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Anyone fancy seeing my death?
Gulp.
Or just, well, a day out
Fancy lending my son one of your spare GT Furys?
If so then yes!!
Pm.
Yes, but what is the weather like for that day?
Might be OK actually, there’s a good chace it’ll be cold but dry from 2nd week in November
still Dyfi though. I’d love to go, but I think my (first) visit will be in the summer.
Bit jealous. Can't afford another trip just yet but you will love it. I don't think you will die but I guess there is always a chance. Our routine is to do Super Swooper(red) twice initially to get our eye in. We then do Super/50hits(Black)/Super as you can transition to a section of 50 Hits near the wind sock and then come back to Super. Then have lunch and do a bit of legend spotting. After lunch it is the half way hill and onto Turns in the Ferns(Red) which then takes you into 50 Hits again. On our visit last week I decided (unwisely as it turns out) to detour off down Helter Skelter, I rode 75% of it but the middle section is so steep and twisty with the added peril of having the surface consisting of loose peices of slate, I sort of just fell down this section beside my bike.
Brilliant place with brilliant trails and the opportunity to progress. Some of the stuff is really tough though so if you stray away from the trails I mentioned onto things like Slab Track and Race Track then ask advice first. We nearly ended up on Race Track but Dan convinced us it wasn't a good idea
Race Track isn't too bad as at the top the big features are optional and you can miss the hardest section (the last bit) by coming down the track rather than back into the woods.
If it's damp don't try to use the rock slab at the start of Super Swooper like a berm, and if you do ride the last section of Race Track don;t touch the brakes on the rock slabs in the chutes.
It's a great day out.
ooh..would love this..but it's like 6 hours away...hmm... might look into a hotel before hand..
leave with me
DrP
and if you do ride the last section of Race Track don't touch the brakes on the rock slabs in the chutes.
This cannot be mentioned enough!
The rest of racetrack is fine in my experience from the grand sum of one day, but that bit...
Yeah Racetrack worth a ride. Couple of sketchy bits and wet slabs would be arse twitching but if it’s dry you should deffo have a look if you’re ok on Fifty Hits. (I am a wheels on the ground rider)
and if you do ride the last section of Race Track don’t touch the brakes on the rock slabs in the chutes.
This cannot be mentioned enough!
One of our group grabbed a bit, slid out and sent his bike down the hill without him. Bent his Renthal direct mount stem!
Forgot to mention theres a drop off a section of pipe on RT about 2/3 of way down with no chicken line. It looks far more intimidating than it actually rides (I 'think' if you are careful you could actually roll it, far easier to pop off though).
I'm getting jealous just thinking about it now - really looking forward to hitting the fade aways on Turns in the Ferns again.
Yeah for me pipe section (3:05 on vid) was pause for thought as was a steep rocky drop shortly before it (2:10 on the vid) that is rollable off the nose (or carry down at the side). Slidy slabs at 5:20.
(not my vid).
Don’t forget to look / listen for other riders if you get off for a look.
@DrP,
might look into a hotel before hand..
I used The White Lion Hotel which is only 10 mins away form Dyfi. It is by no means faultless as you will see by my review on Booking.com but it does the job. Location, staff, and breakfast are all decent, rooms are just a bit tired. Make sure you get a room en suite as there are some without.
dyfi is lush. the best uplift experience in this country by a long way. yes the place is full of race trucks and massive gnarpoons, but its all very very chilled and friendly. the easy tracks are easy, the hard tracks are proper hard and there’s a good progression in between. enjoy.
might look into a hotel before hand.
We're likely to do Premier Inn in Aberystwyth. It has the OK Diner which my lad loves, not really sure why but it's a bit of an adventure. There's also no issues getting the bikes in the night before, so i reckon we'll get there booked up.
It's about 35 mins from Dyfi if i recall. But you know what you get in terms of room, cleanliness, food places (nice Indian there) edit : £88 for a room at Aber.
