Entry level Black run?
Hi there, my riding has been improving lately and I feel that i am competent enough to try a proper black run. Usually ride around Cannock with the odd trip to CYB to do the dragon's back. I can cope with those trails easily and am getting faster all the time
Where would be a good place to try a black run? I must admit that I do skip past the black rock section on the monkey trail but I blame that on riding a hardtail
Would it be wise to try and tackle the Upper cliff rock garden first or is that considered very black? Never been over to Stile Cop as riding a hardtail has put me off going over there, is it worth it?
all help appreciated
Where would be a good place to try a black run? I must admit that I do skip past the black rock section on the monkey trail but I blame that on riding a hardtail
Would it be wise to try and tackle the Upper cliff rock garden first or is that considered very black? Never been over to Stile Cop as riding a hardtail has put me off going over there, is it worth it?
all help appreciated
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They vary hugely, so it's not really that easy, try one, and just be prepared to walk bits if it's a tough one.
Black at Thetford is nothing compared to red or even blue at many other centres. There's nothing scary on the Brechfa black, and White's level at Afan is designated black.
They're really just a comparison within each location, so Brechfa black is harder than the blue which is harder than the green, it's not standardised at all.0 -
Seen plenty of people do the Upper Cliff black on a HT, it doesn't look that difficult...
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njee20 wrote:They vary hugely, so it's not really that easy, try one, and just be prepared to walk bits if it's a tough one.
Black at Thetford is nothing compared to red or even blue at many other centres. There's nothing scary on the Brechfa black, and White's level at Afan is designated black.
They're really just a comparison within each location, so Brechfa black is harder than the blue which is harder than the green, it's not standardised at all.
What planet you from Whites is red...
there is additional black loop which has been completely smooothed and made peee easy.0 -
Thewaylander wrote:njee20 wrote:They vary hugely, so it's not really that easy, try one, and just be prepared to walk bits if it's a tough one.
Black at Thetford is nothing compared to red or even blue at many other centres. There's nothing scary on the Brechfa black, and White's level at Afan is designated black.
They're really just a comparison within each location, so Brechfa black is harder than the blue which is harder than the green, it's not standardised at all.
What planet you from Whites is red...
there is additional black loop which has been completely smooothed and made peee easy.
i have to agree, nothing on whites (even the energy section) is black.0 -
Sorry, you're right, it's W2 which is designated black, and there's still nothing on there that's bad!
Which was my point.0 -
njee20 wrote:Sorry, you're right, it's W2 which is designated black, and there's still nothing on there that's bad!
Which was my point.
i know, why have 2 red routes, put them together and call it a black? is it cos of the distance?
but yeah, there's nothing too technically challenging as long as you're a semi decent rider
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Yarp range takes part of alot places rating which i think is wrong. i want a technical rating... I can read how bloody far it is and judge that! lol0
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Agreed, but it just comes back to the fact it's purely a comparison, W2 is physically harder than either the Wall or White's individually. It is certianly a little daft, particularly when they also provide somewhat pessimistic time estimates which show you it's longer!0
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Ah but its not a local comparison,
TO have a red run in wales its meant to incorprate certain things.
Thats why the additional loop is rated black as it has largish berms and no run outs on a few of the tabletops(not that that matters on a table top as anyone can ride over) and they match up to the black rating.
The distance is just one bit. the problem is councils in wales are not consistant with ehre application of there ratings.0 -
Huh? W2 doesn't include anything remotely technical that's not in White's or the Wall though. The extra loop on White's can be done either as part of W2 or just on a lap of White's though? Ergo W2 is only rated black as it's longer. Although those cattle grids can be a bit tricky in the wet...
There's never going to be a way to standardise the ratings, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Everything at Thetford would be green, so you'd get families doing what is now the black and finding it rather more tricky than the current green!
The question is that if W2 is black because of the distance, why isn't Skyline, you can't stop halfway for food, so the distance is more significant?0 -
Skyline is black....
