UK Gravity Bike Park - South Wales

[TedMaul]

Apologies if a repost, search facility oddly unavailable

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/south-wales-...

Anyone going to give it a whirl when it opens, could be a right laugh? Stupid quesion, is there anything close (in terms of novice downhill runs) where a complete newbie like me could give it a whirl, preferably before investing in all the gear?

[anonymous-user]

The downhill runs at Cannock and the FOD are totally do-able for a relative beginner on a decent AM bike as long as you don't go mental! The Uplift service at FOD is excellent btw ;-)

[TedMaul]

Max_Torque said:

The downhill runs at Cannock and the FOD are totally do-able for a relative beginner on a decent AM bike as long as you don't go mental! The Uplift service at FOD is excellent btw ;-)

Cool thanks, was going to head back to coed-y-brenin for my 1st mtb weekend away...... may change that.. should have the sight2 by then all being well...

[P-Jay]

I know quite a bit about this, I've got a fleeting connection to Cognation.

Bike Park Wales is due to open in Autumn, unofficially some stuff might come online sooner, but the grand opening will be then. Big new centre, with bike shops, Mojo / Fox centre and some other stuff. Should open with TEN new trails, there will probably be a climb / push option to the top but all trails will be 'gravity focused' but not all wil be 'downhill' tracks, I'm fact most will be tailored to be accessible to anyone who's got the bike & skills to ride red/black level trail centre type stuff. There will be a top to bottom green / blue level family run and a double black national level DH run, but probably not from inception. Uplifts will be by converted ex-military vehicles.

Stage 2 will be another 5 trails over following few years.

Long term plans are to grow rider numbers to the point where it could sustain a chairlift and run as a year-round alternative to Whistler / Les Gets to my knowledge that would make it the first bikevenue in the world with a lift that isn't 'subsidised' by other sports / hobbies.

I live 30 mins away in Cardiff so I'll be at it like a rat up a drainpipe the moment it opens. Frankly I think the idea to make it a kind of Gravity Trail Centre is inspired, it makes it market so much bigger than more DH places.

If you want to try something like it now, there's a small (but bloody brilliant) push-up bike park that's just opened at Afan.

[rhinochopig]

Why not do a skills course instead - jumps and drops? That's my plan this year. As I've got older the offs I've had have knocked my confidence so it's time to do a reboot of my technique.

[P-Jay]

rhinochopig said:

Why not do a skills course instead - jumps and drops? That's my plan this year. As I've got older the offs I've had have knocked my confidence so it's time to do a reboot of my technique.

+1

I did the Jumps and Drops course with Neil Donaugh(sp?) at Llandegla last summer, Game Changer for me. I think I retained about 80% of it, I'm planning to do it again maybe towards the end of this year.

[jdoe]

P-Jay said:

I know quite a bit about this, I've got a fleeting connection to Cognation.

Bike Park Wales is due to open in Autumn, unofficially some stuff might come online sooner, but the grand opening will be then. Big new centre, with bike shops, Mojo / Fox centre and some other stuff. Should open with TEN new trails, there will probably be a climb / push option to the top but all trails will be 'gravity focused' but not all wil be 'downhill' tracks, I'm fact most will be tailored to be accessible to anyone who's got the bike & skills to ride red/black level trail centre type stuff. There will be a top to bottom green / blue level family run and a double black national level DH run, but probably not from inception. Uplifts will be by converted ex-military vehicles.

Stage 2 will be another 5 trails over following few years.

Long term plans are to grow rider numbers to the point where it could sustain a chairlift and run as a year-round alternative to Whistler / Les Gets to my knowledge that would make it the first bikevenue in the world with a lift that isn't 'subsidised' by other sports / hobbies.

I live 30 mins away in Cardiff so I'll be at it like a rat up a drainpipe the moment it opens. Frankly I think the idea to make it a kind of Gravity Trail Centre is inspired, it makes it market so much bigger than more DH places.

If you want to try something like it now, there's a small (but bloody brilliant) push-up bike park that's just opened at Afan.

