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Hi
Just wondering what the conditions are like on the South Downs at the moment. The Wiggle event covers Ranmore Common, Hurst Wood, Wooton Common and Broadmoor. There could be a fair amount of rain in the next 24Hrs do the tracks turn crap very quickly? I've got Conti X-Kings on at the moment; will I survive?
Appreciate any detail as I have no idea what to expect in that part of the country.
Andrew
Sounds like the North Downs to me, so you might get more helpful replies if you change the thread title.
Not ridden there for a few weeks so can't answer that myself. In general Ranmore is clay so will be sketchy in the wet, sandy ground further south holds up better but gets a lot of traffic.
It's peeing down as we speak.
The ground has been pretty dry, though, so chances are you'll have a few millimeters of treacherous slime over an otherwise hard surface. Enjoy!
On a more serious note: it's likely to get quite muddy fairly quickly in sheltered places/near gates but it'll all still be rideable but do take care on any bare chalk as it will be fairly slidey. The tops should stay fairly ok even with a resonable amount of rain.
If you have tyres with nobblier tread I'd consider fitting them, tbh, I was riding in some woods near the downs last night and the slicker tyres in the group were just turning into circles of mud.
[edit] yes, isn't it the north downs? less chalk but more mud then 🙂 Some of the above may still apply.
Yep, you mean North Downs, pretty much same conditions as South though, chalk, mud and flint, you're up and down hills a lot, I'd get some mud tyres on, I'm running mud x rear and spesh storm control front still.