Ride Reports

Slipping and sliding at Stanmer

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On Thursday night six of us met up at Stanmer Park to ride the Gary Fisher “G2 Revolver” course, which I had raced back in August. However summer was a faint memory with lights, winter tyres and base layers replacing shorts, t-shirts and sunshine.
The first short sharp climb was a mess of fallen leaves and wet roots leaving a few of the group struggling to find that blessed grip along with their breath.

Getting back together at the top of the climb talk immediately turned to who was running what tyres and which offered the best grip. This would be a recurring discussion point for the rest of the evening.

Another sharp climb and more leaves and roots. We all knew it was going be “one of those nights” where staying on the bike was the biggest challenge, no matter what tyres you were running. But if you don’t ride in winter you don’t ride!

The first technical descent was more of the same but in reverse. I tentatively made my way down the trail, with every root looking as though it wanted its chance to slide the bike from under me or send me diving over the bars. I managed to get down in one piece with a combination of riding and sliding. The others all made it with their own tales of near misses with trees and branches.

Pushing on we climbed up the main trail and then back down the next singletrack. Fortunately this is less technical and gave everyone a bit of breather and a chance to relax, perhaps even smile. Riding up to the lodges we hit the first bit of flat trail which was a welcome break from the deep piles of leaves, but not the roots.

We came across another group, someone calling out in the darkness “glad to see we’re not the only ones!” There’s a certain Dunkirk spirit at this time of the year, in the mud and wet of Britain. Onto one of the fastest sections of the G2 course but in the dark and wet of a November evening it was also one of the trickiest, equal parts fun and fear as we sped across the roots and slid the corners.

Crossing over the A27 we got to my favourite part of the course, where the trail gets tight and technical. Increase the technical factor by 10 to account for what felt like 3 feet of leaves with evil roots lurking just below and became quite a test. But it seemed like we got through this part of the course quicker, which suggested everyone had found their own way of hitting the roots just right so they stayed on. Or so I thought.

Climbing out towards the footbridge back over the A27 the roots finally got the better of everyone in turn, and we all found ourselves walking as the sea of roots on the narrow trail left us no other options. On the climb back into the park the wet chalk presented yet another hazard like an ice rink, and I found myself searching out every blade of grass or stone to find grip.

We took a well earned breather before embarking on the last section of the G2 course. This is the part with half a dozen or so fallen logs to get over. As if the never-ending maze of roots was not enough we now had super-sized and super-slippery obstacles to traverse.

Riding down the last singletrack section and into the bombhole led us to the sanctuary of the grass and the end of the course, with not a wet root in sight. Discussing the night’s ride we all agreed it had been good fun despite all the slipping and sliding. After all what else did we expect on a wet November evening at Stanmer.

P.S – if any tyre manufacturers are reading this please, please can you invest some of those R&D millions on a tyre which can handle wet leaves and roots in winter in Britain!

Mark

Night Riding Virgin

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Night Riding

Night Riding

Having bought a Maxx Exposure Joystick a couple of months ago, I had been itching to go out for a night ride, but apart from a solo ride to Devil’s Dyke to test the light I had not managed to go out properly. Commuting to London does not help night riding summer or winter but half term offered an opportunity and with a Thursday ride from Sussex University on offer I grabbed the chance.

Meeting  in the car park on what was turning into a chilly evening we were then joined by Mark, his first time with the group. In the end it seemed like a stroll in the park for Mark but it was good to hear some of his stories of the local characters he has come across in Stanmer woods!

The ride itself is a bit of a blur. Leaving the university we headed out on a path followed by a stretch of grass. Ronnie promised this was the only grass section but this was slightly misleading. We were then into the woods and after that I just remember weaving in and out of trees hanging on to anyone’s tail. A long gentle climb allowed some time to take in the night atmosphere, which had been one of the appeals of getting out and then we were off again. Despite changing to winter tyres I found myself slipping all over the place as the afternoon rain and the dropping temperature combined and every root seemed to determined to get me off.

