Altura Trail, Whinlatter...[Rant]

The Northern Monkey

I was NOT impressed....and by the sound of it, neither were many other people riding it.

the first section got our hopes up, it was pretty enjoyable and flowy....but then....

SLATE!!!!!! Fecking loads of the stuff!!
i understand that the trail must be protected, but that stuff was so hard to ride, especially in the wet...
it was overkill, way too much of it...sections were hard enough to walk let alone ride, and the slippyness of it made it very dangerous!

then climbing fireroad, and more fireroad, and more fireroad and more fireroad.

When we finally reached the trail, we were expecting a nice reward, only to come across some very very weathered trail, and insane amount of roots, a bloody TREE (i wanted to take a photo of it, it was a joke) and yet again climbing!

then there was inappropriate jumps here and there that did nothing for the smoothness of the trail (not that there was any smoothness in the 1st place).

when we did finally hit the "good" decent (with heavily eroded switchbacks and a blind "S" bend that my bro had a heavy crash at, followed by 2 other riders a few mins later) it lasted about 5 mins (or what felt like it) got back to the car park and all f us felt completely and utterly disappointed.

fair enough the trail has only been open a few months, but it seems unfinished...a half assed attempt to get more people to whinlatter.

We're going to give it another go in the summer, when its dry, and hopefully after its been repaired....but it was bloody aweful!!

(there was more that annoyed me but i cant be bothered writing anymore).

think i'll stick to Grizedale for now

Rant over.
B

falloffstuff

Sounds like you had a bit of an epic! Ive ridden the trail a few times, and i have to say i enjoyed it. Granted i didnt ride it wet, so im sure that helped. Most of the fire road riding is gone now, i rode the trail on the opening day and i remember complaining about those bloody fire roads to, turns out that the single track accent just wasnt finished yet. The accent has some awsome views of the lakes and some tricky tight switbacks but isnt too steep. There is still a short section of fire road to get you to the top however. Those bloody roots on the decent can catch you out if your not careful but i have to say i quite like the challenge, overall i think its a little hard for a red route and not very forgiving, it will definatly let you know about any flaws in your riding technique. Hopefully next time you're on the trail you will enjoy it a bit more.

cach you out on the trail

SGP

Well I think it's great, and the wetter the better!

strodey

Without sounding a bit abrupt! i find thid post a bit odd.
You went cycling outdoors (it rains outdoors) on a 'trail' and wondered why there was slippy slate, a tree, fire roads, and jumps that made the trail less smooth.
Crikey you want to try getting a map of my area planning a route then riding it, i get grooves from tractors deeper than my wheel (how inconsiderate) big trees, rocks and sometimes even puddles and mud! can't think why they call them mountain bikes!

Mancunianfightingcat

I can see where Ben is coming from, I have only been once, it was absolutely lashing it down and I went round twice.
It is a tricky route and there isn't much 'flow' to it, not like other trail centres such as Llandegla and Grizedale.
It certainly gets your lungs open and makes you concentrate on your riding but, for some reason, it just doesn't seem to excite me as much as other places.

I think I know which tree he means, it's part way down a descent, just as your getting some speed up, the trail shifts about 3 feet to the right around a tree, which is fine, but it takes place over about a 3 foot length of trail, which makes the turnings very tight.

There are some good bits though, the kickers on the berms on the long descent are good fun as you can turn your bike in mid-air and some of the jumps are well placed, although 10 in a row all the same does seem a bit excessive.
As other people have said, I'll try it again when it's dry as the the sheer amount of tree roots does make it frustrating when it's very wet.

320DMsport

First time i rode it was about 4 weeks back, pouring rain and i enjoyed it, i prefer a technical rooty challenge and funnily like climbing hills.

The full course isn't finished yet but the new climb cuts out most the fire road but still tricky in the wet and don't look down to your right!

So i suppose you won't be entering the Whinlatter Challenge Enduro on the 29th March 09 let alone the 24 hour race that is going to take place in Whinlatter, now that will be fun in the dark.

KeithNMBC

You are kidding right?

Trail is superb and i have never ridden it dry, I have done just about every trail on this Island and it rates amoungst the best for fun.

Now the second part is opening this weekend, cannot wait, infact I'll be there

Oh well horses for courses I suppose.

Compared to Grizedale though, it rocks, Grizedale is waaaaay too short and quite empty of technical challenges. Very much a beginners centre

ratty2k

TBH there aint that much technical at Whinlatter either... Couple of drop offs and some jumps...
Also to the OP... have a look at what a LOT (read nearly all!) of the hoses are built of- SLATE. its what the natural area is...
Dark Peak? Gritstone= LOADS of grip. Slate= not much (especially wet or damp)... But after having a chat with the guys in the shop at Whinlatter they recommended a tyre change and the second lap we enjoyed a lot more. Its just one of those things, learn to ride round it...

The Northern Monkey

Grizedale isn't too far away...thats not covered in slate,,

ratty2k

Yes it is... I'm not a geologist, but most of the Lakes is Slate... But, it does have more grip. You also have to bear in mind that Whinlatter is a LOT newer, talking to the guys in the shop they admit that some parts need work. Give it a chance

The Northern Monkey

i meant that the trail isn't covered in slate.

ratty2k

Seeing as that's what its built of, I have to say it is... But, its also a much older trail and has bedded/ weathered in a lot more, so thats possibly where the grip level increases.
I now ride mostly natural stuff in the Dark Peak, went to Llandegla the other day, and while it was much better than being sat at home, it is a bit dull...

