeless but will take some DH tubes just in case…

I’ve recently got a spare set of wheels so will be putting some DH orientated tyres on them for trips like this, hence the question.

There are some “in stock” (small) YT Industries Wicked on their website. Showing a few hundred euros off, making them about £1800 or so I think.

bridleway descents?!

whatever next…

I would bow down to someone able to ride everything with a 36T in the peaks/wales.

It’s Strava, but with mandatory payment to take part.

^^^ what Digga said.

Most stuff you watch and think, yeah, I’d have a bash at that. Not this though. The speed they carried to juuust make it over some of those gaps was unreal. That rock drop in the woods where the marshall was stood below gave the true perspective of its height – 4-5m maybe.

Wonder how they narrowed it down to the few that actually took part in the race down there. Sponsors? Insurance? or just balls?!

Pretty humbling to watch really in terms of just how good those guys are. Shame Gee’s run didn’t end well – would have been good to see how he compared to Dan!

I have done Neil Donoghue’s course at Llandegla and it was well worth the cash.

Pumping, drops and jumps were all on the agenda.

I can’t comment on how it compares to other courses, but I got out of it what I wanted and would highly recommend it to anyone.

Ridden them twice in the last month, and at the weekend at the enduro they held there.

They are very different to the rest of the trails there, that’s for sure, but in total they are about 2-3mins worth of saving you riding a fire road which is no bad thing.

The second section is better than the first, thanks to a couple of step downs and decent opportunities to get your wheels off the ground.

The key is hitting them flat out – try riding flat out from the top of Craig Wen, hitting the 1st new section flat out, and then carrying on through Hafod Ffraith (S2 of the enduro). You’ll be feeling that at the end and glad of the respite that the new section gives.

Hit the second new section flat out too – and there is a little uphill pedal before the big berms – and blast through the last berm, across the fire road and hit Allt Pen y Bont at full tilt and see what you think then.

In isolation they aren’t going to set your world alight, but add them into the mix of what is basically the last couple of downhill blasts and you’ll enjoy them.

double post.

Ah right, thanks.

Going across with a mate so if anyone fancies trying to somehow coordinate a STW group of 10 to set off at the same time that could be attempted…!

Race is Saturday only so you should be fine.

Probably just a few hungover reprobates loitering about though!

I think the lack of categories has lead to it being organised like that. Certainly in the enduuros I’ve done, as you pre-select your category (and your ranking within that e.g. 1 > 5) you get pre-determined start times which you then just make your way upto the first stage to hit.

I think its similar in UKGE but you are seeded for those instead of ranking yourself?

Anyway, whether they sort everyone out on Sat and then just send you off in groups according to your category remains to be seen. I think it’ll work fine for the race but I’m yet to be convinced it will work for practice.

Its interesting that practice is mandatory though.

Stage 1 looks pedally.
Stage 2 is ruddy awesome.
Stage 3, if its the second new section + the final descent should sort out the men from the boys!

I’ll be doing the same as trailhound – heading from near Wrexham.

Looking forward to it..??!

Llandegla is a great place for bashing out the miles, which will ultimately make riding uphill less of a chore. You could actually fit some faster rolling tyres and not suffer a great deal as its hard packed and very rarely muddy. Whilst that won’t give you a KOM on the 3 mile climb, it will help a little.

Short of spending more of your hard earned on a new bike, just keep getting as many miles in as you can. Not knowing how you ride, also make sure you are not grinding too big a gear, and keep your cadence up.

If you are just starting out, Llandegla full loop is a good challenge with a couple of punchy climbs that WILL become easier the more you ride.

Don’t always think that a lighter bike is the answer though (although it does, generally help!) – Llandegla is my local trail and over the summer I’ve gone from a 120mm FS “trail” bike to a 160mm FS 29er which weighs circa 2kgs more. Every PB in the up direction has been bettered the more miles I have done.

Get the miles in and the rest will follow!

reverb is, what, £150.
30T raceface narrow/wide is £40
40/42t outer is £40

that’s £230.

if you wanted to do the brakes, that’d be £100 for some SLX.

even if you wanted to do the shock, you could flog the one it comes with for, I dunno, £150? and stick a monarch on or something.

anyway, still only my thoughts on it and either way its a great bike (I have one).

I can’t really see the value in the elite over the comp.

You could get the comp, put a reverb on, go 1 x 10 with a 40/42 outer and you’ve pretty much got the same bike. The brakes on the ’15 models are now deores, not the woeful formula C1s, so no need to change. Whether having the Cane Creek is worth the uplift is up for debate I suppose…

As someone who owns one I can tell you they are a great bike.

