We set for on a new adventure – heading out towards the Redlands trails. Tom said he knew a trail... in Redlands... and so off we went in search. We found a nice downhill singletrack through some dense forest and over a fallen tree, which Rich and Mark had done before. On the trail went and over a little bit of homemade northshore which was nice... and then it all petered out – yep went nowhere!! So we proceeded to ride and push the bikes back up the trail – that was fun!!
Still searching for Tom's singletrack we roamed the Redland Woods. At one point I attempted to ascend a pile of rocks, only to fall backwards and catch the crown jewels on the back of the seat....ouch would have been putting it lightly!!! We eventually came across a reservoir and Tom thought he found the entrance to his trail, we followed him, for what seemed like minutes... but was actually only seconds... and arrived back at the reservoir. We all complemented Tom on his new trail, and how technically challenging we all found it – we must do it again soon...
Following the excitement of this new trail, we headed across the road to Rich's Jump Bowl. A place with some lovely jumps and drop offs where we all practiced our skills. We spent a good 30 mins here – see all the videos on youtube!!
We then set off to climb Leith. Up towards Wolverns lane and then on to our Rollercoaster – which we all completed in style, and then arrived at Deliverance. There was a group attacking Deliverance, but we skipped on by, leaving clearly a newbie to try and negotiate an easy way down (it's ok – all his mates left him at the top too) – we don't know whether he made it or not!!
Past the Coldharbour cricket pitch we headed towards the tower. Heading off the beaten track, my front wheel washed out and sent me crashing to the ground, hitting my knee on the frame... it hurt!! And whatever anyone says, it wasn't the bracken!! We arrived at the base of the tower, and Tom was off. Straight up, but he did take the easy route! I on the other hand took the hard bouldery route, and the foot was down. At the top we all stopped for the obligatory tea, and a mix of cake and fruit.
Off the top of Leith we followed the trails to find Mark's death jump... he declined to revisit it... in fact we all did, except Rich of course, who cleared it with usual style... sometimes I really hate him!! On towards the Quarry we found the little down and upper, which Jim tackled, and his pedal tackled him....
We stayed at the Quarry for a little while trying out a few jumps, but it's certainly not the same since the bulldozers arrived. Mid-way through our activities, Tom decided he'd show off some of his unique mountain biking skills. He negotiated a particularly steep, but short incline successfully, and all cock-a-hoop he proceeded to pull a wheelie... didn't quite get high enough, so pulled another... this time too far, and off the back he went. Only one foot came free from his clips – the other stayed put – twisting his leg, which I believe hurt – especially as he rolled around on the floor, while the rest of us laughed and jeered!!
After we'd recovered from our laughing fit, we tackled Wonder Woman, just for Mark's benefit – a nice, steep in sections, short run through the trees, but which does have one less tree following Mark's decision to remove it from the route a number of months back!! Back up to the Quarry, back to the top of Leith Hill and straight over to find personal hygiene. Tom cracked the double, Rich followed, and then me. Jim skated down it with his bike next to him, and Mark found an easy route – I think he was still overtly protecting his knee.... Wendy!!
Back past the cricket pitch we arrived at Deliverance... and we all did it. Jim's virgin Deliverance ride was delivered in style. A little wobble close to the bottom had us all concerned that he might take a dive over the handlebars, but he kept it together, and you could tell by the smile on his face he was chuffed!! With Deliverance truly contained within our back pockets we set off down the trial to reacquaint ourselves with our cars.
Another successful outing for the Over the Hill mtbers – bring on Afan!
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