What's your idea of a good bike ride

miss notax

Yeah, it really was actually (which means the next time we ride there it'll obviously be peeing down with rain, but hey ho ) 8)

1mancity2

Got to have jumps big jumps, 30 footers are good for me, 5ft+ drops, but I will ride anything and I always try to go hell for leather no matter what im doing.

But jumps, drops anything like that I love it, quite like hitting the skatepark on the DJ as well.

Chinley Churner

Long and natural (eg. Peak District), packed with climbing and leaving your legs feeling as though someones taken a mallet to them. Not adverse to trail centres for a bit of mindless fun and something like x3 loops of the black at Llandegla is a good solid ride .. Must admit, I do like riding solo or in small equal ability/fitness groups. Can't stand the faff of big groups and people who are lazy on climbs or flat sections. Couldn't be done with standing around talking about a stretch of trail and session-ing it, too many trails to ride, too little time.

bjj.andy.w

My idea of a great ride?
Riding any of the bridalways in the lake district, that'll do me grand

bails87

Chinley Churner wrote:

something like x3 loops of the black at Llandegla is a good solid ride .. .

Isn't that about 50 miles?! :shock:

Chinley Churner

bails87 wrote:

Chinley Churner wrote:

something like x3 loops of the black at Llandegla is a good solid ride .. .

Isn't that about 50 miles?! :shock:

N'ah... just short of 38 miles.

YeehaaMcgee

bails87 wrote:

Chinley Churner wrote:

something like x3 loops of the black at Llandegla is a good solid ride .. .

Isn't that about 50 miles?! :shock:

No. Not even close.

lostboysaint

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

Anything and everything. Variety is the spice of life. From chairlifted DH runs in the Alps, to nadgery technical bits where I keep thinking the "junior kickstart" theme, to epic XC adventures across mountain ranges, to just chilling on a cycle path with some non-hardcore friends, and sometimes their kids.
It's all enjoyable.

Actually you hit on one bit that was missing from my other post. The riding with "non-hardcore" friends. They don't seem to understand that I don't care how fast they are or whether they want to stop every so often etc. I'm just pleased to be out for a ride with them and enjoying the craic!

bails87

bails87 wrote:

Chinley Churner wrote:

something like x3 loops of the black at Llandegla is a good solid ride .. .

Isn't that about 50 miles?! :shock:

Ah, I was forgetting that when I rode the black at Llandegla I did the red too, so 16 miles in total. Obviously, if you just looped back up to the start of the black it would be less.

Still, 38 miles is about double the furthest I've ridden on an MTB!

mcnultycop

It needs to be around 18.2 degrees Celsius, no rain but it needs to have rained around 1.3mm within the previous 24 hours. I like to ride the first half of Lee Quarry, then the link road to Cragg Quarry, where I'll do one lap, stopping halfway round for half a loaf of Soreen and three randomly chosen Haribo. I'll then ride the link back to Lee Quarry and return to the car park.

bennett_346

bails87 wrote:

bails87 wrote:

Chinley Churner wrote:

something like x3 loops of the black at Llandegla is a good solid ride .. .

Isn't that about 50 miles?! :shock:

Ah, I was forgetting that when I rode the black at Llandegla I did the red too, so 16 miles in total. Obviously, if you just looped back up to the start of the black it would be less.

Still, 38 miles is about double the furthest I've ridden on an MTB!

49.7mi is the furthest i have done in one day on an mtb. It was the passeportes du soleil, and it was bloody good fun. Nearly 6000m of vertical descent.

Anonymous

cooldad wrote:

Not ending up in hospital.

^ This. Although if you're going to do it, making sure you're well knocked out or have memory loss means the experience isn't something you live with. Well not the worst bits (except when you're recovering and have to remember hospital food).

But generally - fun, sociable ride, gnar.

I'm not a big of a fan of riding with a group who just charge off, never stop, don't wait if you're struggling to catch up, and don't talk to each other. May as well just ride on my own, which to be fair I will go much faster by myself and not stop, but I can do it whenever I want and can explore. Don't mind an occasional faster paced ride if the group knows some good stuff, make it a speedy but fun ride, chat on the fireroads and climbs, and is prepared to take a break at some point and eat / talk.

paul.skibum

I like a good sociable ride but struggle to find people as keen to ride as I am or we have a skill/fitness division that I find hard to see past when chosing ride partners - I like following people a bit better than me generally.

I'll ride anything but like my descents to match the effort put in to get them - If I have trawled up a ways the down better flow and undulate and have a ton of super good turns and features in it. I dont mind a long up and a long down like Whites Level, would prefer short ups and downs over a longer distance.

Used to love putting together a good loop on an OS map and having at 'er - did a 65 mile day in the Chilterns once linking all my favourite ups and downs together - I think my legs fell off on the final push for home but it was an epic day (I didn't want to ride for about a week after though!)

