 You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Looks like I'll be working in the area for a couple of days towards the end of Jan, so I might just take the bike and explore. Should I expect a Midlands version of Swinley? Any decent bike-happy (storage-wise) B&Bs in the area?
Ta
Having been to both over the weekend because of the weather I would say they were pretty similar. I think I prefer Cannock, the black stuff is fun. I only know the official trails at Cannock, I gather there is a lot of other good stuff to be ridden there.
Waymarked trail info here;
www.chasetrails.co.uk
Wait for lots of people to post totally contradictory views of what the trails are like.
The Chase is 26 square miles of forest with many non-marked trails to explore if you're up for a navigational challenge. With the Monkey Trail & Follow the Dog combined you have around 15 miles of waymarked trails to ride. Grading is modest and straightforward for a competent rider with a few harder [b]options[/b] available on the Monkey Trail.
The Chase is very wet at the moment (as per the rest of the country) but who knows what it'll be like come the end of the month but then that's just what comes of riding bikes off road during the winter.
Sounds pretty much as expected, ta.
Any ideas on accommodation?
I shouldn't bother. There are way too many shiny pebbles on the trail to have any kind of fun. The red trails are too easy and the black sections are too hard.
It is so crap that I am in no way going for a ride around the Monkey tonight, oh no!
Been up to ride Cannock a few times now with mates and have always stayed here:
www.willow-end.com
Trails are only a short ride from the door, Glenn and Tina are really friendly, great food, they will store bikes and have a hose pipe! Plus pub down the road! Definitely recommended.
Plenty on link below but most of them unsuitable. Willow End looks near Birches Valley so by the start of the man made stuff. No eye deer what its like though.
[url= http://www.visitcannockchase.co.uk/stay.htm ]http://www.visitcannockchase.co.uk/stay.htm[/url]
Watch out for the pig man and cucumbers!
& the (were)wolves! Awwoooooooooo
Cheers chaps. Spoke to a couple of B&Bs and they're cool with storing bikes.
Werewolves I dig, but not so cucumber-endowed pig men. I shall don skinnies for that extra burst of speed.
Cucumbers 😆
It doesn't ride too bad in the wet and the pebbles are a complete none issue.
Don't forget there is Stile Cop too for DH type stuff and it is usually better in the wet.
the pebbles are a complete none issue
Contentious!
Better than the new Swinley trails but not as good as the old Swinley trails.
I'll expand on this, used to ride Cannock a lot then moved down south, about 2 miles from Swinley so rode there mostly. The old mix of trails at Swinley was great, make up routes, ride with some else who'd show you new bits, pretty quiet and trails weren't 'santised'. New Swinley is busy, trails are as hard as pavement and as smooth as a BMX track, with most technical features removed. Cannock probably falls between the two as it's less santised than Swinley.... but not ridden at Cannock in years so that may have changed. Probably a bit more elevation to play with at Cannock too
you could try the joshua tree motel in hednesford as an alternative, straight road (about 2 miles) to the start of the monkey
pebbles are a complete none issue.
Don't be silly, EVERYONE knows the pebbles are a nightmare!
Don't be silly, EVERYONE knows [s]the pebbles[/s] [b]the bumpy bits[/b] are a nightmare!
Oops my bad.
We don't want stones or bumps now do we!
[i]Nice facilities/carpark.
Everyone leaves their bike unattended on the roof their cars
Everyone rides either a LPierre Zesty or a 29'er...
The trails are 100% shiny fixed pebbles with 1% berms and if you dare lean your tyres it feels like you are on cobbles...[/i]
Nice facilities/carpark.
Everyone leaves their [s]bike[/s] cucumber unattended on the roof their cars.
Everyone rides either a [s]LPierre Zesty or a 29'er...[/s] ........ masked owl, badger or pigman
FTFY.
The monkey and stile cop are cooll
We don't want stones or bumps now do we!
We most certainly do not!
Anything that makes the trail remotely interesting or difficult should be banned because I for one am too crap to be able to navigate such obstacles.