Elly's new bike...

Had a lovely family day with Elly and Cathy, headed down to Ludlow to pick up Elly's new bike. It's an Isla (www.islabikes.co.uk) Cnoc 14, and it's a present for her birthday. She's still a little small for it but it's love at first sight, she's so excited and has had me helping her around Mum and Dad's garden. It's pretty cool, nice and light, kids brake levers, cranks and pedals and nifty steering that won't turn all the way around!

So off road riding might be a year or so away - even so the next few months are going to be loads of fun!

Hopefully will get a review up in Wideopen (www.wideopenmag.co.uk) after a few months use.

James
Producer - Wideopenmag.co.uk

Sent from my Three mobile

Two days running...

This week's been 'mega' (my new favourite catch phrase).

Riding at Lee Quarry, and visiting Cragg Quarry with Great Rock's Ed Oxley was 'mega'. The trails were great fun and Jon and I are itching to get back to Cragg with a video camera. Kev came along, as did Dunc on photo duty - we're doing an article for the next Wideopen. Ed was a super nice guy, really chilled out, easy to talk to and did a great job guiding us around. Well worth a call if you fancy a decent training session or guide. The new trails were great fun too and you can see the Welsh influences with the 'mega' berms - and lots of them. Great fun!

Tonight out again, Macclesfield Forest, and Kev and I both out again - that's every week for us two still! Joined by Tony, Pete and another new comer - Pete (on the lovely white Commencal Meta 4). We did Charity Lane, Bottom of the Oven, then rode around the bridleway (where Pete showed us another hidden trail dissappearing off into the gloom) before ragging down the new singletrack and push up trail back to the cars.

Twice in one week is great fun!
I'll get some teaser snaps from Dunc and the Cragg Quarry trip later this week :)

Macclesfield 27/05/10

And now for something completely different...

Tonight was completely different for two reasons...
First up Kev and I headed out from HOME at 6.30pm (instead of straight from work) and second, we rode up Nessit Hill rather than Charity Lane...

Why?

From Macclesfield DH 20/05/10

Because Kev mentioned speaking to a few of the DH club a week or so ago and being shown one of the older courses, less extreme, that scooted down to the push up track and we both decided it was worth a further look...

From Macclesfield DH

So what did we find? Some good quality, twisty, technical singletrack! Result!
Great fun and we rode it three times, sessioning the third for a few snaps with the iPhone. Shame we didn't have a proper camera... and typically on his last run Kev got a puncture. Oh well! Lovely evening weather wise and a good ride... can't wait to show Jon next week!

Next Wednesday we're off to Lee Quarry at lunchtime for a ride around with Ed Oxley. Good stuff!

Macclesfield DH

A shot in the arm...

A lovely evening tonight and after a good day in work after a shit few weeks the Thursday night ride is an awesome shot, condensed dose of adrenaline and tonight was no exception!

Full sus and full face for me tonight and I was joined by Tony, Pete and Kev. Usual route and it was dry as a bone and almost too easy on the Coiler! I was getting tired pedalling downhill! We did bottom of the oven which really showed to me how much more stable the big bike is in the steep loose stuff. Then on to the grand finale and a fantastic mega dry mega quick blast down the singletrack! The full sus full face combo had me accelerating like I had an engine! Incredible fun!

Next week new route.

Now off for a curry and a beer or two! Lovely!

James

Producer - Wideopenmag.co.uk

Sent from my Three mobile

And then there were two...

Great ride tonight - just the two of us as Kev and I headed up for the usual route. Not much to say other than the climb was a good chance to catch up, Charity Lane was dry and fast, Bottom of the Oven was loose and sketchy and the singletrack rooty and fun.

We promised that next week we'd try something different - well maybe not next week, but soon!

In other news - checked out my Coiler Dee-lux tonight - and the gears are fine so will not change the cable just yet - but the bottom bracket is loose - so it's either a new one or a chance to upgrade? SLX? Saint? or another RaceFace? I do like the RaceFace Evolve XC - it's forged, light, stiff and stylish!

Scotland and Lee Quarry planning next week so keep your eyes on your inbox!

What a difference a week makes... to the weather!

From Macclesfield 29/04/10

Another week but wow what a difference - about lunchtime the 3+ weeks of fine weather finally broke with showers turning to drizzle.

So Kev, his neighbour Pete and myself headed off from the Leather Smithy not really sure what we'd find, conditions wise, on the trail ahead.

The climb was fine - and the rain was 'that fine rain that soaks you through' but it wasn't cold enough to be a problem. Charity Lane was good fun - the rain had soaked in but it wasn't a river. It actually showed up the fast, less rocky line better as it was shiny! Great fun today, and despite the conditions I was 'on it' again this week - didn't manage 18th though ;) Pete enjoyed himself this week too - you can tell from his smile in the photo - he's getting into this off road stuff! It's all in the grin - if it's there they're hooked, if it's a grimace... well less promising!

