We visit Aston Hill....

This Sunday we took the opportunity to visit Aston Hill.
We haven't been there for years so were interested in how things had changed.
They now have a 5 mile XC route, 4 downhill runs and a 4X track.
I must say that we discovered that the biggest change was in us rather than the area.
As we passed the bombhole area we remembered how this was a scary place years back.
We had major problems doing the few roll-in's back then.
Now. it just looked like a few silly dents in the ground.
Anyway..
We started our day with a ride around the XC route.

Aston Hill is just one big hill so..
When the route wasn't dropping down rooty, chalky singletrack it was going vertically back up the hill again.
Most of the ups were challenging.
Steep with roots. Steep with chalky surfaces. Steep with roots over chalky soil.
And steep.
The main decent of the XC route is a mini DH course in it's own right (the Red DH run).
Only 5 miles per lap??
Seemed to go on for a lot longer than that.
It was great fun and gave us the lung busting leg burning workout we don't get locally.
Then it was time to tackle a DH track proper.
We chose the The Ultimate Pursuits Downhill run because .. .. well. It would have been rude not to ride their most challenging trail eh?
This track had us all over the place.
Chalky switchbacks. (for chalk think ice!)
Large rutted rooty sections.
Drops and more roots to keep us on the edge for the whole decent. (think Chamonix)
We took quite a few crashes on the way down. None serious but enough to make us think carefully about if we should be doing this on our XC steeds.
Once at the bottom it all seemed worth it.
So. Lets go to the top and do it all again.
:O)
The weather was kind to us and, considering there was a snow warning, gave us a comfortable temperature to ride in with sunshine thrown in.
It was a good day out and is recommended for anyone who likes their singletrack testing and doesn't mind when things get on the scary side of technical.

First Welsh trip of the year...Cwmcarn.

The weather looked promising so Gill, Alex and I loaded up the car and shot down to Cwmcarn for the day to sample those lovely Welsh mountains.
What a great day it turned out to be.
The carpark was quite full when we arrived but you just know you still won't see many people once on the trails.
The sunshine bursting over the mountain mid morning was a joy to behold.
On our first loop we were down to T shirts and little crop tops in no time.
I thought my crop top was quite attractive.
This was Alex's first Welsh trip for a long time so she was taking care on the down bits to start with.
She didn't take any prisoners on the ups though.
We were left wondering what she had eaten for breakfast as she zoomed up every climb.
The beginning and middle climbs at Cwmcarn must be among the most difficult sections we have come across.
So technical and steep at the same time.
Quite a challenge at the start of a ride.
We got the usual grin factor coming back around the mountain.
Dropping back to the carpark in a cloud of dust and sweat.
The new visitor center is just a bare metal frame at the moment so off we went to the porta-cabin to see what food they had.
Yep. You guessed it. A fry-up in a box.
:O)
So. It would be rude not to do a second lap after the fry-up wouldn't it?
Off we went for lap two.
The climbing is sometimes easier second time but it was still bloody hard work.
The warmth from the sun had really got hold of the day by now but there were still people starting off on the first climb in waterproof jackets.
We just knew we would be passing them later as they stop to take off those layers.
Near the first summit there is a new Freeride area with berms and wooden drops to play on.
After that comes the final downwards sections.
I forgot to tell the girls that we were going to go right to the top of the mountain and do the DH decent.
Straight down in one go!
Wahoooooo.........!
Alex was more than surprised.
I think she was a bit nervous about doing the DH but still rode it like a star.
At the bottom we were all grins and enthusing about how good and rad (scared) we had been on the way down.
Time then to load up the car again and head off home.
Late afternoon sun was still shining.
And Steak and chips for tea.
Perfect.

More pictures here.