O.P. Trails

I got the chance today to hit up some semi-secret somerset trails. Tom KP, Ewart and I headed into somerset to ride the OP Trails, that Ewart and Tom had been shown last week. After a bit of overnight rain the trails had been transformed from last weeks bone dry, lightning fast, to todays, soggy edged, greasy, DH on ice surface.

Tom threading his way through a greasy S bend

Ewart exiting the S bend

This made the riding 'interesting' to say the least. Many of the sections were slightly off camber with occasional roots, this became suddenly very tricky, and my decision not to put the DH tires back on and leave the skinnier AM/XC on my bike looked like the wrong choice! On my first few runs, my attempts to hurl my bike into a berm ended with crossed up handle bars and the bike still going straight on!

Me, about the air out of the bomb hole jump

The slippery conditions get the best of Tom

But after a few runs to get a feel for the slippy conditions we all slowly got the hang of it, with the speed slowly picking up. But then just when you were thinking you'd finally got a run wired, you suddenly wash out, or slip on a root and all of a sudden that great line and speed had gone! Oh well, it was great riding, and it made a change to be really challenged by the conditions.

Ewart airing into the bomb hole




Tom, mid flight, bomb hole jump