Join a mountain biking club in the north west

IF you are dusting off your mountain bike or wanting to start off there are several clubs and mountain bike societies you might want to join.
Being part of a club not only gives you an extra kick when you might be feeling lazy, but helps you share knowledge of local trails and excellent rides.
Where skills are concerned, there's also plenty of people to help you out with the basics or warn you when the terrain is likely to get a little more hairy.

Manchester Mountain Bikers

Meet other local mountain bikers to talk trails, gear and ride the local area. We will be a group of medium skill riders, riding off road in the local Manchester area and the Peaks.

The group is beginning a campaign to get a 4x track, northshore, duel track, jump park and a cafe with visitors centre (bike hire) built in Stockport. We have £1.2 million of funding. All we need to do is lobby the Council to say 'YES'. They have a technical report on the files section. You can read it and give some feedback. The emphasis is a little more on down hill than cross country.

Look here for details www.reddishvalemtb.c o.uk

Club contact: Brian

There is a £3 membership fee (per year). This is used to cover the £70 yearly meetup charges. Please pay by paypal to brian@pearlenvironme ntal.com or send a cheque to Brian Cook, 13 Middleton Rd, Reddish Stockport SK5 6SG
Location: Stockport, United Kingdom 53.42-2.17
Founded: Aug 19, 2007
Membership dues: GBP3.00 a year

Rating: 4.75
Members: 83
Meetings: 39 so far

Blackburn and District mountain bikers

Don't be put off by the site which is a little difficult to navigate. This is a well established bunch with annual meetings and AGMs but most importantly weekly rides around Rivington and Blackburn. They are actively involved in campaigning for new trails at Healy Nab. More cross country than down hill.
The contact is Brian Ould.

http://www.blackburnbikers.co.uk/

Groovy Tribe
Slightly cleeky but still good fun. There's a strong contingent of women who love riding in this one too. The atmosphere is pretty chilled out with an emphasis on cross country and a little bit of down hill.

The club was started in 1994 by a group of like minded riders at a local bike shop near Chorley in deepest Lancashire, England. Now, 12 years on and the skill and fitness levels of the club members has risen dramatically.
The membership is still mostly based around the Preston/Chorley/Bolton area of Lancashire, but there are also members in Derby, Cheshire, Yorkshire, Cumbria and North Wales. The Sunday rides are usually in one of those counties and typically within a 2 hour drive from Chorley where we meet on Sunday morning.

You need to be of a good standard of fitness but also used to riding a bike regularly off road. You need to have a decent MTB with at least front suspension unless you are one of these minimalist types with the skills to match.

Disocunts at Leisure Lakes will be available for members.

http://www.groovytribe.co.uk/

Wollybacks

The Woollybacks is a club based in St Helens with around 20-30 members yearly. The club was 'made famous' when they managed to get MBR to do a full length feature in their magazine in January 04.

This is a sociable club with members ranging from 20 to 60 and a wide range of riding abilities. They ride routes throughout the North West. Most popular riding areas are the Lake District, Peak district, Wales, Yorkshire Dales and Pennines. Members recenty booked as a group for skills courses with mountain bike skills.

The club arranges weekends away popular mountain bike destinations; Glentress, Kirroughtree and Coed-y-Brenin. The club also participates in mountain bike events such as the Merida Marathon series and raises money for local charities. In 2007 the club rode the Penrith Merida as sponsored ride to raise money for the willowbrook hospice which is a local charity who rely on donations and fundraising.
The club meets for rides every Thursday evening and every second Sunday. Members also arrange other rides on an informal basis via the club forum.

All they ask in return for membership to 'The Woollybacks' is £10 a year to cover running costs.

North West Riders

North West Riders is a newly formed club from riders in the Oldham area who have come together in response to a recent threat of demolition which has been placed over Buckstones trail and various other trails in Oldham.

The group is currently working in conjunction with Try-Cycles, Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council and Oldham Countryside Services to save, and further develop, Buckstones into an official downhill trail that is clean, well respected and most importantly fun to ride. Once we have made a success of Buckstones we plan to create more trails, whether DH, XC or dirt jumps, in Oldham and the surrounding area.

To become a memeber is pretty simple, just download and complete the form on the website with no membership fees anymore either. As a member you could be eligible for Northwestriders discounts at ‘The Cyclery’ and ‘Paul Braithwaites’, not only that you also get a say at what goes on at the trials and the more input we have from riders the better, so it makes sense to get involved.

See http://www.northwestriders.net

Skills courses

Mountain Bike Skills
If you want to practise some skills before turning up at one of these clubs for the first time, then a course with Mountain Bike Skills is one of the best ways. Instructors Mike Stafford and Mark Warren have a formidable reputation for deliving top-class instruction and offer reasonably priced courses for beginners, intermediates and advanced riders.

The content covers a range of skills from drop-offs, bike maintenance, descending and ascending tips - and there is a 100% customer satisfaction reputation to date.

The courses run at Rivington on the Pennines near Manchester and in Kentmere, the Lake District. The skills courses have been running for more than a decade and Mike works closely with local rangers to protect the trails and local environment.

Mountain Bike Instruction

Ray Mayze is the founder of Mountain Bike Instruction and he now offers maintenance, leadership and first-aid courses in the north west. The extra skills you can learn will really complement your riding, especially if you are unsure about the general mechanics of your bike.

Together, Ray and Mike have been leading their field in mountain bike instruction and skills tuition and, if the feedback forms are anything to go by, a course with them is both enjoyable and informative.

Comments

[craig batley]

hi ....ive recently bought a moutain bike and want to partake in a mountain biking club. i used to be a speedway rider and miss having an adrenaline rush. im hoping to be a member of a north west riding club .... can you help!!!??

[Clare Cook]

Seriously, the Groovy Tribe is a good place to start but I really would think about a course: www.mountainbikeskills.co.uk. I might be a bit biased but it'll be well worth it!!