Glentress Hub Closure

GAZZAFAEDOOGLAS

Now that the whole thing has wound up,does anybody want to spill what really happened........i have heard the rumours......?

stubs

I just assumed they lost the contract because they were running a smelly dump that served up overpriced pig swill and called it food. Either that or the Illuminati got together with Prince Phillip and the people who assasinated Diana to kick out the crusties.

supersonic

Is a sad day indeed. Where are all the Orange 5 owners going to go to sit and look at each others bikes?

Pudseyp

To me again its to cater for the masses...gone the greasy bacon butty and proper mug of tea for a ham panini with local toasted shrews noses with a cup of earl grey...like I have said before (being a bit oldskool) it takes some of the charm away from what mountain biking is all about....

delcol

supersonic wrote:

Is a sad day indeed. Where are all the Orange 5 owners going to go to sit and look at each others bikes?

were can they have their monthly crackoff... (by this i mean to compair their cracks. as in the cracks in frames not cracks on there bodies.. nor to crack one off,) :P

Northwind

Pretty straightforward really... Glentress grew, they failed to grow with it. Hub's been too small for the amount of trade for years, so they've lost tons of business at peak times just by being unable to cater for it- hardly any indoor tables, not even enough outdoor ones, big queues often. And the look and conditions of the place turned a lot of people away too. We come down off the hill on trailbuilding days at about 1.30 which is after the rushhour and it's still a fight to get served and get a seat (usually at a wobbly table on a seat that looks like it came out of a skip, to eat food at restaurant prices)

When the new place was built, they took this same attitude and complacency when making their quote, basing it on serving the same number of people they already do, whereas GT Hotel made a pitch based on actually serving as many people as possible.

I'll miss the place but they had their chance. And tbh their behavior after the bidding process ended cost them any sympathy I had for them.

supersonic wrote:

Where are all the Orange 5 owners going to go to sit and look at each others bikes?

You'll be pleased to hear you can still ride once round the green route then park your Five outside. And now there's even less to look at, since the new cafe's inexplicably in a big hole in the ground, and also the staff in the new cafe wear more clothes

GAZZAFAEDOOGLAS

good stuff,love that anchorman pic man......

normally use the 'mtb borders forum' but they seem to look upon the whole subject as taboo i think.

details are sketchy about how relations broke down betwen the two parties,rumour has it the FC tried to negotiate a larger fee for the lease and the hub held them to the original lease which was said to be £5000 a year,which i suppose they are within their rights to do.........??
Northwind were you not a member of the MTB Borders forum at one time......?

seen a mangled orange 5 two weeks ago at the AE uplift.......not a pretty sight,the rider escaped unhurt thankfully

stubs

Think Northwind has it just about spot on.

The food was bloody awful, last time I went when we finally got some grub it was inedible my partner was gagging over a lump of gristle and I was struggling to work out what the orange slop was on my spud. So we just got up and walked out. We ended up in a chippy and sat down at a spotless table and got 4 fish suppers for about the same price the Hub was charging for 2 bacon butties and 2 microwaved spuds with beans.

I am not particulary precious about my grub or the conditions its served in but when 4 people without a word just look at each other and with a nod get up and walk out you know somethings not right with the food or the place.

Northwind

Have to say I've never really had any complaint about the quality of the food. Always been a bit too expensive for what you get but that's the worst I can say. I'll miss the banana smoothies!

Having said that- I was well peeved with them a while back. Their famous cakes selection never has anything gluten free, so I asked if it'd be OK if I brought my own and they were pretty uppitty about it- "Obviously you can't". I'd eat what they sell if i could. So, obviously I just ignored it but I thought that was pretty pish, especially considering I'd spent all morning working on the trails that make their audience, and I was wearing a bloomin Tweedlove volunteer tshirt! Not that I'm bitter

GAZZAFAEDOOGLAS

was talking to the fella who has the burger van at inners,he claimed that he was close to gettin a spot in the buzzards car park.
i think this would work as there seems to be another scene up there as such......freeriders & families,where as down the bottom its more of the xc warrior's maybe.....?
i think there would be more than enough punters for all.

by the way how far did the hub get with their tender,some are sayin not even by the PPQ stage so they never even got to make a 'pitch'.....?

Northwind

They got to the second stage of the tendering process, whatever that actually means.

As far as the burger van, I've been told that the Peel has an exclusive contract for catering but that might not be the case.