Slow and techie or fast and flowing its all good. Dont like super gnar steep and lots of objective danger (narrow tricky paths on a side hill are a particular hate of mine or hairpins with huge drop if you dont stick the turn).

Beer to finish.

bluechair84

It's interesting to see a few people are social riders - the only thing I dislike more than riding in wind is riding alone. I still do, but begrudgingly. Some of the places I ride I can guarantee to bump into familiar faces though.

cooldad

I don't like riding alone. I just ride for fun. Mainly I like riding with rubbish people so I don't get left behind.

mintedox

I don't mind riding alone but when I do I take it a bit easier. My local ride has everything that I enjoy, big climbs, long descents and some forest action. On a clear day up on the moors you can see for miles

mkf

i like to earn my downhills, so i like a good technical climb something that challenges me so that if i dont make it first time i can push further next time. Fast flowing techy downhill, natural stuff naturally.
Dont mind trail centers, smooth no brainer track with a few jumps.
right now grisedale really hit the spot.On my last ride there i started at the v.c rode a bridlepath loop which took me to moor top carpark where i jump onto the end of the NFT then down the new black.
Bit of everything there for me all in the sunshine.

thats my kind of ride

cooldad

Hot dry and dusty does it for me.
Might have to move to Utah.

YeehaaMcgee

bluechair84 wrote:

It's interesting to see a few people are social riders - the only thing I dislike more than riding in wind is riding alone. I still do, but begrudgingly. Some of the places I ride I can guarantee to bump into familiar faces though.

It's a tough call, but I'd say I do slightly prefer riding by myself. It gives me time to zone out and switch my brain off without even having to think about making conversation - which can be tricky to us neanderthals.
That doesn't mean I dislike riding in a group at all, I just have a slight preference for riding alone.

Anonymous

cooldad wrote:

Hot dry and dusty does it for me.
Might have to move to Utah.

You could have many wives too then.

angry_bird

If it's trail centre type stuff then it has to be of the more intereting variety that actually needs a bit of line choice, I know I ride at Cannock a lot but it's dull and I have to really cane it to make it interesting. I like places like Dalbeattie and Kirroughtree, both trails making full use of the natural features and you have to think about things.

Having said that I very much enjoy natural riding in proper mountain places, can get some great techy riding, brilliant descents and great views and feel like you've actually gone out somewhere and done somthing instead of just following god knows how many other riders around a trail centre.

Not got anything against trail centres though, bikes is bikes.

blister pus

As has been said, there's a time and place for all of it with bells on and it's all fun if you like getting out 'nd about.

lawman

For trail centres, flow is the key. its gotta be fast, jumpy, bermy and great fun, llandegla is great and I quite like the final descents at the climachX in Macynllyth, sweet descent. Beggining to love nant y arian these days, finally know the place pretty well so I can properly push round there now, is good fun.

Perfect ride though, mentioned a few times already, but cut-gate when its bone dry and not too windy - perfection!

Penylope

Any and all of it, but not too Gnarr!

If I can get a ride in after work I would rather ride alone TBF, as it helps me unwind without having to hold polite conversation. any other time i dont mind either way, but my ususal riding buddy is injured so i haven't got much choice at the moment

cooldad

deadkenny wrote:

cooldad wrote:

Hot dry and dusty does it for me.
Might have to move to Utah.

You could have many wives too then.

Just took one to bankrupt me, god knows what many would do.

nicklouse

finding a good pub at the end.

or just a good supply of beer.

bails87

Angry Bird wrote:

feel like you've actually gone out somewhere and done somthing instead of just following god knows how many other riders around a trail centre.

Not got anything against trail centres though, bikes is bikes.

Good point. I go to Cannock a lot too, and I know what you mean, I enjoy it, but it doesn't feel like an adventure, partly because I've been there so much. Same with somewhere like Cwm Carn, but somewhere like Mach has a bit more feeling of 'wilderness' that gives it a little je ne sais quoi . I might go over to the Malverns at some point over the long weekend. Not very special, but at least it feels like you've gone somewhere where there isn't a procession of bikes.

Mccraque

a Good ride ends with a few beers!

I like all sorts. I race and love the competitive edge (even though I'm shit!)

I love all day epics across the south downs with great scenery.

I love climbs...my favourite being Whites Level at Afan

I love the black runs at LLandegla and Coed Y Brenin

I love going out for an hour before work and hammering it around my local woods in the mist and seeing deer, rabbits n stuff..

I love the North Downs and the cheese straws in Peaslake village stores.

I also love getting home and spending 2 hours in the garage polishing, degreasing and fettling.

Probably covers most bases.

bluechair84

I can say when is best for me to ride as well - when I'm stressed as heck. Nothing clears the mind and resets the blood pressure like decent technical ride.

Clank

bluechair84 wrote:

I can say when is best for me to ride as well - when I'm stressed as heck. Nothing clears the mind and resets the blood pressure like decent technical ride.

True dat, bro. 8)