Not feeling it.

Sometimes you get on your bike and head to the trails and you’re just not feeling it. It could be feeling tired or ill, not being switched on or just one of those inexplicable days where you just don’t feel good on your bike and nothing quite goes right.

Fortunately my brakes worked well or this would have hurt.

I've had a few of these days this year, although a few of those have been enhanced by mechanical issues, getting up to Ashton Court to find my bike squealing in certain gears despite liberal amounts of lube, the noise is somewhat off-putting not to mention embarrassing. However other times such as last week I’ve been on the edge of a cold and feeling pretty run down, every pedal stroke is a struggle and nothing feels as smooth as it usually does.

The question I asked myself as I laboured up the gravel track to the start of the trails was; ’do I call it a bad day give up and go home or do I get on with it ignore it and push myself as far as I can’. I’m not sure what the sensible solution is but I went for pushing on, it’s kind of in my nature though, be it a book or a game or riding it’s always a case of ‘I’ll just read this last paragraph/ do this mission/ hit that trail, Then I’ll stop.’ I kept telling myself I’d stop and go home but kept on pressing on until, time and light gave out.  In the end I was happy with this choice as I turned round the day and had fun despite not feeling in the zone and being completely wiped at the end of it, added on to this events conspired to stop me riding the next couple of days so I was glad I’d pushed on.

However it’s on these occasions that we make mistakes and bad things can happen, I probably wouldn’t have tried anything new but even doing tried and tested routes can go badly when you’re not on your game or feeling great about your riding. Even if it’s just making you think more about how you feel and not concentrate on what you’re actually riding.

Obviously in some circumstances giving up is less of an option, race days or if you’ve gone a long way to ride some trails, it certainly seems the better option to try and ignore it and have a crack even if you’re going to take it a little easier than perhaps you normally would.

So is it a good plan to push on and try and save the day or should you stop and come back another day, when you’re not feeling the love?

More Bristol trails (Leigh Woods)

Finally the trails in Leigh Woods have opened, well most of it anyway and flipping good they are too. Lots of variation in trail from jumps to berms to technical sections and a skills loop containing all that drop offs and rock gardens.

Some people apparently can't wait a few weeks for it to bed in!

On my way home for Christmas I saw that not only had Leigh Woods opened but a mate of mine who was passing through Bristol got to ride them before me. After his very positive verdict and knowing what Architrail have achieved at Ashton Court I was incredibly eager to check these new trails out.

As I mentioned in my last post I had a fairly large false start to the year but managed to get up there a few days later. When I entered the woods I was confronted with a section that wasn’t open yet but looked like a lot of fun, switchbacks descending a short but steep bit of hillside. I continued in to the woods my sense of excitement growing. With my bike feeling pretty dialled beneath me I was ready and raring to get stuck in to what waited for me.

I had seen the start of the trail when I’d been in on little rides through the woods before, though there’s not much that can be gleaned from that point. Setting off down the trail I discovered small jumps and berms which nicely warm you up for what’s to come. Continuing on, the jumps and berms grow including this lovely set that I am still yet to hit at full pelt.

The trail continues in much the same vein but with only a few larger jumps dotted throughout,  a couple of red sections shoot off to the right, which are technical with steep sections going both up and down, so far I’ve not managed to get through them without messing up. 

Beyond the dual direction path to the car park is the skills loop, which has rock gardens steep descents, berms, jumps and drop offs to practice, as well as a short rocky climb back up towards the trail. After this section you reach the lowest point therefore have to begin the climb back up fortunately this is interspersed with flatter sections to stop it being one big slog, this takes you back to the car park and from there back to the start of the trail on a fairly flat section again with a few features to keep you awake.

You're actually meant to ride up this.

It’s a cracking ride with very varied features and as designed is as hard as you want to make it. My only issues with the course are that some of the off-shoot features such as the rock garden before the car park are a little difficult to get on to without losing speed, though this may just be me. The trail is generally very flowy leading nicely from one section to the next however this is broken up by the crossing of paths for other users and the need to slow riders down before hand, an unfortunate necessity though one that is designed a lot better, with a series of sharp corners, than at some places where they just stick a gate in. I personally have one other issue due to me being 6 foot 4 which is over hanging trees, for most people these are fine but in one or two places I have to duck under them to hit the line.

All in all a great ride which has already become part of my standard route and which is doing wonders for improving all aspects of my skills and fitness.