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Going tomorrow.
Never been.
Any advice on what (not) to do?
Haven't been in a few years, but a trip round the black is a nice ride. The way it works the black is an extension of the red which is an extension of the blue, so works well if there are any concerns over ability
If you're doing the black then take plenty of food, it's a long ride and that seems to catch some people out. Similarly be prepared for changes in the weather.
Give McMoab a shot but again it requires a lot more energy than you'd expect from its size. It's easy to bail out from it into the fire road if it isn't working for you.
The trailbuilders like to foreshadow technical features. If you notice a few rocks in the trail surface that can mean that a bigger feature is on its way.
Enjoy all the lovely Singletrack!
Kirro rewards the strong rider, if you're able to carry speed through the trail, you'll have a great time.
I can only assume robjones is either a gobshite, a biffer or a troll...
Rode there last month and for a first time it was ok,probably on par with Ae for the trail part minus Omega man
If the weather is still bad it could be very sketchy as it’s very rocky,best of the riding I done was the last 3 sections but as we got there late we missed out Moab
Kirroughtree is great, if you can carry speed well through corners it will have you grinning.
Plenty of climbing though, bypass mcmoab and just do the chute at the end.
The weather up here at the moment is really shitty, high winds, sleet/snow and rain.......lots of rain, so you may get more fun out of doing two laps of the red which is mostly in tree cover rather than heading out to battle the elements in the open sections of black.
There is more to Mtb’ing than pointing a bike downhill
K tree is my 3rd fav centre behind laggan and comrie. Some good technical challenges and getting flow is a real achievememt.
Another saying rob jones is wrong. Imho of course 😉
First I went to Kirry I didn't enjoy it, may have been because it was too new. But it's now one of my favourites. I think I always do the black as it's a fair trek to get there. I like it because it makes the most of the terrain, descents seem to be long and gradual rather than short and steep. So it helps if you have a decent level of fitness/skill and can maintain your speed.
Thanks everyone.
Going to give the black a go.
Weather report looks better tomorrow!
So, carry speed at all costs seems to be the advice....
What could go wrong!
So it helps if you have a decent level of fitness/skill and maintain your speed
Ooooh careful steven, you're heading into murky waters with that statement, although a sub 2hr lap will see you get the most out of it (insert knowing winky smiley here) and living close enough (25mins away) to be able to ride 100's n' 100's of laps over the years has "obviously" something to do with it
utterly needless chest beating statement alert : my fastest ever lap was a night run - go figure?, i guess i relied on muscle memory/instinct and the reduced peripheral vision/distraction helped me to zone out and just ride.
By decent I just mean better than me at the moment.
I enjoyed the full black loop despite our group having some slower riders but we had a dryish day. I want to get back and have a proper fast lap
Mcmoab was so much harder than any of us thought.
Cafe was food as well
I love it tbh and I'm pretty much a knobber. But you basically get back what you put in. As a noob, that was all fine because just riding round it was fantastic, I didn't want or need to look for anything more, it was mint (though I spent half the lap wondering if I was going to make it to the end). Also it's a really nice place.
As a more experienced rider or after you've done it a few times, I think you do benefit from being able to put some power on flatter sections, it doesn't have massive gradient (*) to make you go fast. But if you can keep ****ting along it's absolutely mint, Talnotry hill black descent's one of my favourites, it just goes on forever on account of it's not all 45 degrees. And the last section can just sort of trickle past if you're not putting effort in.
(* ok it does have massive gradient, it's just all uphill. The climb after McMoab is a godawful ****.)
Indicentally that's something people say about Ae red, which is lies, Ae red is just bullshit. Ae dh is mint, Ae offpiste is absolutely superb, Ae red is like people who don't like trail centres think all trail centres are.
Haven’t been for ages but like it a lot. First time I went was on my week old Spesh Enduro 04 and I went over the bars on an early section of McMoab and smashed up the levers and shifters !
have ridden it maybe 4 times, have always bottled the chute section off McMoab back down to the track, though I’m sure it’s easier than it looks !
Kirry is a fantastic trail, the Talontry descent after Heartbreak hill (it's a bugger) is just endless perfect flowy trail. Stop by the big rock at the top of the first little scrabbly climb after heartbreak, take in the view & get ready for the good stuff. It's been a while, fancy going back now 😄
I wouldn't do the black at this time of year. You'll be cold and wet and won't appreciate the last hour. Better kept for milder weather. I would suggest the red route twice . Gives about same mileage but with the added bonus after the first lap you can refuel at the café .Also you'll appreciate the trail second time round as you know what to expect and be able to really attack the features, which is the secret to getting the most smiles per mile at Kirro. Any mechanicals/injuries and you are never far from the trail head car park .At the outer stages of black route you are a very long walk from help/car .
Black is brilliant and always enjoyed it.The option to park and start at the bottom of heartbreak hill is really good as let's you enjoy the best decent when your still fresh.Lots of off piste stuff aswell if you pop into the shop and ask but it will be a mix of mud and wet roots in this weather.
Enjoy it and enjoy the grippy rock.
Heh, not trolling, I just didn't enjoy it at all, just felt like a drag. But I am pretty certain I'm in a minority.
