ASHTON COURT & LEIGH WOODS

Bristol’s trails lie on the western edge of the city, a 20-minute ride from MBUK’s HQ. While the blue-graded, 6.5km Nova XC loop at Ashton Court and the 3.6km Yer Tiz over the road in Leigh Woods are brilliant for beginners, they’re fun to ride at higher speeds too, and give you a demanding workout when pressing on the gas. Featuring mellow gradients, all-weather surfacing and nothing too technical, they’re unlikely to catch you out, although the loose gravel surface can become sketchy when dry and dusty. At the end of the Nova trail there’s a great cafe where you can grab a well-earned cake and coffee.

The Nova trail has more flow, with the initial singletrack and final kilometres providing the most entertaining sections, where rollers and jumps can be pumped, jumped or manualled. Recent renovations by Pedal Progression, the on-site bike shop and skills coaching provider, have brought a new lease of life to the well-used loop. Yer Tiz follows a more twisting route through the trees and offers plenty of opportunities to dial in your cornering technique.

These trails are brilliant for family rides or introducing people to mountain biking. While expert riders may find them lacking in technical challenge, they’re a great place to work on your technique. There are red options along both to help keep things interesting. Plus, a short ride away are Fifty Acre Woods, with a more natural-feeling waymarked trail, and Ashton Hill Plantation (aka Belmont), with locals-built jumps and DH runs.