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Heading to Glentress on Saturday for the first time to try out my Bossnut I picked up before Christmas. Only thing I don't have is knee pads. Bearing in mind i'm a noob can I ride without them or is that a no no? I would buy a pair if I hadn't just forked out for 3 new tyres and brakes for my car as well as paying off a holiday in the one month. They will have to wait until next month but I'm desperate to go ride on Saturday
Just don't crash. 🙂
I ride GT regularly enough without them. Maybe avoid the bigger stuff in the jump park but the blues and red will be absolutely fine
Most of the kids I was chasing down on Sunday last don't have pads on.
Just ride within your limits rather than flat out at everything.
Should be fine just avoid picnic tables, I cracked a rib at the top of spooky wood, slipped and hit the tabletop. It’s not fun riding down with a cracked rib...
The blue stuff is easy enough or challenging speed depending..
In my experience, there's not much risk of crashing on the regular Glentress trails but if you do you're quite likely to crash at speed onto a fairly hard surface, as the trails are built out of packed hardcore. For that reason I tend to wear pads at Glentress but I don't think it's vital.
*challenge for you all*
- Ride Berm Baby Berm without pedalling or braking......
if conditions are snowy you'll not need them
I think I'm heading there sometime next week - I'll be flat out - but due to lack of fitness and skill and most likely on the ground!
Taking a younger rider with me, going to do the blue - suspect if we start at the bottom then I'll be dead by halfway up the climb - can we still park at the top car park? How much of the Blue do we miss and is it worth making her 'suffer' the climb back to the car?
The bottom bit of the climb up to buzzard's nest is harder than the second bit (after you cross the road), but neither is particularly difficult. I really like the BBB followed by blue to the bottom as an ender to a day there, seems quite popular with families with young 'uns too.
*challenge for you all*
– Ride Berm Baby Berm without pedalling or braking……
Wow, have you done that? Not pedaling would be okay, but no brakes sounds like it could get a bit frantic towards the bottom!
The forecast at the moment is for light rain so hopefully that doesn't change unless it changes to no rain. I'm going with a guy from work who is a regular so he's already thinking about what trails he can take me down
Or does anyone know of a really cheap as chips pair that I could maybe stretch to on a short term basis?
Anyone any experience of these?
I never wear pads at GT. I do ride within myself tho.
I've never worn pads...don't see the need when my self-preservation skills are honed to such a sharp point!
Even with my Olympic level mincing I feel naked riding without pads...once ****ting your knee off the stem, is one time too many.
With me being a noob I'm thinking I should really have a pair on
I’m going with a guy from work who is a regular
Maybe he could lend you some pads?
Unfortunately he only has one set
Ridden GT several times, never worn pads.
It’s entirely up to you but as long as you have a helmet and gloves you’re good to go,
when we go we start st the bottom by the shop and ride the red, when we get back to what is a biggish fire road on the outgoing red we go back up but now following the blue.
if you park at buzzards nest I think you’ll miss some quite good stuff.
Thanks, she can learn to 'love' the climbs then!
Pads are completely optional, but if you feel better with them, then wear them, better to enjoy the ride than worrying in case you have a proper knock.
There is some snow in the valley just now and the fire roads are pretty icy - not sure the inners uplift will be running tomorrow as the road up is like an ice rink in places. They may well close the road up to the Buzzards Nest car park at GT too - so @DickBarton ‘she’ might be loving the climb sooner than you’ve planned for!
I reckon knee pads are a good idea. I never came off when I was there last year for first time but my mate who is a relatively off-road noob came off twice on his bossnut leaving a nice indent in his cheap knee pads. I wear knees and elbows whenever I think there’s a chance I’ll tumble after taking a month to heal from a spill that would have been nothing with a pair of elbow pads.
I thought much of red was surprisingly rocky and rooty. Lots of things to smash kneecaps on.
Thanks for the warning...might go to Comrie
comrie is worse unless you just do the mid/lower blue.
^^ think the Comrie idea was to avoid the ice at GT.
Comrie lower blue was still shut for repairs when I was there a few weeks back...
Blimey...where can we go then...haha...
Any updates on the trail conditions? Thinking of heading down tomorrow but can't be bothered with the drive if it is just icy.
Conditions were fine. Other than some ice on the fire roads as mentioned. First time on my Bossnut. First time on trails. I'm absolutely hooked already. My fitness needs to improve for the climbs
Excellent news...well done. So trails are clear, just the fireroads that are icy?
Looking at the forecast tomorrow may be quite different ....
I was only on blue trails and all the ones we rode were clear
Ideal, hopefully the weather won't break until Wednesday!