It isn’t the lightest but it pedals well and it can devour technical climbs really well. It comes into its own on the downs though and, contrary to what many would suggest, it corners really well and is happy to be hustled along and, if you want, get into the air. It doesn’t ride much like other 29ers I’ve tried (Orange 29, Yeti SB95, Santa Cruz Tallboy) – it rides better.

The tyres / rims are tubless ready and if you went for a 2014 model you could go lighter again by going 1 x 10.

It might well be too much bike for most, and most of the time, but its great fun, and very fast, which makes it fun.

My last bike was a 120mm trail bike, but I found its limits way too easily and lost interest. By comparison, the Enduro is far more capable than I am, but every ride you eek out a bit more performance from it, and yourself, which I love.

Size wise, I have a medium and I am 5’8″. The large ones (did, in 2014) come with a longer stem which was criticised, but I don’t know about the 2015 ones. I would try both out and see.

Unless you go to Llandegla, you will be doing a lot of climbing to reap the rewards, but the rewards are worth it!

Start at the Sun Trevor and make your way up the Panorama (as high as you can go). Head over to World’s End along Offas Dyke and enter Llandegla via the sleepers climb.

Go through the style/gate and *immediately turn left and bike up until the next style. Hop over this and ride upto the masts – to the second tower. You will see a small slither of singletrack to the rear of the mast building.

Follow this down to the stream, and cross back up the other side. Then ride the next bit until the stream and ride back upto the road. Then just retrace your route back to the Sun Trevor.

If you feel you have plenty in reserve then at the point where I’ve inserted a * above don’t go left, go straight and do a lap of Llandegla. You will be 2/3 of the way up the 3 mile climb at that point so you can do the blue, red or black.

All of that would be a solid 25-35 miles or so I should imagine.

Interesting that the topic has moved onto the perceived difficulty of events…

Obviously, difficulty is different for each person, but, surely, whatever your level and whatever difficulty of course you deem hard, in a race, you’ll be pushing yourself and in pushing yourself you have greater potential to get it wrong.

So, surely, a mandatory FF rule is the only sensible option.

And if you aren’t pushing your boundaries in a race then, well, what’s the point?

Get booked on a skills course if you want to learn properly. Best money you can spend if you are serious about riding well.

I did Neil D’s jumps and drops this summer and whilst I wouldn’t say I am going to be entering Red Bull Rampage anytime soon, I now have the confidence and (admittedly not perfect) technique to hit jumps and drops that only a few months ago I wouldn’t have done.

If you don’t have the cash or desire to go on a course, take it back to basics… Learn to manual – properly.
Then practice off kerbs/lips/drops.
Then learn to pump – properly.
Then practice pumping your way round a pump track, twice, thrice, without pedaling.
Then learn to bunny hop using these skills.
Then – and only then – practice, and practice, using your pump/bunny hop to get over a tabletop or small jump. You shouldn’t need hardly any speed to clear one. Pump the transition (upslope) and bunny hop over the tabletop.

Once you’ve practiced and practiced this, go bigger, go higher and go gappier. The only variable should be your speed depending on how big the object is you want to clear – your technique will remain the same.

As I say though, get booked on a course – it’s not the only way, but it’s the best way.

Excellent.

Think I may take the plunge on these for my Spesh Enduro – the Formula C1’s are woeful and have been back twice so far to be re-bled as they were abysmal from the off.

HobNob, yes, agree that the Fox model isn’t the best. I think it is exacerbated somewhat as the bike is so capable, it’s weaknesses are highlighted. I’m no pro, but as I get more used to the bike, even I can tell it isn’t the best.

Maybe some spacers will help.

An offset bushing is next on the list for some added DH prowess.

Ah, that might explain it then! Thanks.

Still not massively keen on the way it performs but that might be a) I’ve taken too much air out now or b) the Pike upfront is so damned good it highlights the weaknesses of the Fox.

Only had mine for a couple of month, but just can’t get the rear shock dialed in either. Can’t seem to get it to use full travel (10mm short I reckon) despite taking as much air out as I can.

It also doesn’t seem to offer much in the way of progression and is quite unpleasant on bigger hits, crashing through its travel with not much finesse.

Interesting to hear someone has fitted spacers and that helped.

I’m in.

£15 is a bargain, but not expecting it to be EWS style timing or ‘owt!

Have only ridden there once, a couple of years back, so looking forward to riding the new sections.

I have an Enduro Comp and whilst I didn’t ride any of the others on your list, I can tell you it is bloomin’ awesome.