£55 if we stay in Oswestry, but that's an hour and 10 away in the morning.
I have got to get to Dyfi. Everything about it sounds ace.
It’s about 25 mins from Dyfi if i recall.
You got a helicopter?? 🤣🤣.
It’s 50miles on Welsh A-roads, an hour and 25 maybe. Although they are nice roads for a drive.
I have been taken to the hospital in Aberystwyth in an ambulance from Dyfi, can confirm it's more than 35 mins
I have got to get to Dyfi. Everything about it sounds ace.
Same. All my mates have dropped out of uplifts and gnarly stuff since they've turned 40.
I just wonder how I'll get home if I go on my own and spanner myself. It wouldn't be the first time I'd been rushed from a remote location to a far away hospital. Not sure how I'd manage it with my van and all my gear left behind in the Welsh valleys!
@Sharkattack, This is the reason I hadn't done any uplifts since BPW about 6 years ago. All my mates have either binned it or gone to road cycling and I didn't want to be alone when I crash. Fortunately I have found a keen buddy now so have ticked off a few trips this year, both Revs and Dyfi asked if I was riding alone when I checked in seperately, I get the feeling they take it quite seriously.
Little anecdote from my previous Dyfi trip. We got dropped off at the halfway hill for Turns in The Ferns and on jumping out of the truck the driver shouted for everyone to be quiet and listen. In the distance there was a cry for help echoing round the valley, left us with a rather sombre push to the top of the trail as nobody could find the dude. Turns out it was a rider who had gone off piste with one bottle of water on a day that was 30 degrees and they were found semi naked and with sun stroke! How unlucxky do you have to be to end up like that in Wales!
@weeksy
Just checked and the wean has exams on Tuesday and Wednesday 15 &16th, so we can't go 🙁
Shame really fancied that.
Have a great day.
No worries fella. Shame as we'd have happily let you borrow a bike mate. We're not precious with them in any way
i'll get my ticket booked and let you know, i have a grey nukeproof dissent and a green 7idp helmet
So we ended up booking a place we've used before when i was doing the Haibike Enduro along with @dangerbrain. Somewhere just on the outskirts of Machynlleth. Little place in middle of the hills, 5 mins walk to pub... but really nice.
Not sure if watching this guy has made me feel more or less worried about it 😀
All the things i hate about trails... lol... jumps, blind bits and steep entry... awesome lol.
@johnjn2000 and @sharkattack
Me and the boy are pretty much up for anywhere and anytime for an uplift (assume he's at school in normal term times though), whilst i can't help you in terms of tech, i'll talk rubbish on the side of a hill all day. The lad can take you down things i wouldn't consider. Once you get past the embarassment of being destroyed by a child, it's all quite good fun laughing with him.
As for consequences, meh... i'll worry about them if/when it ever happens. I often take a local mate but i don't think any of them are up for this one
We'll be on a pair of GT Furys, me a sky blue one and him a purple one... do please say hello.
The thing I like about Dyfi is that they build all the jumps on the reds and moderate blacks to be rollable, no silly gaps and no surprises. There is one that always catches me out on super swooper though as it has a bit of a lip on it. It’s just before you turn into a tunnel but can’t be more specific than that. The jumps on 50 hits are huge your lad will probably fly over them, you, maybe roll them 🙂
I'll be happy if i can get to the top without rolling back down 😀
The thing I like about Dyfi is that they build all the jumps on the reds and moderate blacks to be rollable, no silly gaps and no surprises.
Me too. I'm a fairly average rider and on arrival at Dyfi last year it scared the bejesus out of me. Just the look and feel of the place, the giant gateway made of whole trees, all the event shelters and big bikes in the car park, the sight of the big jumps at the bottom by where the uplift queue was (went back this year and it's moved a bit), the DH world champs milling about the place. It just felt like it wasn't for me. And then I had the best day's riding ever, and fell in love with the place, so went back last month for a second go and am booked in again in Nov (last hurrah to Revs really but it's a long way so doing 2 days). I'm happy on tech, so race track is good for me. I haven't done Slab Track or that other triple black in the middle there (Gully of Doom?) but all the double black DH bits are fine. The riding is hard but stunningly well thought out. Big but never a nasty lip. Great jumping progression for someone like me. And the place just puts a smile on my face.
