The Daddy of Biking Magazines...

Managed to blag a copy of the new Privateer Biking magazine courtesy of top photographer ( and work colleague ) Geoff Waugh.

I've been reading biking mags for what must be 20 years or something ( flipping eck that is scary ), and this is truely the Daddy of mags. Then again what else would you expect from the stable that came up with Rouleur ?

Cover price is 9 squids, which may seem a little steep, but this is set to be a collectors item already ( should have got Geoff to sign mine seeing as he has lots of shots in it! ).

If I were you, I would buy it...

Gower 2010 - It's all about the camping!

Been a while since we just went away camping, so was really looking forward to the trip to Oxwich Bay this summer. It didn't disappoint!

The Top 5:

1) Fresh Coffee brewed in the Morning light.

2) A campsite without fuddy duddys in caravans.

3) Tales told in tents ( though will pack more books next time )

4) Running in fields

5) Putting the tent away in a huge thunderstorm ( yes it was so silly it was funny )

All I can say is that we will be back ( that should be advert enough )

Check out the pics here or click the image below.

Endurance DH at Fort Bill - the lo-fi review.

The Orange 224 Evo - my toy for the weekend

10 days after the event and I can still remember pretty much every rock on the Fort William World Cup Downhill track, after all I did get 6 hours to get to know it personally.

It's their fault...

So, the short story is that after a phone call from one of the main men at Orange Bikes I ran out of excuses and found myself driving up to Fort William ( with one of the other main men from Orange as co-pilot ) to compete in the World famous No-Fuss events Endurance DH Mountain Bike Race.

Here is the rest of story in Polaroids:

Yes, I burnt the porridge...( an omen? )

Trusty little tent hidden in the woods next to the trail.

One of these was going to be mine ( yes like a sweet shop )

The Orange Factory Team ( David and Vaughan )
( Dave won the in-house comp on an Orange 5, the crazy fool )

Stu from MTBcut was on hand for filming duties.

The pits were set up with spare wheels a plenty

The course is world famous, but it was still my first time on it.

Yes it rained.

Yes it was muddy.

Yes I hurt my handYes it was the an amazing course and stupid amounts of fun.

Yes, I do want to do it all again ( after doing 10 laps in 6 hours )

In conclusion:

If you don't race mountain bikes - this race is for you.
If you do race mountain bikes - this race is for you.
If you just want to do one race for the hell of it - this race is for you.
If you want to have a bloody good laugh - this race is for you.

Check out the Orange Bikes report here

Check out more events by the team at No Fuss ( including the MacAvalanche!? ) here

Check out the MTBcut video here ( pay close attention to 1:05 as well as the load screen )

Additional Photos courtesy John Chennels at Orange Bikes.

Isle of Harris Roadtrip

Far too much to say about our trip to the Isle of Harris...so here it is broken into Top 5:

1. It's a long way away from anywhere, so plan a roadtrip ( we went via Fort William and Isle of Skye )

2. It is a quiet relaxed island, so don't expect lots going on. This is a place to explore and relax into.

3. Without a doubt these are the some of the most mental roads I have ever driven on ( and I have done lots of driving in my time ). Treble your normal driving times! That said if you have a road bike this is a serious Mecca.

4. There is a reason why Stornaway has it's own weather station...they get a lot of it there.

5. Buy some Harris Tweed, it is from a world we sorely miss.

Naturally I took some pics, click the image below to check them out...

Hale Superbole - Suck it and Huck it.

I'm getting a little too used to these dry and dusty conditions and you couldn't get more bone dry then yesterday when Matt and I headed down to an old stomping ground to check out the newly opened 'MTB Pursuits at Hales Superbole'. That is a bit of a mouthfull for what is actually a managed Mountain Bike park.


So what is going on over there? Well it was first set up as a Mountain Board park ( yep the pretend snowboarder types ), but now it is definately more aimed at the 4X and Freeride fraternity.

The hill isn't that big, so a short walk to the top and you have a fair few choices. Look right and you can either jump on the Mini DH run ( nothing too silly here, just one crazy gap which comes out of nowhere ), or walk 20m and you have the ladders, wall ride, dirt jumps ( 2 lines ) and mini-shore section. Looking straight down the hill you have the World Class 4X track ( which splits for a serious PRO line half way down ).

At the bottom of the hill ( and next to the entrance ) is an awesome big jump line with two big tabletops, then a little one into a very smooth Quarterpipe. Of everything in the park, this was the most fun. The sort of jumps you have to hold the bike back from really flying...you could go really big here.

So what else can I tell you? Well it looks like in the wet this place is going to be hard going ( sooo much clay around ), but it does look like it is going to be a dry summer? ( am I tempting fate there? ). The lines here are pretty intense, yes there are some easy pickings which you could build up on, but to get the most out of the day here you really do have to 'Suck it and Huck it'! Think of it as an Alpine Bike Park without the mountain behind it and you will have it spot on.

The only negative point is that to experience this playground you do have to dig out a tenner...yep £10 in new money ( £7 on late nights ). But before you run away crying lottery funding, this is a private enterprise with a passionate set-up who is constantly maintaining the course and developing it ( it has only been open a few weeks ). I would definately give it a try, but pack your armour as you are going to be experiencing some air-time.

Check out the pics by clicking any of the images or clicking here

For more info on the park check out their website here

Also worth noting that my good friends Bob and Ally of Campbell Coaching are some of the instructors on hand here along with the DH legend Neil Donoghue. Check out the details here.

Polar-Day

Still loving the Polardroid action...

Gisburn Forest - A Polaroid Adventure