The Northern Monkey

well anyways, i didnt enjoy winlatter. much prefer grizedale.

however, this post is over a month old, and in other topics i've said i'd try winlatter again after its been weathered + maintained for about a year.

sniper68

bigbenj_08 wrote:

i meant that the trail isn't covered in slate.

Try riding Skiddaw...the bedrock is...slate..As is most of the area around Keswick(Honister slate mine etc).further down the lakes towards Grizedale the geology changes and slate is not so predominant.

timberjack

rode it twice on August bank holiday monday and it was absolutely pi##ing down and i thought it was mint

The Northern Monkey

i think its mainly because i rode glentress a few weeks before winlatter. glentress is amazing.
but then again, i rate grizedale ten times more than winlatter.

ratty2k

Guys in the shop said more grip when its either pissing it down or bone dry. When damp, not much grip at all.... Just one of those things I guess, learn to ride differing levels of grip, not much else you can do about it...

snotty badger

I think its a great little loop, the climbs are very pleasent and the single track nice and techinical.

I'll be taking my Pitch for a thrash round Whinlatter next weekend, can't wait! :twisted:

i-drive

grizedale is covered in slate & is just as twitchy in the wet but its part of the riding.
tbh grizedale is my favourite place to ride but then thats lot a slur on it at all but there is so much quality riding to be had around the lakes i wonder why grizdale is so popular.

not made it to whinlatter yet as i will wait or better health & it to be finished.

that comment about his brother crashing on a blind corner made me laugh.QUALITY

The Northern Monkey

he did tho, totalled. followed by 2 other guys while he was recovering!

dave_hill

ratty2k wrote:

Yes it is... I'm not a geologist, but most of the Lakes is Slate... But, it does have more grip. You also have to bear in mind that Whinlatter is a LOT newer, talking to the guys in the shop they admit that some parts need work. Give it a chance

Grizedale is limestone, not slate (part of the Coniston group, for all the geology nerds out there...). The riding surfaces on the NFT are an aggregate which for the most part will have been brought in from outside the area.

I've not been to Whinlatter yet, but I did ride the NFT for the first time shortly after it opened and the riding surfaces were really well finished. Not a lot of thought seems to have gone into its maintenance though and after all the rain we've had lately it's got very eroded in places, particularly on the return leg down the Eastern side of the loop.

The Northern Monkey

yea grizedale has definately eroded quite badly in places....when we were there last we were talking about how it itsn't really maintained and could see it being closed in the next year or so.

dave_hill

I'm not impressed either by the lack of grip on the boardwalk sections, especially when they're wet or frosty.

Apparently the official reason for not using chicken wire on them was, "It could cause an accident"... :shock:

The Northern Monkey

+1..there is one section that we dare not ride if its a tiny tiny bit wet... its a banked bit of board walk round a corner..covered in scrapes and chipped wood where pedals have caught and people have taken a tumble. Its basically like riding a very slippy root!

Steve_b77

dave_hill wrote:

I'm not impressed either by the lack of grip on the boardwalk sections, especially when they're wet or frosty.

Apparently the official reason for not using chicken wire on them was, "It could cause an accident"... :shock:

I have a rather nice lump on my shin bone due to this, the bruise has all gone but there's a solid lump on the bone thats been there for a month or so now :? It'd be much better if they were surfaced in either chicken wire or an all weather grippy compound

snotty badger

The South loop is open at Whinatter now, apparntly its more flowing than the North one.

I'll find out on Saturday.

The Northern Monkey

i herd the second loop was more trail/jumps than xc....may be wrong tho.

Schoey

We went on Sunday - although there was too much snow/ice to form a decent opinion.

I like the little downhill section to start - much better than the Northface, straight into a climb.

steveo450

I was there on Sunday 9th with a group of approx 20 riders.

There was lots of snow and ice particularly up in the hills but we all still really enjoyed it. That could be in part due to the adverse weather conditions and watching your mates slipping and sliding around was pretty entertaining.

I ride a 45lb Norco Shore FR bike and feel that the climb was worth it for the rewards. even in the snow/ice we all managed to get some good speed up on the decents and enjoy the few drops / jumps etc that were there.

We are all looking forward to experiencing it in the dry and will be returning as soom as the weather changes.

Heres a very short vid from the day. Im the 3rd rider.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Os90g_RcKlw

S1eepless

Grizedale geology is Silurian slates & shales. I should know as my home is made from it, and it is a crap rock as rock goes. It rots.
When the trail was opened it was similar to Winlatter in so much as the slate chippings and dust were placed along the track. These came from Cavendish's quarries such as Elterwater etc. it took less than a year to settle down. We are now left with the sharp slate bed rock nipping our tyres where we are not careful.

delcol

i have ridden both have to say was dissapointed with the nft i did ride it in the summer in a storm,,, who in their right mind puts off camber shore structures on a trail with out some kind of grip..

rode whinlatter at the end of november and loved it yes the slate is prison soap and riding a hardtail with bontys mud x tires diddnt help but i really did enjoy it the last 2 decents were awesome even with those roots,..