Do you know if the old DH track at Gethin is ride able in the mean time?

[P-Jay]

jdoe said:

Do you know if the old DH track at Gethin is ride able in the mean time?

Don't know sorry, I know they've started work on the new stuff already.

[jdoe]

guess I'll have to mooch up there and have a look, if its shut I can always head round to mountain ash instead!

[squareflops]

Where you from Ted? I'm in Cardiff too so plenty accessible locally. Cwmcarn has quite a bit to offer and even the natural stuff around rudry / Caerphilly mountain can be great for a bit of everything.

I need to get back into it after a bad fall on the Cwmcarn DH, plenty of riders around SW on the Bikeradar forum in the South Wales Rides? thread. Also Halfwayup have their own forum and large rider base now. But (and correct me if it's changed anyone) those guys tend to be whippets and are mostrly very fit riders.

[BaronVonVaderham]

Sounds fantastic, can't wait to give it a whirl! How near to Cwmcarn is it?

[jdoe]

Its not too far from Cwmcarn at all. J32 on the M4, head up the A470 toward Merthyr and Gethin forest park is sign posted off the one of the roundabouts on the left hand side

[TedMaul]

I'm in Sheffield, but have love will travel! Am planning Cannock, Coed-y-brenin and Keilder weekends this year and would like to try a bit of Gravity, even if its on my xc bike with normal xc gear and I take it easy. Dont want to buy all the gear, have no idea and then hate it and flog it all at a loss! Just been watching too many Collective DVDs and fancy giving it a whirl myself, but obviously not starting on double black, super killer kamikaze runs that would smash by bike and my 41 year old skeleton to smithereens.

Is the trail at Cwmcarn "Y Mynydd" if so that sounds pretty severe for a 1st timer, well, someone who is used to doing red route cross country. mbwales also says there is an uplift service there, but if its a sensible push or sping up thats fine, i'm not that lazy. Honest.

[Digga]

TedMaul said:

I'm in Sheffield, but have love will travel! Am planning Cannock...

As already mentioned, coaching is no bad thing - start of as you mean/ought to carry on and all that.

If you're planning a trip to Cannock, then consider giving a shout to Ad' at the Bike School for a spot of coaching: http://www.thebikeschool.net/

[BaronVonVaderham]

Cwmcarn red run DH is all roll-able apart from the road gap, you'll be fine just take it steady

[P-Jay]

BaronVonVaderham said:

Cwmcarn red run DH is all roll-able apart from the road gap, you'll be fine just take it steady

You can roll the road drop (it's not a gap thank Christ!) just take the line to the far right, it's steep, but certainly rollable (dare I say... it's the faster line)

Not sure I'd travel all the way from Sheffield for it, but the DH track at Cwmcarn is pretty good, it's a notch above black graded trail centre stuff, but it's the easiest transition I know.

It's one track with a lot of different options to get down it, typically if in doubt the line on the right is the easiest.

Wet / muddy conditions don't really effect the trail, it's a year-round full-time trail that's be designed to stand up to most weather, unlike a part-time race track - but be careful if it's windy at the bottom, most people who get hurt on it will do from the road drop down, the track really opens up, the speeds go right up because the riding is much easier, and the wind hurtles up the valley, the bridge drop right at the end is especially prone to side winds and if you come off there you'll be in trouble.

There's a great uplift, they're called Cwmdown you'll need to prebook on their site to get on for a weekend. If you fancy it I'd book on for a day, ask them to drop you off at the 'freeride' on the first run, they're know what you mean and follow the XC route down to get your 'eye in'. Maybe on the second run do the same, but once you get near the bottom of the XC switch to the bottom of the DH course and then try it from the top (bit of local knowledge is needed to know how to swtich from XC to DH).

Edited by P-Jay on Friday 22 February 10:01

[TedMaul]

all good advice thank you, especially re coaching. Its something i have been considering having read the books, mags and watched DVDs and tried stuff myself, but some proper instruction wouldnt go amiss.