Garry Wright has ridden the forest three times with me to sort out how to make this a challenge for both the two and three hour events. Ride one started with ice covered tracks, ended with frozen extremities and in-between saw us slither and slide along the many tracks in the forest.

Rides two and three were excellent, with the forest gradually drying out, the ice long gone and even the sun shone. We haven’t used the extreme SW of the forest because of walking tracks, but both the two and three hour events should see competitors travel to both sides of the forest.  Most tracks are currently very dry (March) after the driest Spring on record, so be prepared for slightly damper conditions in May, as we have probably just had Summer!  The only issue I may have is when I put out the controls, as forestry workers were logging in at least three parts of the forest and the word tree features heavily in the control descriptor column

Graham Dudding works out of Keldy Cabins and being an MTB enthusiast made our meeting really productive and pleasant.  Graham is keen to promote cycling events in Cropton Forest and showcase the local facilities, which will include a bike wash (£1/bike) a covered event centre and the use of the cafe.  Sandwiches, pizzas, hot & cold drinks, snacks and cakes will be available on the day, so bring some spare cash and support Graham and his team.

Parking for the event will have to be linear, on a track to the north of Keldy Cabins, so please make sure you leave space for others to pass when you park.

Enjoy the day, the views and the climbs.

Dave Evans – planner