I'd say don't worry about the bottom of Race Track. Yeah it's slippy rock faces but the really hard bit has been removed (timber over, since before I first went) and the others are very short. Just take it steady and ride what you see. Don't brake on a slick rock face obvs, but you don't need to.
Race track is the best for tech then?
There’s much more tech lines than racetrack. Slab Track and Fire in the Booth are two. The POV vids on the Dyfi website are very good (albeit not at mortal speed).
Yeah sorry I was really just commenting that Race Track is not something to be particularly scared of with reference to the other trails there. It's one of a number of blacks and is a "tech" trail rather than a "jump" one.
I would just try stuff and follow the grading. Loads of options. Suck it and see. It's place that has me grinning from ear to ear. Enjoy.
Well this was canned at the time due to the boy crashing..
However, we're off there this weekend now. I must admit, watching videos hasn't helped with my mindset 😀 😀
The drops on race track worry me the most... i'm not terrible at drops once i've done them, but until i do... i'm rubbish.
IIRC the only drop on RT which does not have an alternative line on is the one over the pipe about halfway down (one of our group even managed to roll it which is far dodgier than actually 'dropping' it). The run is is fine and the landing is smooth, if you can do 'locomotion' at BPW then you're fine.
About 3 mins in here:
Locomotion i can do yes and insufficent funds.
Drops on Race Track are all good. Nothing big and work completely fine at trail speed.
Even Slab Track, plenty of techy bits but the only actual drop isn't much more than knee height.
Stay away from the Oakley line and everything else should be rideable.
Thanks fellas. I'm apprehensively excited
How did you get on Weeksy (apart from spannering for the kids)?
How did you get on Weeksy (apart from spannering for the kids)?
TBH it's not my favourite place to ride, although we didn't ride a massive variation as it was windy and rainy for the duration which apparently made several of the trails horrific according to the bus-chat.
I think if you can't send-it then it's not really the place that's for you. As you'll have established from my postings, I'm very much sadly not a send kind of boy. I just don't have the ability.
The bottom part of Super Swooper is insanely fast... the wood bit before that was pretty cool. But the whole place left me feeling a bit 'meh' about it.
In complete contrast, my boy absolutely loved the place and is really looking forward to going back in April. Me, not so much.
I'd take BPW over Dfyi any day of the week personally.
Shame, given the state of the car park lake it looked like you had the worst of the conditions. Give it another try in the dry, but I do concur that it's going to better for riders who are more willing to commit at high speed.
I am definitely not a send it person. (I can clear the jumps on the top section of GBU, but not the bottom ones)
However, I absolutely loved Dyfi. Racetrack is rollable apart from maybe two or three drops. It's techy as hell at the bottom tho. 50 hits is rollable and if you keep some speed you can clear some jumps without trying. Superswooper is incredible and probably one of the best tracks I've ridden.
I can't wait to go back.
The uplift is chaotic tho!
Back this Sat. The boy has been 4 times now, I've only been the once (in the crap weather)
I think as I'll be mostly flying solo I'll be mostly on Super Swooper.
If I can find any other middle aged mincers I'll try and get out of my comfort zone
Bit sharp notice mate, have a banger though.
Lol that was bonkers.
Peaty, Hoffman, Kerr, Seagraves, Atherton's, plus a whole other bunch of Pros I've forgotten were all out.
Add into that half of the field of Youth national DH series all out.
It was slightly intimidating at times.
But I had a cool day, taking it easy as I was out on my own and had to drive the lads home. But enjoyed way more than previous visit.
I think the trails there are amazing and the staff are super friendly, but I find the atmosphere a bit cliquey.