Did someone say Ae’s better than kirroughtree?...madness. Ae is fine, but a bit of a grind except for a few nice bits here and there. Kirroughtree is brilliant. Most of it flows so well. I struggle with mcmoab, though haven’t tried it on a slack bike with pads - suspect it’d be more manageable. I haven’t been for a few years. Went to Mabie for the first time in years a week or so ago, and really enjoyed that - nothing tricky on the red, but just grin inducing old school trail centre fun.
My last time was last summer and did sub 2 hours, including photos 😉
Knackered at the end but huge smiles. More than a few dabs on moab...... will clear it one day.
We found a great campsite 20 mins away which really helped as well as its so far away from everything!
Makes me want to go back....
Kirroughtree is the best of the 7 stanes and always a blast.
Been dozens of times and normally ride the black, it looks short on paper but takes a brave effort. On a good day I like to ride the back followed by the red again.
If weather is crap then just ride the red twice.
I mostly just ride past McMoab as it takes out more than it gives back.
<span style="font-size: 0.8rem;">And of course - don't use the brakes!</span>
IMO as far as 7stanes run of the mill trail centre riding goes, not including any off piste riding I would say it sits at the top of all of them, Nobeer knocked it on the head , if you can carry your speed and find your flow the trails are fast and flowy, Black Craigs/Talnotry Hill should put a smile on any mtb'ers face.
"probably on par with Ae for the trail part minus Omega man" .....you cannot be serious 😀
It's the only one of the 7 stanes that trail centre built trails are better than the off piste stuff!
It's so good I moved to a house 2 miles away from it 😉
Probably worth pointing out that a 180mm mince-tank isn't the weapon of choice. OTOH you'll fly on a shorter travel full-sus bike
Apologies for the naff footage but Kirro is a lot of fun this time of year...
I'm with robjones on this.
A confession.
Last time I went, I didn't feel the love. Went on a wee solo mission up Cairnsmore of fleet - the big lump that the cafe looks onto - with the intention of having a coffee or 2, then doing a lap of the black.
Up n down the Cairnsmore I went, despatched coffee and cake, then hit the trails. It was the first time I'd been since the mass Larch removal, I just can't get on with trail centres after the trees have gone, it just loses something for me. Gave up after about 10 minutes and went home.
I'll need to get back down soon, man up a bit.
Kirroughtree, An afternoon of my life I’ll never get back. So, so dull. I’d head for Ae forest instead. Kirroughtree has no real downhills, the only feature is the moab rock and it’s just not very exciting. All in my opinion of course.
Agree with your critique on Kirroughtree, very dull.
Can't agree with you recomendeding Ae though, i found that to be even less interesting with zero flow.
Rock and hard place springs to mind!
"Nobeerinthefridge
It was the first time I’d been since the mass Larch removal, I just can’t get on with trail centres after the trees have gone, it just loses something for me. Gave up after about 10 minutes and went home."
After about 11 minutes of deforestation the trees come back. Last time I did the black I wished a few more trees had been cut, the snow had weighted all the branches down and the entire return leg was about riding into them
Guid stuff, should have persevered!
I did the red and black on 2 separate days because of limited times.
I enjoyed the red on day one, though didn't think it was much better than Cannock considering how people raved about it. Went back and parked down the lane where the black links with the red and thought the first 45 mins were a absolute bag of shite. Grumbled around Mcmoab, grunted and swore up Heartbreak Hill, and slipped on rocks and roots at the top and was ready to pack it in.
Rode down Talnotry and bloody hell, what a bit of trail. I've only ridden it once, would love to go back. Once you cross over the road to Jabberwocky and Hissing Sid it's still fun.
That was in August though, I don't think I'd fancy it this week much, and if I did and split it like I did, each one is a good hour and a half ride if you're not a god.
Agree with the people that say ignore Mcmoab though, maybe it's worth it in a group, but solo it was boring nadgery and pointless.
"I can only assume robjones is either a gobshite, a biffer or a troll…"
Well it seems like over the years not much has changed. This was generally the response I used to get for daring to suggest that Kirroughtree isn't all that. I also remember being told that I musn't have been on the right bike/wasn't "on it" that day that sort of thing.
To the OP if you've not ridden then yeah try it. Maybe you'll enjoy it and maybe you wont. I should be said that I was coming from the NE Scotland so to me it always seemed like a loooong way to go past much better stuff for what I thought was a mediocre trail at best. Your experience may differ.
Me and the dog have been round the black end four times this week.....from deep snow to torrential rain.. I still enjoy it, its more fun than sitting in the house😁
I have familly nearby, so am up there quite a bit. I never tire of the place. A great few hours out. Really should explore the non trail centre stuff round there though!
"Can’t agree with you recomending Ae though, i found that to be even less interesting with zero flow."
I just remembered, when I went to Ae I was with a local who showed me a load of off piste, so yeah, probably scrub that one too. Not sure what to recommend. Somewhere else entirely probably!
A day on the off piste at Ae is a joy, it's a fairly benign climb, and loads of great descents, most of which are on trailforks.
Gonefishin and robjones, gobshite comment slightly tongue in cheek, but work pc had no emojis! 😊