New tee designs...

As you've read we'll be at the Fat Face Nationals later in July (details here) supporting the Team riders (confirmed Steve and Tom riding, Dave spectating and not sure about Ben and Matt) with a pit area and bbq as well as a stand selling Tees.

To celebrate this we've got some more designs ready (other colourways ready as well).

NEW COLOURWAY IN THE TEAM DESIGN:

(also a Navy tee with Yellow print is available for a limited time).

NEW TEE DESIGN - VOWEL. 3 COLOUR WAYS - MORE INFO SOON:


Prices for FO members have been sent out via email.

For others all new tees are priced as existing at £15 each including P+P and free stickers.
The offer to buy two for £25 still applies.

Thursday night ride

Myself, James and Leo headed out last night for a forest chortle. After 2 nights in a row of running (yes, me, running, with my own feet!) my legs felt strong on the initial climb. The bike still took over and denied me at the road section. Still, she's not designed for climbing! She is sounding in need of some TLC though, the headset is creaking like a pirate ship and the bushes may need a bit of tightening (honest guv, I know what I'm doing!).

Still, come the top of Charity Lane, we raced off, James keen to stick to my wheel. I was a little surprised how soon after me he arrived at the bottom. Next week I'll really push and then we'll see! CL felt ace though, and if it wasn't for chain off and the bike feeling a bit loose below my feet (nice link between symptom and cause!) I would've hammered the bottom section more.

Onto the bombhole as we call it (dunno why!) and I flew into it, followed by some adrenalin flow with the loose trail moving below front and rear wheels. Leo did himself proud with a 100% puncture rate of late. Get a new bike mate, so many reasons to do so! Off we headed to a nice little section of FR/DH and as ever it got faster, bumpier in the dry and I still overshoot the same section every time!

Good ride and top weather. Jog on.

I love my bike

Macclesfield last night - and meeting at the Leather Smithy by the Trentabank reservoir in the early evening sunshine on a long summers day felt fantastic.

After a leisurely start setting up bikes and chatting away (I've been messing with the damping on my fork and shock recently) we made our way slowly upto Charity Lane as per usual. Again I got to the top without stopping to push - but knackered! After another breather and trying to persuade the man Pickford to purchase a full-susser NOW rather than a 'hi-spec hardtail' in the new year we got to the summit so to speak - dropped saddle and donned arm pads.

The recent dry weather in Macclesfield has made Charity Lane the fastest I've ever seen it. The great thing about it is how it evolves on a weekly basis and although this week Scott claimed to be taking it easy I was CHUFFED to stay in touch with him most of the way down - WHAT A BUZZ. Taking big lines, dusting the brakes rather than hauling anchors, using the knowledge gained from recent rides on the hardtail plus my new tuned suspension to ride it faster then I ever have done and getting to the bottom I was grinning like a Cheshire Cat!

Down to Bottom of the Oven and a sketchy moment or too set the heart rate racing, so so loose down there now but it won't take long for a 'racing line' to emerge and make it even faster. Then up to the Standing Stone and down some secret singletrack before back to the car.

I think its quite fair to say that the buzz I had last night recaptured a lot of the fun and magic from the past. This summer is going to be amazing with Mumford back next week (and buying a new bike), Ben back end of July, Phil back from holiday mid July (and we'll persuade to buy a new bike), Chris back with us next week (and I'm trying to persuade to buy a new bike) and the regulars - Scott (who's alright for bikes at the moment) and Leo (who we've been persuading to buy a new bike!).

WEEKLY XC/FR RIDES WILL BE THURSDAY FROM NOW ON
Another night will be arranged for street/park/4X.

Scotland rocks!

As if I need more reasons to move home (pic shows end of funpark, 4 doubles if the image wasn't from my phone!).....

Went to Carron Valley on Sunday morning, an early start after a few beers, but hey, it was worth it. As I got to the gates (which were still locked!), I met a fellow freerider, Marcus, so big shout out to him for showing me the trails! As we were both on our lonesomes, we rode up the hill and chatted about all things bikes, good chat. Then hitting the 1st sigletrack section, it was a bit tame, but I'd been warned, so wasn't disappointed! The 2nd section was more flowing and a surprise drop from nowhere nearly had me off! In the end it was all about the "Funpark". Absolutely fucking awesome. Built to make you smile. Doubles and tabletops gallore, and clearing them was easy, well at my speed and skills of curse! It is a good training track and you can clear them too far (I did easily), which teaches you the need for control of speed, but you can whip, style and no hand it if you like.

Thoroughly worth a trip, and you can do a full loop in under 4o minutes. Then do the funpark, over and over and over again!