Apart from the brakes. Which are woeful.

But it’s bloomin’ awesome.

It pedals better than its weight would suggest and whilst it’s never going to win you any XC races, it perfectly acceptable heading up, but rewards in spades on the way back down.

It will jump, steer nicely and go ruddy fast when you let it loose. I paid around the same as what your link shows and (brakes aside; they’ll do for now!) all I’ve done is fit a reverb and it’s handled 20+ mile epics as well as an Enduro.

Love it.

I’ve done one enduro in a full face (Caersws) and one in my trail lid (Eastridge). Both were Mini Enduros and whilst they recommended a FF at Caersws, they didn’t for Eastridge. But plenty of folk wore FF on both.

At the end of the day, a mandatory FF for UKGE isn’t going to put people off. I’d be more inclined to suggest that the step up to UKGE in fitness terms compared to more grass roots level enduros would mean wearing a FF all day is the least of people’s worries; if you ain’t fit, you’re going to struggle anyway!

The broad use of the word enduro only causes more confusion in the UK. I did the CYB “enduro” at the weekend and I can safely say that certainly 90% of the people I encountered wouldn’t know what hit them if they entered a proper enduro.

If there is no BC mandate stating the use of FF then the simplest (and most likely) way of solving the issue is for organizers to advise the use of a FF for their events. If UKGE want to make it mandatory, so be it but as I implied, the calibre of the rider demographic likely to enter is such that they will either already own, or be able to invest in a FF anyway.

One Planet Adeventure (Llandegla trail centre) do a fortnightly night ride on a Tuesday. Updates are via their Facebook page.

The Edge Cycleworks (Chester) also do shop rides I think.

I’m signed up for this but not really convinced it’s going to be that great…

I’m no XC whippet so any ups will be a steady pace, but I do enjoy cracking on when it gets steep so hoping it isn’t going to be a long line of people getting off half way down something mildly steep…

Went to CYB for the first time a couple of weeks back and have to say I wasn’t blown away by MBR either – hopefully the route will take in a bit more natural stuff.

There was a night enduro at Llandegla which I missed earlier in the year, so hoping there will be another one in a few months time.

Given that I can ride from home to the trails there, I should be able to ride them with my eyes closed but race pace in the dark would definitely be a challenge!

They aren’t cheap to enter, especially when you also consider you can ride Eastridge for free. And, well, with Strava, you can also just ride the stages and see how you fare anyway, right?!

As I said above though, at Caersws I came last yet here I am having another go. Why? Because, if you enjoy riding, enjoying pushing yourself outside your comfort zone, enjoy competing with yourself and others then you have to try at least one event.

Coming rock bottom didn’t bother me one bit – I rode stuff I had no right to be riding on the bike I had at the time, I fell off and laughed about it, and the rush of adrenaline you get on Stage 1 of your first race has got to be experienced.

A bit like riding in the Alps, getting out and doing a race will make you a better rider if nothing else and, if you are going to do one for the first time, the Mini Enduro series is ideal – I might do a UKGE round next year but don’t underestimate how physically demanding a full weekend’s riding is. Combine it with mental tiredness after 3 or 4 stages of full on concentration and it’s a good workout!

Can’t wait for Sunday!

I’m signed up. I did Caersws in June which was my first enduro and managed a superb last place in Masters. That said, I absolutely loved it so looking to get a second to last place this time :)

Heading there on my own (again!) on Saturday for practice and early Sunday for more practice. I’m only 45mins away which helps!

Have ridden there a couple of times – looking forward to checking out the stages.

I’m 3 rides into an Enduro Comp 29 and loving it. I also rode a Five 29 and thought that was really good but went with the Enduro as I managed to get several hundred quid off it as it is a 2014 model.

It climbs well enough, but isn’t exactly a whippet but on the way back down it’s flippin’ awesome. Pretty much no discernible difference with any other burly-ish 26 wheel bike i.e. you can manual it and its as happy in the air as it is thundering across the ground.

I imagine the carbon frame version would be epic with its lighter weight, but the comp frame is hard as nails. I’ve stuck a reverb on mine, and will probably look in the future at putting some carbon wheels on it, some carbon bars and maybe go 1 x 10 when the drivetrain has worn out.

If you “get” 29ers they are great. I didn’t after my first ride, but having tried a Tallboy, Yeti SB95 and Five 29 I realised a 29er was definitely going to be my next bike.

It was on their Facebook page to be fair, twice. Plus the trails were still open so it isn’t really a big deal.

They need to close off the shop completely as it never stops in there – constant stream of people.