We expected slippery conditions on the singletrack, and we were half right. The grass was treacherous but the trail was damp but not muddy and the roots were ok if taken confidently with speed. Good fun and found a nice flow this week.

One thing I am going to have to sort out is some way of stopping my eyes watering with these 'new' glasses I've been wearing. It's a killer doing Charity Lane, in the wet and having to blink away watering eyes from the wind... maybe I need some proper riding specs??

Anyway - another good week - and that's Kev and I at everyone so far this year! :)

Macclesfield 29/04/10

Another week, another victim?

Another dry week and this week - another victim? Paul joined Kev and I this evening for a rag around the forest Fearingout style!

Coming from a XC and road background I think he was a little worried about getting his arse kicked or crashing - neither happened... and despite a gentle and cautious approach to Charity Lane there was still a big grin... out again? Hopefully.

Charity Lane is dry as a bone top to bottom now. After the runs at the weekend I tried to head left into the steep section but you've got to have a lot of balls to stay left like Jon did on video - it's hair-raisingly narrow! Still I was pleased with my speed through the steep gulley today. The lower section is like a race track (with big boulders randomly placed - perhaps by someone trying to slow us down?) A first for me - accelerating in 18th gear - I've officially not got much faster to get before I run out of legs on the Chameleon now! Awesome.

We did Bottom of the Oven which was fun too - and after riding it at the weekend I slowed slightly more into the top of the loose section which actually made it faster to ride - great fun - and perhaps now a regular addition to push the skills a bit more on the loose stuff?

The singletrack is running really well now too - and is dry as a bone. It's SO fast it's not the roots sending you slipping sideways, but actually throwing you off the bike that's the problem now - big laughs! Again a few logs placed across the track in places, oddly?

So all in another great dry week's riding. Let's hope this is a sign of the summer to follow! :)

Charity Lane 22/04/10

Summer afternoon

Had a great blast yesterday and had a play with the new camera, pretty impressed with the results for a first try. Here's to more sun and riding!

Sun, dust and cameras...

Jon, Chris and I headed up to the forest yesterday for a relaxed mess around ride with the express intention of filming with a camera and tripod and playing with Jon's new SLR. Well we didn't manage the latter but the first two were in the bag!

Laziness kicked in and we met in the small car park at Forest Chapel - before packing up and pushing up to the top of Charity Lane. We got some great shots - video will be up later - but it's funny how much sessioning and filming something you ride every week destroys it's flow! Still committed to the cause we perservered. Once finished on Charity Lane we pushed up for a second full end to end run... and I dug out the full face for the first ride of 2010! Great great fun flat out, the full face removes the wind factor and you end up really nailing it - even on a hardtail. Jon had a coming together with the bank and bashed his knee - ok to press on though. We all got to the bottom high on adrenaline - a fantastic run in the dry.

We dug out the camera gear again and whizzed around to the singletrack. By now we were pressed for time, so couldn't really session and film as much as I'd hoped but the trail was bone dry and SO much fun. Got a few good shots before the agonising double climb back to the cars at Forest Chapel.

So all in all a good ride - great company, fantastic trails, cool to get some footage... and with a nostalgic twinge it reminds me of those lazy summer weekend rides with Scott and Chris back in 2004! If you're reading this lads I hope it reminds you as well!

Fearingout - Webedit 1 - Macclesfield Forest from James Hilton on Vimeo.

Summer summer summer time...

Well maybe that's one jinxing it and two a little premature but boy oh boy was tonights ride a LOT of fun!

We've had dry weather for nearly two weeks now - and another dry, fine, bright (but slightly cool) day - perfect riding weather. Leo came over from the Park to join us today so a slightly late start and the usual route. Good banter and lovely to catch up with him... we were also joined by Pete, Kev's next door neighbour for his first proper mountain-bike ride (he's a roady by background) - I think it's fair to say he had a baptism of fire!

So Charity Lane - wow. Dry, smooth when it's smooth but rough as hell in the rough bits - cranking like mad and then holding on for dear life down the rough stuff - before pedal to the metal (so to speak) for the sprint through the bottom half. Great great fun today, I felt like I had the lines, the confidence, the speed - everything just gel'd for that perfect run. Awesome and I was grinning like a Cheshire Cat at the bottom with a good 60 second wait before Leo came down!

High drama for Kev as his back wheel slipped in the frame - but commitment for riding down with a rubbing tyre - no real need for brakes from him! Pete struggled with clips but seemed to enjoy it - I guess we'll see him out again next week with flat pedals?!

Onwards and the singletrack. I had a feeling this might be hella fast and it was - awesome. The Chameleon loves this section when it's dry and it was GREAT fun tonight. I really let it get loose through the roots with the dry conditions inspiring bags of confidence. It made me realise how much I missed summer riding!

So that was it - another week gone. What lovely weather, great banter and awesome trail conditions. I can't wait for next week - and hopefully Jon and I are riding this weekend - text me if you fancy it!

Macclesfield 15/04/10