Cheers to Marcus, he's suggested a few local Shore style rides, plus Ae is a definite ride on the next Scotland tour. As he pointed out "if you're really fit, you can ride them all in a day" (i.e. Ae, Mabie and Glentress). But like me, he likes a push up, so maybe getting a few days worth of riding in is what I'm planning!

So living in central Scotland, you are 2 hours from Fort Bill, all 7 stanes, plus there are loads of local set ups with great riding. Hmmm, add that to the list of "to-do's"!

beering out?

Pub talk hey...

After a solid performance from Leo, Scott and myself last night up in the forest (more of that later) we headed to the Flowerpot to meet Chris for some catch up and chat about trips further afield.

And yes - conversation swayed and ended up coming up with bolt-on sites for Fearingout.
My personal favourites were Mereing out (Mere-cat lovers website), Beeringout (guide to local hostelleries) and Leo's quite pair of bizarre ones Leeringout for the straight, and Rearingout for the homosexual, ahem.

The ride was the usual start with a bitch of a climb of ye olde Charity Lane and although it had been wet it wasn't too slippy on the down - in fact it felt to quote Mr Warnock 'fuckin ace'!
Then down Bottom of the Oven which is all loose and sketchy... then re-trying a trail we found the other week - this time much dryer and faster. Good stuff.

In other news, we're expecting a bigger turnout over the next few weeks...
Mr Mumford back a week on Sunday, Ben Staley back end of next month, Phil (back from back injury) back end of July and Chris promises to re-instate about then too (knee operation all being well).
Then we've got a few trips to Wales planned, with talk of another trip to Scotland (visiting Mabe, Ae and Newcastleton), Chamonix and the NPS at Fort Bill in September. Awesome!

Off home...

I'm off home this weekend, but to break up the fun of 5th Birthday Parties and catching up on all things family, i'm heading to Carron Valley, a 8th Stane in the making, based in the "Central Belt" of Scotland, and as advertised on http://www.carronvalley.org.uk I should be able to make it there in under an hour easy. Looks like a short loop, but worth exploring all the same.

A full report to follow, but the "Funpark" sounds like a good chortle!

Midland super results...

Bala at the weekend for team riders Tom and Ben - for round 3 of the Midland superseries. I hope to have a full report soon but results are here.

Marc Beaumant took the win in Elite with a time of 2:40, with Tom taking 7th (3:03).
Ben racing in Seniors came home 59th with 3:33.

Trust you all had fun - see you at the National Champs at Moelfre.

Street style

After a heavy afternoon/night on the beer/cider/wine (not a good combo btw), we headed into Macc for some street/random action. A real good afternoon, and from the off I decided balls out was the key to a good afternoon. Skills will come, but I need time for that! Straight off, reinstatement number 1 I nailed the steps as a jump at the tennis courts. The forks nearly disintegrated! Reinstatement number 2 I went for the jumps at the BMX track 1st time, good fun down there. After a juice stop, reinstatement number 3 was clearing a path with a nice and fast bunny jump. Reinstatement number 4 was going for a wall mount and "ding-ing" my chain ring. Decided I dont need that top ring anyway, so its a bashguard in the making! Reinstatement number 5 was at the underpass, avoiding the glass and just going for it.

Great afternoon, and very chilled out, but it cleared my aching head, and was good craic. The bikes also performed well, I'm loving the short geometry! As for the forks....oh dear!

Next...

Having made myself scarce for the previous few weeks I decided that I was going to make the ride this Wednesday whatever the weather. James and Scott were planning to head over to Delamere, so I gladly packed the bike in the car and drove on over to this under explored (on my part) corner of Cheshire. The 4X track looked great from the outset and had plenty of variety of jumps and turns. Getting the pads on straight away I tried a couple of runs, taking various lines down the track and then pushing up again for more. On only about the third run though I had a dodgy landing from a jump, the bike buckarood and dumped me firmly on the ground... ouch! After that it was a case of building the confidence back up, each run slightly faster and slightly more committed. By the end of the 'session' Scott and James were getting some good air off the jumps and we took a few stills on the digital Ixus. I had a few decent jumps too and felt pretty good by the end. A different sort of riding to what I'm used to, but good fun all the same.

Training? Are you serious...

It struck me after last nights shenanigans that perhaps with all the will in the world there is only so far you can go by self motivation and improving slowly by riding the same sections again and again.

Delamere 4X is a case in point. I had good runs, I had bad runs - and although I felt my lines improved by us all talking about line choice as we pushed up, I found it difficult to decide why sometimes I pulled a jump and landing clean, and othertimes I felt like I was going to either nose dive and wipe out or buckle my back wheel.

So maybe we need a little help?

I've been looking into it and Nigel Page does evening Training sessions in Delamere forest. To this end I have emailed him for more information. If there are 3 of us then its £26.67 each. Any more £30 each.

Anyone fancy it?