Open Group Ride Report

A frosty and snow covered Wendover Woods was the venue for our December Family, Youth and Novice Mountain Biker XC Group Ride.

Our group ride this month had a bit of a twist – we teamed up with Beeline Bicycles of Oxford who were kind enough to bring a fleet of Whyte bikes for people to try out (on a pre-order basis) as well as a range of energy gels for people to try out.

After a lot of hard work organising, planning and promoting this event, it seemed to literally take forever for the 22nd October to swing by for our long term planned Family Adventure Challenge.

This challenge was held in partnership with local sports events company XNRG Extreme Energy. XNRG primarily organise extreme long distance running and cycling events, however they have also always run these along side the fun family adventure challenges. XNRG has run many of these family challenges in the past, infact this years Wendover event was their fourth held in the Chiltern Hills. For 2011 XNRG wanted to spice things up little bit and add some new ideas and tasks into the event to freshen the event up for both returning attendees and new faces that would be attending for the first time.

At Bucks MTB we aim to use our monthly mountain bike events as more of a social gathering on wheels as opposed to a training ride. This month we held a women’s only mountain bike ride Sunday morning then an open to all group ride about an hour later.

The BMTB Cannock Chase ride planned for 21.02.2011 was one I’d been looking forward to for absolutely ages – I’d had a good summer so far but nowhere near enough riding in; family holidays with no bikes, a really busy time at work and an appalling drive the day beforehand in the rain. When I rolled out of bed in the morning I was really happy to see the sun peaking out from behind the clouds knowing that a superb day lay ahead of me! A good breakfast, strong coffee, chilled out tunes and great company in the car made the drive fly by.

Page 8 of 10

News

Whiteleaf Cross to Wendover Woods - 23 miles - Club Members Ride

A circular route starting from Whiteleaf Cross Princes Risborough heading to Dunsmore, Wendover woods and back. Varied trails from open doubletrack to gnarly woodland descents. See you on the next ride!
allinger to Dunsmore - 23 miles - Club Members Ride

A figure of eight route starting from Ballinger heading to Wendover Woods, Hastoe, return to Wendover village, up to Dunsmore and back. Mostly woodland single track, hilly with some nice twisty sections. See you on the next ride!
Cadmore End to Pishill - 24 miles - Club Members Ride May 24

A circular route starting from Cadmore End heading to Skirmett, Hambleden, Pishill and back. A hilly ride, lots of climbs rewarded by gnarly woodland descents. See you on the next ride!
Bike Park Wales - Brecon Beacons - April 24

A fantastic day out with purpose built trails that are well-maintained for mountain biking enthusiasts that like to go downhill!! Bike Park Wales is a premier mountain biking destination known for its diverse trail network catering to riders of all skill levels offering thrilling downhill descents, challenging cross-country routes, and everything in between. A must-visit spot for mountain biking enthusiasts seeking adventure and fun in the outdoors. See you on the next ride!
Ballinger to Holmer Green - 27 miles - Club Members Ride April 24

A circular route starting from Ballinger heading to Chesham, Holmer Green, Whiteleaf, Wendover and back. Varied trails from open doubletrack to gnarly woodland descents. It's quite hilly at 2400ft ascending but rewarded by bumpy downhills at Holmer Green, Whiteleaf and Wendover. Beverages at Buckmoorend Farm shop. See you on the next ride!
Great Missenden Night Ride - 20 miles - Club Members Ride April 24

Circular route starting from Great Missenden leading to Hampden House, Lacey Green, Whiteleaf, Dunsmore and back. This is a hilly ride with quality woodland trails, tight and twisty single track. Special guest appearance from Jordan, the best behaved MTB dog in the Chilterns!! See you on the next ride!