8th February 2004 Richard, dialled_Mike and Lambluvva - Woburn Sands & Chicksands

All this week dialled_mike has been banging on about how much fun he had at Chicksands last Sunday. So when he told me Mrs dialled is still away and he was planning on a return visit I invited myself along.

After meeting Wa and JCL en route we headed up the M1 to Junction 13 and hooked up with lambluvva at the Forestry Commission legit. trails of Woburn Sands.

After fitting my new Fox_Vanilla_R_Pro_Pedal rear shock in the car park I was ready to roll. Woburn_Sands is basically a wooded quarry with lots of insane freeride_drops and roll-off's mixed with a huge series of doubles for the jump bike types.

Not being an associate of Mr. Big Air myself, I was pretty overawed by all this freeride action that was going on. Mike and every other dude seemed to be on a Specialized_Big_Hit hucking huge drops. A few tentative runs saw me bottling out of even the smallest drops.

Lambluvva spotted my nervousness and coaxed me down a few runs - it seems much easier when you are following in someone else's tracks - and I managed to nail what was to me a hairy drop a number of times. It was probably only a couple of feet high but was enough for me and gave me an adrenalin rush that left me shaking. Once I had it nailed he started coaching me in how to ride it better - cheers dude.

All the proceedings were being led by Tony, who I later realised was the legendary Jedi of Singletrackworld fame.

We then decided to head over to the Rowney Warren / Chicksands site as Mike felt it was a bit easier for beginners. After 20 minutes or so in the car we rolled up at Sandy Lane and rode into the forest.

Again, this is a Forestry Commission legit. area with the centrepiece being a truly beautifully crafted dual track. This features 6 or 7 sets of doubles before finishing off with an endless berm. All this is built by those great guys at Beds_Fat_Trax.

Again, I felt a little out of place but after the first descent just rolling down the course at my own pace I decided to go for it. I gradually built up my confidence and by the end of the day was running back up the hill like a kid with a big grin on my face, desperate to have another go. One of my jumps was captured on camera so I can't pretend I dreamed it all.

Meanwhile, Mike was feeling hardcore and nailed the 6 ft. log_drop 3 times in a row. On the 3rd drop he hit a huge_root on the landing slope with his front wheel but the 7 inches of travel on his Rock_Shox_Boxxers just ate it up like it wasn't there and he went through it. He now 'owns' that and it's time to step up to the next challenge.

Click on pix to enlarge.

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22nd February 2004 Richard - Epsom_Downs

I couldn't get anyone interested in riding this week so went out on my own for a quick spin around one of the more straightforward routes we started riding back in early 2001.

I was keen to see how the Fox_Vanilla_R_Pro_Pedal rear shock I bought recently performed on more normal XC terrain as I have only ridden it once at the Freeride heaven that is Woburn_Sands and Chicksands so far.

The no_name_Taiwanese_OEM shock that came fitted with the bike has been on its way out for over a year now but I have only just got the spare cash to be able to replace it. The rebound adjustment was totally shot and it made no difference however much you dialled the adjustment knob. This was causing the rear of the bike to kick back as you rode through or over bumpy trails leading to unplanned endo's and an uncomfortable ride.

The internally nitrogen charged piston was overdue a service too, however Tim Flooks told me this couldn't be serviced anywhere in the UK leaving me little choice but to replace it.

I had planned on buying the RL model but the introduction of the Pro Pedal® valving this year negates the need for a lockout so the RL model won't be produced for 2004.

First impressions of the Fox Vanilla R Pro Pedal rear shock are very favourable. The OEM shock tended to bob all over the place but the Pro Pedal® valving introduces a much more stable platform. Rebound performance was good too and I look forward to testing this and tweaking it to achieve maximum performance over the coming months.

29th February 2004 Richard and Mike - Chicksands and Jedi's 'Shore

There's a snow storm on the M1 as we head north but the sun has made it's way out as we roll up at the dual_slalom course and free ride area at Chicksands (or Rowney_Warren).

This is the second visit in a month and learning from the first_trip I have ditched the lycra and SPDs for some Altura Altitude trousers and flat_pedals. I have also set the flip flop link to give me 4.6 inches of travel and a slacker head angle of 69 degrees on the spesh.

This is the first time I have ridden on flat pedals and I feel very nervous about getting any air without the comfort of being clipped in. A couple of shambolic descents on the dual course leave my confidence shattered.

Again, it's down to lambluvva to build up my confidence as we head over to the 'learner' drops. It takes a while but I eventually nail a two foot ladder followed by a four-footer. As is the rule, I successfully take these 3 times in a row now 'owning' them and am ready to move on.

Next stop is Jedi's shore. Built by the man himself at a 'secret' location this contains North Shore constructions both large and small. The only difference with the small stuff is that it's only a foot off the ground giving you an easy escape route for when it all goes wrong.

I try my first ever see-saw and 3 clean runs sees me owning that too. You know, I could get into this free-ride stuff!

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