Cam MTB - the Cambridge Mountain Bikers' Forum

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DISCLAIMER. MOUNTAIN BIKING CAN BE DANGEROUS. YOU JOIN US AT YOUR OWN RISK.

SAFETY BRIEFING.

  • Wear a helmet. Despite recent advances in medical science, brains still cannot be mended nor replaced.
  • Wear gloves or mitts. Hands often hit the ground first. Cuts and grazes invite infection and a hospital visit.
  • Wear eye protection, it only takes a twig or thorn to lose an eye. Crud catchers are a good idea in mucky weather.
  • When downhilling, for your own protection, allow plenty of space behind the rider in front.
  • Bring a bare minimum emergency tool kit and a spare inner tube.
  • Breakdowns are a bore. Plan not to have any by ensuring your bike is in perfect working order.
  • Punctures are also tedious. You can minimise them by fitting latex tubes, slime tubes or running tubeless tyres.

Photo: CAMMTB Winter 2022-23 rides have been posted up - please click on the Runs List link..

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Routes

Hello anyone who cares to help a fellow MTBer.

I am planning a trip to cambridge in the coming weeks and would appreciate some help on a good route for me and the Mrs. We'd be looking for something between 20-30 miles along Bridleways of red route standard. We'd be going in daylight not like you brave heroic sorts who go at night.

Cheers

Phil

Re: Routes

Hi Phil

Sorry for the delay in anyone having come back to you. It's a slightly tricky question!

It depends what sort of a ride you want. For example, do you want to start in Cambridge? Are you limited to a circular route, or could you do a straight line route? What conditions do you want to ride in? And, most importantly, what is your definition of a red route?

If you've got 6 inch full bouncers and you're defining red route like a trail centre would, then realistically, you're not going to find anything in Cambridge. The way we get our "red route" kicks is by riding faster and/or longer.

Particularly at this time of year, the other big issue is trail condition. Ground round Cambridge gets very waterlogged and very muddy, and depending on exactly where, the mud can be a really sticky, frustrating clay - hard to ride through, and a PITA to clean off the bike afterwards.

As a very rough rule of thumb:
- To the north and north-east of Cambridge, the ground is coarser fen soil, usually rideable, moderately cleanable, and prone to surface water.
- To the west of Cambridge - tends to clay, probably the best riding when the conditions are good enough (summer!).
- To the south-east of Cambridge - a bit more flinty, so probably the best draining area and least muddy.
- To the south of Cambridge - tends to chalk, well draining, hillier the further south you go.

No doubt it will turn out that we have an expert geologists riding with the group, who will tell me I've got it completely wrong, and ask me what socks to wear in each area.

I'll e-mail you separately with some ideas.

Cheers
Dom

Re: Routes

Dom,

I do have a bit of geology in me, and I would say that you've got it about right.

Which socks would you wear in each area, though?

PT