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Might be moving there, so whats it like from the MTB point of view? and everything else as well for that matter 😀
We have redways, cycle paths safe for the kids, well away from the roads. More to the point although it's fairly flat, we also have Woburn which is great fun. 2 hours drive gets you to Cannock or Thetford. We also have concrete cows and loads of roundabouts!
It's got a very active BMX club and track.
And an Ikea.
Have they still got those concrete cows?
[i]so whats it like from the MTB point of view?[/i]
a quick look at a map would answer that one...
Forgot to mention, Aston Hill is about 30 minutes drive away. Oh and maps don't show everything but there are no mountains in MK! The concrete cows are alive and well and we also have a bit of a football team apparently. For the ladies there is a shopping centre and the LBS's are pretty good - Madison is based here.
Chicksands half hour up the road...also check out Cyclone mtb club..
Loads of roundabouts
I moved here about 11 years ago and I really like it. I'm a five minute walk from a huge lake and ten minute ride from woburn. Im not ideally placed for work as I normally have to drive to London but I won't move closer as I don't want to leave MK.
Not MTBing but it has the worst car parking system in the world, FACT.
The chilterns,wendover,aston hill are 30 mins away. woburn, brickhill is on your doorstep,
Top rail links both to london and 'ta north.
You won't need to go anywhere shopping ever again.
Roundabouts, yep loads but no traffic jams and you can cross the city in just over 10mins even on a busy day.
(most visitors say there is traffic jams but it's only ever to get into the shopping centre etc at peak times and is usually caused by themselves)
Big parks like willen with Cable wakeboarding, sailing and loads of other watersports.
the snow zone .loads of cinemas.bars-entertainment and restaurants. (especailly good when your younger)
Loads of young people.
Some very nice towns, Stony Stratford, Newport Pagnell and Bletchley.
Good roads.
Excellent network of cycle paths, plenty of bike shops, Phil Corleys-Pinks in newport, Chaineys, Evans etc.
Luton airport is 20 mins away.
I've been here 20 yrs now and it still ticks all the boxes.
worst car parking system ?
park car - buy ticket-walk away.
Park car- walk away-phone 01908 880880 enter security code on phone, top up if needed without returning to car.
Download app- park car-click pay on app-walk away-top up.. ???
It's an under-rated place to live imo. I was there for 2 years. Local riding is pretty good, it's a spacious, green area as large towns go, the redways are good (if a bit of a maze) and the centre is useful if a bit mall-like soul-less. I liked it, as a cyclist is has a fair bit going for it apart from the fact the main roads tend to be a bit like riding on a dual carrigeway - suprisingly tho I always find you get loads of space if you do ride on them?
Yes. There's maybe 5 of them and you can see them from the train line - also another really useful thing about MK. Trains north for more riding.Have they still got those concrete cows?
blurboy have you ridden up wobourn woods there is loads of fantastic climbing and down hill tracks its only flat if you want it to be.
worst car parking system ?
Having to stalk people to find a space? Yes,
How much space is taken up through car parks?
Are they scared of multi storey?!
It's not as bad as people will tell you (although it's over 10 years since I lived there).
Obviously no mountains, but it's not such a bad place for a cyclist.
Choose where you live carefully. There are some perfectly nice housing developments, surrounded by some god awful chav scumfest estates.
a quick look at a map would answer that one..
we regularly drive ~45 minutes from Oxford to ride Woburn and it'll be on the OP's doorstep. Top riding and very weatherproof (unlike chilterns). Similarly Chicksands is ~1hr from us and another regular haunt which is local to him.
@showerman - sorry I was being ironic - it's so easy for anyone who doesn't live here to knock it! - I'm up Woburn 2 or 3 times a week and never get bored of it. We ride about 10 miles each way to get there and back and do between 15 and 20 miles in the woods every Sunday. Also ride some sat mornings and midweek night rides. Probably been riding it for 15+ years. Love it.
Buy an EV, then park in the closest parking spaces to the centre for free, AND get free electricity at the same time!
(or just do what i do, stick a sticker on the back of your normal car than has the word "blue" or "green" in it or a picture of a whale, or a badger or something cute fluffy and "savable", and just leave an extension lead dangling out of your bonnet/boot and wrapped around the charging post. That way, all the empty EV parking/charging places become available for you to use FOC! (and you ARE saving the planet by not having to drive pointlessly round in circles wasting fuel looking for a real space...... 😉
Buy an EV, then park in the closest parking spaces to the centre for free, AND get free electricity at the same time!
They're about to start charging for this.
I'm working in Milton Keynes for a few months and the suburbs seem pleasantly green in comparison to a lot of other places but I find the centre a bit depressing.
Redways are a maze and designed for ambling along cycling as opposed to transport. I've abandoned them for much of my journey in now as they're just too slow and full of mindless pedestrians and dog walkers.
My sister lives down the road in Chetwode and it's flat as a pancake. I would sell the MTB and buy a road bike if i were you.
I work there and don't think I'd want to live in that area. It's ok for riding at Woburn but other than that it's a bit crap imo. I don't like how soulless the whole place feels, but maybe part of it is that I just associate the place with work!
I'm nearby.
If you like the 'sporty' side to cycling? the road scene is very very active, and the Bowl means being able to road race virtually all year.
You'd be right in the central cyclo cross league region, the bowl agian hosts rounds, it also hosted the nationals and World Cup CX is coming to MK in November.
MTB racing is also catered for, again the Bowl hosts a round of the FNSS.
Great MTB'ing all around the area.
Lived here since 1980! If you have to live in an urban area this is it.
Stony Stratford has loads of social/comedy/arts activity and on a Saturday morning you can't move for bikes. 100 approx roadies out from there last Saturday!
Oldgit has said there is a great racing scene and this is backed up with loads of group rides. MK Cycling, Corleys, Twenty3C, CTC including midweek and evening groups. All levels from those holding on to Ian Stannards wheel and those wanting a cuppa every 5 miles.
Up in Woburn Woods there are loads of people out almost every evening. Connections to other areas make it easy to get variety into your off roading.
Theres a definite cycling culture growing and the shops and cafes are supporting it. We'll see fixies and skinny jeans soon!
As mentioned, very flat...As suggested, buy a road bike!
Its the riders who make the ride/race not the course is the old saying. You can go hard on the flat and you can walk up slopes. Its as hard as you want it to be. Most riders around here do both on and off road. And the choice is what makes it good.