Or was wehn i looked a few years and the other week when i test rode my Dune0 -
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Indeed,
Wierd as well as some of the further out riding is way tougher than anything thats on Wall or Whites... bloody flunkies from the council have the brains of a pee.0 -
It's not black because it's the hardest thing in the area, simply that it's the hardest of the way marked trails. You can't expect absolutely every path to be graded!0
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Eh? I'm talking about Skyline in comparison to the other trails Whites and Wall.
And it's a technically harder trail than either hence why isn't it techncially graded higher?0 -
If you've only down the dragons back at CYB, try including the MBR next time as well as I think thats another step up in difficulty0
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Ah, I see, I thought you meant some of the natural stuff. I didn't think there was anything in Skyline that was harder, subjective I guess.0
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If you look at the last decent for instance, there are about a foot to 2 foot drops in the corners, which are pretty tricky to do wtih any speed and so on, less jump and berms but actualyl diffculty i think its much harder and more challenging but hey ho.0
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Anyway - discussing what's black and why aside...
As mentioned there's the black loop at whites, this is a black descent so almost DH quality but plently doable on a HT. Saw a guy do it a few years back on a proper old school steel rigid with canti's. It's only short and the rest of the trail is red and won't bother you if you can ride the trails you mention above.
There's a very steep bit into a rock garden near the end that's tricky to get right.
The Raven trail at Brechfa is actually hard. It's got steep climbs and descents, rocks and the surface is less 'manmade' than lots of places so bad weather makes it harder. But it's based on the Blue trail so it's not impossible.
Rode Llandegla last weekend, the optional black bits there are some of the simplest I've done, but again tough climbs.
Personally I'd be wary of keyboard hero's who claim everything is easy, nothing labled black is easy - but anything can be made easier with a bit of practice.0 -
No such thing as an "entry level" black.
If you're not confident in your skills to just "go for it" then it's best to stay clear until you think you have enough belief in your riding to attack it.0 -
Key board heroes? like that.
Simply the black at afan is over rated as it's not even as tricky as other bits of the trail
But then people are intimidated by a colour, look at the trail and make your own judgment0 -
Oh come on, you know what I mean. If you're uncertain of your abilities, then black trails aren't for you. They're not even MEANT for you. They're clearly stated that they're for experienced riders.
It doesn't matter how relatively easy they are compared to other blacks, any uncertainty about them should send alarm bells flying.0 -
Indeed, Yee i agree on the most.
But what i mean is the black at afan is perfectly smooth, and you could pretty much ride the whole thing sitting down. thats what i mean by easy.0 -
Fair enough, but as a general rule, it's best to stay clear until you have confidence, no?
I mean, you might accidentally end up on something properly mental because someone told you a few blacks are really easy.0 -
yup i have done that,
never ridden a hard black in my life, all the ones round Wales are generally easy enough for me and anything really big you can roll. But i ended up on a few section of the Rheola pro DH track the other day, I have a good chin scar and bruises to prove it, made the DH run at cwmlook like an easy chicken route 0 -
Thing is though, I presume, you, like me, have been riding for a good long time. The chance of a very experienced rider being pushed is rare, but it doesn't preclude those runs from being potentially disastrous for someone who is unsure of their skills.0
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Well indeed,
The point was I hit a real black the other day and it was beyonde my ability, it reenforced my veiw to me that ratings mean absolutely nothing, First time in years i had ridden summat and thought, how the fack do i get down that, then promptly crash 0 -
Meh, man up you big poof 0
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I was trying too lol,
Never hit summat so slippy steep and deeply rutted couldn't get my pedals between a load.. no choice but just to hunk it all and really good speed. And i have to admit i didn't have nuts by a way, Maybe i'd try in a full body armour full face and so on...
But yarp i was scared lol0 -
interesting points, thanks for the comments. I personally feel confident and that i have the skills to cope, will let yo know how I get on when i get round to it.0
