MTB SHAPED ME
I’ve just finished reading the article in May’s edition of mbr titled ‘Thank You, Mountain Biking’ and have to say I think it’s the best mbr article I’ve read in my long history of subscribing. I can strongly relate to all the amazing benefits that mountain biking has brought me over 30 years of riding and it really has played a huge role in shaping who I am. The only thing better than experiencing the joy of mountain biking is passing it onto the next generation. My kids have found great amusement in hearing my ‘bike disaster stories’ before bed and it’s been incredibly rewarding to teach my kids to ride. Mountain biking is a gift and it’s our duty to pass it on to the next generation to enjoy. I’m off for a ride.
Thanks for all the great work you do.
Ed - Thanks for the encouragement Craig, it’s really nice to hear we’re still improving.
TIME MACHINES
Where has the time gone? Doesn’t seem that long ago I bought a Claud Butler Cape Wrath because it came out best of a Dirty Dozen bike test and you couldn’t work out how they did it for the meagre price of £500. Fast forward and again a solid review from you had me
Ed - Boo!
Seriously though, in many ways you’re right. Back in 1997, riding something like the West Highland
Way was considered extreme. Now it’s within reach of most average riders.
Our attitude to adventure has changed and thanks to – dare I say it – technology, getting into the wilds has become more accessible than ever.
We still aim to entertain and inspire, but we also see the importance of gear to most mountain bikers. The balance is delicate, so we might not always get it right for everyone.
ROUTES MANOEUVRES
I have not bothered before now in downloading the local routes to myself.
However I have tried the GPS download bit.ly/anywhere but nothing comes up. What do I need to do to download a route? Might be a good idea to actually provide this important information in each issue.
Yours somewhat lost,
Ed - Hi Simon, not sure where you got that link from, but you’re halfway there. Each of our routes has a specific bit.ly link, which is just a shorted url. Just tap it into your browser and it’ll take you to the route, replete with GPS tracks to download. For example, last month we wrote about riding the Garburn Pass route, a rocky and loose gem in the South Lakes - tap in bit.ly/garburnpass