Calendar

NOTE – we’ve now changed the date to 1 day earlier, Saturday 16th March, to avoid a race.
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We’ve not been to FoD for ages, so we’re going to do another “FoD 4 All” event. 

Basing ourselves at Pedalabikeaway, we will have several ride leaders, offering different rides for all abilities – a great introduction if you’ve not been before. 

A lap of the legendary Verderers is bound to be on the agenda and we will take everyone through steadily, as a great opportunity if you’ve not done it before.

There will also be downhill trails and some of the techy super steep off piste tracks in the Cannop Valley too, should anyone want to try that. 

We will also have at least one coach on offer if anyone wants to session some features, such as roots, jumps or drops, or certain sections of trail (the top of Corkscrew has a great sequence of features in one short run for learning). 

Meet at outside the Pedalabikeaway café at 10.30am 

The Peak District is simple awesome for mountain biking – stunning scenery and brilliant riding.
I’ve done lots of riding up there and am putting together some of the best in one long weekend.

We will be based in the Hope Valley, which has a great selection of campsites, B&B accommodation, cafes and bike shops. Personally I’ll be camping and will make a recommendation for a campsite after sampling a few, but there are plenty of great B&Bs for anyone that doesn’t like camping.

For the riding, we have 3 days:
A scenic starter, along the Monsal Trail. Starting at Bakewell Station up to Blackwell Mill and back. This is a former railway line that has been converted into a bridleway, using all the old features, including a number of viaducts and 4 tunnels through the Peaks. This gives us the chance to soak in the gorgeous scenery along the route, as well as a stop to enjoy them with a drink.

Day 2 is an epic XC ride starting in Hope and heading over Mam Tor out towards Derwent Water and back. The views on this route are even more stunning than the previous day, but the riding will be amazing too, with some epic descents – this one isn’t flat! 😉 We will be doing 25-30km with 1200-1500ft of climbing (depending on the weather), but the pace will be relaxed.

The final day will be a trip to the brilliant (but short) Lady Cannings trails, which we will use to end a 10km loop of the local Blacca Moor, which is another Peaks “must do”. That should see us finish at lunchtime, on the Bank Holiday Monday.

If you are planning on coming, please register either on the Facebook group event or by sending an email to adrian@swindonmtbenthusiasts.co.uk – just so we know to keep an eye out for you before setting off anywhere.

Debbie will be leading a gentle novice friendly ride around the Cotswold Lakes.

This is non technical and will be at the pace of the slowest rider. It is designed to suit ladies new to mountain biking and those who want a steady ride.

There will be a cafe stop 3/4 of the way round, but feel free to bring any snacks and water.

Helmets compulsory and this is not suitable for hybrid bikes, due to the possibility of mud on the tracks.

Meet in the car park to the Cricklade Leisure Centre for a 10am start.

This is a Ladies Only ride, led by Davinia.

We meet at Mouldon Hill in the car park and then follow route 45 South past Shaw Forest and pick up the West Swindon Round to Lydiard Park. We will stop at Lydiard for a drink and maybe a cake! Then back continuing on the West Swindon round and back up the old railway line to Mouldon Hill.

This is a very gentle ride, and is no more than 9 miles.
It is aimed at beginners and upwards and is for every ability.
It’s a chance to get back on the bike, have a chat and feel happy!

You will need a helmet, bike and yourself!

This ride is suitable for all mountain bikes or hybrid bikes with off road tyres.

CANCELLED – apologies, but due to the storm, we are having to postpone this ride till next month. Please see the new event (Saturday 14th March) for full details.

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The second weekend MTB Wellness ride is a gentle introduction to the Ridgeway.

Starting at the Three Trees Cafe, we will head along a flat section of the Ridgeway to the Barbury shooting club. From there we have a fun (gentle) descent to Draycott, a short stretch of road and a byway through to the old railway line, which will take us back to the Three Trees for refreshments.

12km and less than 100m of elevation, this is a perfect “get out in the countryside” ride for all abilities.

You just need a helmet, a bike and yourself. 🙂

Meet in the Three Trees cafe car park for 10.30am start

The May MTB Wellness Ride is great scenic and fun route out past Barbury, through the Vale of Rockley and back via the old railway line.

A similar distance to the April ride, the loop is 27km and 270m of climbing.
We start at the Three Trees Cafe and ride out on the Ridgeway, up the side of Barbury Castle and continue along the Ridgeway to the top of Hackpen Hill.
With the bulk of the climbing out of the way, we will descend through the Vale of Rockley, which has a great entry descent and normally lots of Red Kites overhead in the sheltered valley. There’s an option to pop up into the woods of Rockley for the small drops, or just to take 5 and enjoy the scenery.
From Rockley we start the climb at the beginning of Four Mile Clump, but quickly turn right for a long fireroad descent to Ogbourne Maizey, before picking up the old railway line back to the Three Trees for post ride cake!

As always the ride is based around taking in the great views and having a good time.

There is a free car park next to the Three Trees, as well as the cafe car park.

We will ride out from the Three Trees car park at 10.30am

I will be there before that if you’ve got any questions about your bike, riding or the ride – I am a MIAS Level 3 leader and coach and cytech technician too.