Blasting Blackdown

Having had a weekend ride that had a number of problems I was pleased to have another chance to get out. With the chain fixed it seemed fun to go and play on an old classic.

As with many of my favourite rides I’ve been up here on the Mendips in all kinds of weather, but few days are quite like one in the middle of a hot July. There was some mud, but most of the hill was dry and fast and dusty. It was a ride to let the bike fly when the trails pointed down, and to grind out the sweaty, but grippy climbs. With trails I know well I could ride fast with no pause for directions. This meant long fireroad drags, steep and rocky power climbs, and best of all skipping and blasting down singletrack, over rocks and kicking out dust on the sort of descent that I genuinely dream about. The top of the hill can be boggy but the summer had made it dry, firm and super to cruise over.

The sort of ride that makes me miss the West Country with everything in an hour from big climbs to those cheeky steep downhills that local riders have carved into the hills. I was smiling, scratched, burning form nettles and glistening with sweat.

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