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I only formed the club four years ago and was met with real hostility to my idea of getting people on the trails.
Now all the ex golfing one year an expert roadies have all given up cycling I can re kindle the idea.
In fact I have re kindled it. Started with gentle intro rides with tea and sausage sarnies afterwards. They went really well.
Now the numbers coming forward to ride the local trails are growing, so much so the club is buying permits.
Mountain biking is great all year round, but selling it as a safe way to ride over winter really clinched the deal.
No big story here, just seems to buck the trend.
Permits?
If they've all given up cycling why are they on bikes?
Yes permits to ride on bike trails on private? land. Things locally seem to have come on a long way since the 90's.
It seems successful permit scheme has opened up many riding opportunities.
a safe way to ride over winter
Well gritted roads are way safer than icey high trails IME
If they've all given up cycling why are they on bikes?
Given up and gone, leaving the club a more well rounded place.
Well gritted roads are way safer than icey high trails IME
Yep.
Our trails are a winter wonderland, basically sand.
Gritted roads over a basic 60/80 mile club ride can be very random down here.
Good work. Nice to hear there's some traffic going the other way.
Good work.
Just don't let them all turn into the sour faced miserable bastards that our local club seems to have become.
Rude and surly on the local trails make it difficult for everyone else that's always got along OK with the general public.
I took a group of our club roadies up to the peaks a few months ago. It went down really well, they loved it. Unfortunately there is little or no riding on our doorstep so any MTB riding involves a car or two and trip to the nearest trail center. Most of the lads have kids and wives so wasting two hours riding time in a car is not favorable. We have a couple of trips to the peaks organised when the sun and long days return. I do think if there was doorstep riding it would be a lot more common place within the club.
Hope not, I think they see it as play/social time, but they're all cream crackered afterwards. They just don't realise how hard they're all working, you don't get many free Km's off road this time of year.
Compare & contrast - back in the 90's my 'Road Club' tried to claim I brought the club into disrepute by using my (then) BCF licence in Mountain Bike races, therefore the club name on the results etc
Despite placing top 10 every race.
Funnily enough I left soon after.
That's bad mOrk. Back in BCF days our lot were very supportive, I'm sure Matt Stepens used to come out over winter on his MTB?
Mind there are a fair few grumpy MTBers these days.Out today on the roads in Gloucestershire loads of roadies all very cheery then came across 4 MTBers by Cranham corner not a word.Mind they will have a lot of washing to do after being in those woods.Great to come home put bike straight in garage no getting hose pipe out 🙂
As long as the fast ones stay away from xc racing- it's all good 😉 🙂 😉
As long as the fast ones stay away from xc racing- it's all good
That's part two of my master plan.
I (and I use the term loosely) race CX. Mostly on my own, last year two members joined me. This year I had eleven members racing. Nine of them had never raced anything before.
then came across 4 MTBers by Cranham corner not a word.
Sounds like S[s]t[/s]ourbridge CC on an outing. 😐
oldgit - Member
That's bad mOrk. Back in BCF days our lot were very supportive, I'm sure Matt Stepens used to come out over winter on his MTB?
Pissed the club off more when I turned up to most of the summer evening 10's on my MTB with slicks and still knocked out a sub 25min
Anyway, way to alienate the juveniles/juniors at the time
It's good to see they're appreciating a broader market these days
[quote=oldgit ]Yes permits to ride on bike trails on private landWhat quaint customs you have.
yep - happening at my local "road only" club too, started off as a mtb fun ride 3 times a year last year, now there is often 10-15mtb riders each week!
Pissed the club off more when I turned up to most of the summer evening 10's on my MTB with slicks and still knocked out a sub 25min
Bizarre, why would that piss anyone off? Sound like a right miserable bunch.
Mountain biking is great all year round, but selling it as a safe way to ride over winter really clinched the deal.
I'd say that road biking is a great all year round thing and mostly save mtb for the fast dusty trails of summer. Though I think the misery of winter mtb would likely appeal to many roadies 😉
I suspect that a lot of 'new' road riders will move over to MTB after one too many close shaves on the road and/or earbashings from the wife about who is going to look after her and the kids if he gets hit by a truck.
My wife is well aware how much money will be heading her way if I get killed by a truck. Cover child care costs till they both finish school and then some.
She hates me going off road. 😐
I'm also very cautious on the road of any cars that look like hers.... 😕
Argggghhhhh Woburn area permits.
Club permit says £12.50 each for Asley Woods, Rushmere and Oakwood. Now I'm sure you need one for Aspley and another for the other two, but there's no way of specifying on the form.
Individual permits for Woburn £25 reduced to £15
Individual permits on the the club application site £30 for Aspley and another £30 for Rushmere and Oakwood.
At least the actual mud is clearer there.
earbashings from the wife about what they look like in lycra [s]who is going to look after her and the kids if he gets hit by a truck.[/s]
Its not bucking the trend. MTB is growing faster than road bikes now according to latest industry info. Its the rise of the MAMBA - Middle Aged Men in Body Armour.