Reunion Ride 2007

A few people have got back to us about the idea of a reunion ride one weekend. We thought one of the mtb enduro events would be ideal. What’s more, they’re great for anyone coming with us this year too, as they’re a way to gauge what’s it’s like to sit in a saddle all day. The atmosphere is superb; they’re not competitive but tough enough for a real sense of accomplishment.

Held on May 6, the Howies Difi Enduro is a highlight in the calender. The 2007 website has yet to be posted, but it should where the 2006 one is. Last year, the sun even shone all day, a little miracle in this part of Mid Wales. But to those of you who enjoyed the full deluge of the monsoon rain halfway up Rohtang Pass, what’s a few drops of rain amongst friends?!

The ride is set in the forests around Machynlleth, which is a great place to visit in itself – there’s the Centre of Alternative Technology just down the road, teepees dotted about the valley, and a really upbeat atmosphere when it comes to bikes. If you’re not into mountain biking, there’s some superb road riding in the area too – Sustrans Route 8 is a cracker.

The Holey Trail is our favourite bike shop. Jon runs it (we’re working on getting him out to India some time) and Annie works there – she joined us on Manali-Leh in 2005.

The riding is ace. Proper mtb’ing, so you’ll need a suspension fork for this one (-: Some big long climbs and some singletrack blasts back down again. Every year there’s a band to serenade your arrival at the top of the first monster climb. Last year it was a steel band. Very cool.

The coolest box of chocolates in the world…ever.

A parcel arrived from Justine’s Austrian in-laws, and in it were various gifts for the family, most of them edible.

When I was young, I used to prefer big presents. On average, they tended to be better. Although I’m wiser now, this one wasn’t much bigger than a 2p coin, so I was initially a little suspicious…

At first glance, merely a pretty cardboard box, measuring just 5×5cm. Not so big. But appearances can be deceiving…

Purbeck and Mince Pie Christmas Ride

Despite a thick-pea-souper down in the Purbeck, we escaped the Christmas gluttony to head out for a coastal loop. It seemed like ions ago that we’d last enjoyed some good old Dorset mud; the eerie, misty backdrop of Corfe Castle gave a cinematic quality to the ride.

Cara was on a Trek Fuel, and I’d opted for the On One twenty niner…

…with On One’s own Superlight rigid carbon forks, to see how they dealt with an old fashioned bridleway forray. It proved to be a winning combination. Light and direct for climbing, with just enough flex to smooth out the bumpy descents and barely any brake flutter at all. Nice.

Holly is preparing to take over the mantle of chief-mincepie-maker from mum so we road tested some of her offerings. These are some of her earlier works, while she was still perfecting her own style. We call them, “Individually Hand Made”. Like snowflakes, no two mince pies are ever the same.

Clear the cobwebs

We went for a ride today. A quick, muddy loop round Ashton Court and Leigh Woods. It was cold, the trail was greasy, the mist hung heavy. Yet still it was good to get out. (-:

Happy Christmas!

The pics were taken on my new Fuji Finepix F30, a point and shoot that’s particularly good in low light.

Confirmed Dates 2007. The lines are open!

Apologies for the delay. Cara’s just finished the first round of her medical courses in the US (specialising in wilderness emergencies, handily) so we’ve finally had time to works things through. This post is to confirm that we’ll be running the trips as we’ve listed, albeit with a couple of date changes, and are now officially taking bookings for the 2007 season. If you’re thinking about a trip, drop us a line and we can have a chat. Don’t delay ! (-:

The reason we’ve tweaked the dates is simply to allow an extra day per trip to deal with any unexpected weather or altitude issues. It’s a long way to travel. Our rides are tough, but they’re not races. Easing the time pressure means we can all get on with enjoying things all the more. And get some extra riding in! As a result, the trips have inched up just a little in price to reflect this. We’ve tried to be cunning and place them on weekends where we can, so you don’t have to take an extra day off work…

Manali-Leh, via Wari-La, 12 August-31st August: £795 (jeep-supported)

We’ll be running the classic Manali-Leh ride with minimal jeep support for 2007. And adding an extra sting in the tail by exploring the Patan Valley, venturing off the Morei Plains and looping round to take in two *bonus* 5000m+ passes in the Nubra Valley en route to Leh. Want to hit all the big passes in one go? Then this is the trip for you.

Spiti and Lahaul Epic, 2nd September-17th September: £750 (jeep-supported)

Spiti Valley is beautiful, quiet and very remote. It’s also riddled with jeep tracks and noodles of singletrack. Aside from a few tweaks and an extra day of riding, this trip will be running pretty much unchanged; it’s the most mtb orientated of the rides and we keep finding new challenges to throw in. There’s some mean switchbacks and optional technical bits for added flavour.

Manali to Dharamsala, via Sach Pass, 18th September to 3rd October: £750 (jeep-supported)

After posting details of the ride here and getting such a positive response, we’re really pleased to be running a new trip that ventures into the quiet Pangi and Chamba valleys. It’s a more *chilled out* tour; it’s a little lower in altitude, the roads are (a little) better and it’s set in a part of the Indian Himalaya where tourists rarely travel.

We hope to run all the trips with 8 people. As usual, jeep supported will be minimal and we have our excellent Spitian and Ladakhi crew to help transport kit and rustle up delicious local delicacies.