There’s always the so-called hardcore few who will ride their bikes whatever the weather simply because they’re either:
a) Dedicated b) Stupid c) Spending lots of money on top-end winter kit (in Alpine Bikes, of course!) and have pretty much committed themselves to use it
I used to think of myself as one of those hardcore few, living by Billy Connoly’s old adage “there’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes!”. Unfortunately, winter 2007/2008 in Scotland proved otherwise – there is such a thing as bad weather. Lots of it. And it’s not just the rain, either! There’s the 50mph gales, the inches of snow in March, continual flooding and so on and so on.
So, what did I do about it? I went to Spain with John (the St George’s Cross mechanic). After a recommendation from a friend, we decided to look at Switch-Back Holidays who base themselves in the mountains above Malaga in Southern Spain. It’s a pretty small company run by the terminally cheery (and permanently Canadian!) Mike, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in friendliness, knowledge and making sure you go away smiling.
Now, let’s cut to the chase – the riding. What we would consider a tough section or a technical feature over here is pretty much what the Spanish call a trail. Oh, and the descents last about 20 minutes at a time. For those who have ridden the World Championship Downhill Course at Fort William, think the top section, except it never ends and it’s nice and warm and there’s never anyone else there. For those who haven’t – why haven’t you!? You have to be on your toes as the landscape rapidly changes from steep, rocky chutes to flat out, drifty corners and the minute you stop paying attention it will hurt. John and I have the scars and dented bike helmets to prove it!
For most people, even experienced riders, getting up everyday for four days then jumping on your bike is a pretty tiring affair. It must be the good weather because we never felt tired and looked forward to the next day like it was our last day on the bike. Plus, you can be guaranteed to come away with new skills and sharpened bike handling to make your riding at home that little bit neater!
I have two big recommendations for next winter. Firstly, make sure you ride abroad! It will cheer you up, break up the monotony of our weather, improve your skills and make you an all-round better rider. Secondly, buy a tubeless kit. Out of the 8 people riding, myself and John were the only two to never get punctures thanks to Stan’s No-Tubes Kits (which you can purchase through Alpine Bikes!). The remaining six went home and bought Stan’s No-Tubes Kits!
A big thank you to Mike, Jim, James and Luca in Spain (www.switch-backs.com) – it was brilliant!