There was a brief interlude as Ronnie’s light lost power and as sweeper was left literally in the dark but Rich gallantly went back while the rest of us chewed the fat on other good rides.

As we came towards the end of the ride, a drop and sudden turn up had me over but one small cut on the leg was all I had to show for my first night ride.

The two hours flew by and it was all over too quickly. I need to work from home on a Thursday more!

Nick

View from the back

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Nick shows how its done

Nick shows how its done

Foolishly I was unprepared for the last summer ride.

I had expected an autumnal ride of slips and showers and dressed accordingly. Instead the riot of fall colours was steaming in the late summer heat. Shorts were a better choice than my Gore Profi 3 trousers but long sleeves did save me from the whipping of the undergrowth.
I love the trails at this time of year as it makes it a challenge to find the dry ones and avoid the mud. The least known tracks are covered in a camouflage of leaves so many of them are left to the familiar.
Whiteways car park was filled with Hogs glinting in the sun but we found space for all of us and after coffee AND NO BACON BUTTIES we pedalled out and up. We looped through a few sections of single-track in the trees including the new Rich Reward linking old with old and ran down some of the main runway stuff before heading out over the hill.
The man from the meadow, (Monsieur du Pre), and I slipped twice at the bottom before he was spurred into an attack on the hill and sprinted off with me chasing. Three quarters of the way up as I faded Alec was in the perfect position to jump onto his wheel but with the disdain of a top twenty place recently achieved in the night time trial over the South Downs he informed me that he “had nothing to prove”.
Rob trundled up ahead with unassailable lead.
We raced through the next sinuous section with a couple of our new faces performing with aplomb. Pete lost the trail for a second but showed me an opportunity for a new link.
We separated a little as we ran the ridge trail with Nick keeping a wary eye on this slender trail. He seemed to enjoy it as he followed the rear wheel of the Gary Fisher down the hill. Almost too close as Pete somersaulted over the bars after hitting a log but he landed softly in the leaves. At the bottom a certain Blur rider confessed that he had done exactly the same and he has no excuse having ridden this countless times over the years.
Over the horse jump logs I challenged Mr. Donne to clear the lot and in a flash he was off. And in a flash he was off; at the second log wrestling to hold the bike and spoiling a clear run with a dab. “Puncture” was the cry, as Pete’s tyre went down whether as the result of the acrobatics or not the cause will never be known. Time for a munch while he played mechanic. Nick’s nice, light Fuel brought out an engineering lesson for the second group with Rich eventually settling for “just tell me what to buy?” That’ll be VPP, Rich. Mike swapped his patriot with the S works of Rich for a bit as the puncture was prepared. Rich zoomed off and Mike used the S works chain ring as a saw on the next large log.
The other Mike ran ahead through the overgrown trail to grab a picture or two. The main group should have been intrigued by the bouncing log that we had laboriously sawn through the previous weekend as a trail obstacle, but it seemed to be just a log. The sweat was not worth it.
We hit that little climb next and dug in. Not very long, not very rocky, not very narrow and not very easy and a few pushing up to the top. Always hurts me that one. Around the quarry ridge, dry and clear with v brakes shuddering behind me as Mike tested out the braking of Rich’s racing steed with the security of hitting me rather than something solid. I sprinted to get away and did fine until I hit three or four of the strongest uprights in the panda garden. I stayed on with skill and aplomb proven by the appreciative gales of laughter from the two Mikes at my maestro demonstration.
More single-track, some roots, some happy walkers encouraging us on and another mechanical. Alec’s tubeless had come unstuck. Very rare as he rides so light but as he have bottomed his fork perhaps he was carrying extra speed into the gullies. A new tube and we rode around the road section after a democratic decision which went against me.
The little hill on the last leg of the way back found us running out of water as the heat took its toll. The last run down through the two main runways brought us back to the final climb that reminds you that your fitness is never good enough.
So that was my ride as sweeper. How was your ride?

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