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Storm Ali and a Rally!!

Phill - Head Guide

Oct 26, 2018
1 min

Storm Ali and a Rally!!

In early October, we were hit the first big storm of the autumn, Storm Ali. Whilst she didnt bring too much rain, there was a vicious westerly that many riders on the TCW have felt over the years. Day two from Rhayader to Llangurig is the most affected, and slows the ride down at times to standstill, and saps your energy in the process. The Wales Rally GB was also in mid Wales, and would be flying through Tarenig Forest during Saturday. How inconsiderate! So with all of this

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Not as dry as Ibiza... or as flat as Holland!

Phill - Head Guide

Oct 25, 2018
1 min

Not as dry as Ibiza... or as flat as Holland!

That was the summary from Thomas, born and bred on Ibiza now residing in Harlem, Holland. Thomas is Polly's younger brother, far left in the picture below modelling a fine Addict jacket from our Madison collection. He's never really needed a coat for riding his bike on Ibiza, so this was quite a new addition. When it came to riding through water, that was a whole new experience too, and one that he revelled in!! It was such a pleasure to have Thomas join us in late September,

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Storm Callum, is that all you got?

Phill - Head Guide

Oct 25, 2018
1 min

Storm Callum, is that all you got?

The Black Mountains of mid Wales looked more like the west coast of the Us after a hurricane had passed through. Did it stop play, did it hell!! We braved the weather and made our way over and around Waun Fach, at times resembling a scene from Mary Poppins as we floated through the air with the bike!!! Sunday was a much calmer affair, the Gap loop was awsome, and the sun even came out to play!! Thanks to the crew for an awesome weekend! #mtb #breconbeacons #blackmountains #wa

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And action...

Phill - Head Guide

Sep 14, 2018
1 min

And action...

There were a few aspirant movie stars for our first TCW in July. Joby from Newson Media in Llanidloes joined us at various point to produce a short story about riding the TCW. The result? Absolutely fantastic!!! Joby also filmed it in real time while we got on with the job of guiding, Joby would then appear, or not with just a drone above, along the route over the three days. This route planning was done using a meticulous, in depth planning meeting of just 5 mins before we d

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The heat wave continues...

Phill - Head Guide

Sep 14, 2018
1 min

The heat wave continues...

Our last weekend of a very busy and crazy June was a TCW under a blanket of blue skies. Mid Wales looked more like spanish mountainside in a drought. When the conditions have been this dry for so long, the ground is rock hard meaning we travel that bit quicker, in fact, a lot quicker! The fast rolling conditions meant we finished on average 35-50 mins earlier each day over 4 TCW weekends. Great if you want to finish early, not so for tired legs!! #transcambrian #wales #mtbwal

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Not a bad spot...

Phill - Head Guide

Jun 21, 2018
1 min

Not a bad spot...

In mid June we had a double header with both me and Polly out guiding the Trans Cambrian. We thought the two groups would be spaced far and wide, and would only gather in the evening for a beer and a chat about the days riding. Not a hope! Everyone was so equally matched on pace, that we found is very difficult not to gather, and only on day three did we manage some space, until lunch that was, and I was gifted this photo of everyone hunkered down enjoy one Liz's packed lunch

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Will it rain again in June? Of course it will, but make hay while the sun shines!!

Phill - Head Guide

Jun 21, 2018
1 min

Will it rain again in June? Of course it will, but make hay while the sun shines!!

Sacha and the valleys crew from the Rhondda had booked roughly 12 months ago, so this weekend was long in the making. But it didn't disappoint! The Trans Cambrian is never dull, never, but it's much more of a treat when the sun shines, and everyone is riding along with a smile! #TransCambrianWay #Wales #MTB

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Blorenge

Phill - Head Guide

Jun 21, 2018
1 min

Blorenge

I've often wondered what the riding was like on the big lump above Llanfoist. It's a massive looking hill, and I know the road climb is a local classic and strava hotspot, but what about off road. I picked up Tom Huttons guide, met Polly after work at 5pm, and sety out following the route. Basically it's a big climb, arrive at the bwlch, traverse the Blorenge then descend to the Punch Bowl. However, there is one sting in the tail after the pond, and that required stronger leg

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Two trails in one day, how hard can it be??

Phill - Head Guide

Jun 21, 2018
1 min

Two trails in one day, how hard can it be??

Very!!! Dan was over from the British Cycling MTB Leadership Team in Manchester and wanted a little company while he did a pre-ride for a Level 3 assessment that Dave over at Wye MTB was delivering that weekend. So, the idea was to do the Gap ride with an add on, then skip to Gwyrne Fawr and ride over Lord Herefords Knob and back up Y Das. Simple. Oh my days... My legs stopped screaming 48hrs later, that was one tough 70 hard kilometers!! Might not answer the phone next time

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And another fine weekend... very!

Phill - Head Guide

Jun 21, 2018
1 min

And another fine weekend... very!

Gary and the Darksiders from south east Wales and Gloucestershire know how to pick a weekend!! The fine weather continued, trails were bone dry, and the factor 50 was being rubbed in on an hourly basis!! They also hammered along finishing at 4.50 on the Saturday and a very red Polly!! #TransCambrianWay #Wales #mtb #cycling

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'Howay man!' (or something like that?!)

Phill - Head Guide

Jun 21, 2018
1 min

'Howay man!' (or something like that?!)

John and company joined us from County Durham under glorious blue skies. The trails were surprisingly dry, and the trail off Foel Fadian was mint! Great start to the summer... #TransCambrianWay #Wales #mtb #cycling

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Trans Cambrian Way, here we go...

Phill - Head Guide

May 9, 2018
2 min

Trans Cambrian Way, here we go...

Our first TCW of 2018 rolled out of Knighton on the last weekend of April. It's always a gamble so early in the year, and just a couple of weeks earlier, we were under 2ft of snow! However the weather gods had decided to be kind, and it only rained on the Friday, leaving day two and three completely rain free and dry, well, from the sky that is!! Andy, Phil, Chris and Vicky all ride together up in Macclesfield, and were joined by Stu (Stourport), Arwel, Gareth and Aron (Carma

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Ride, pint and a joke or two...

Phill - Head Guide

May 8, 2018
1 min

Ride, pint and a joke or two...

It's been a while since I met up with Tegid and the crew over in Mach, but when we do it's always a class session. For Tegid, it was the first May bank holiday he's had off in 18 years, being one of the key guys for the annual Dyfi Enduro. But as the ground was saturated, Joe had no other option than to cancel the event. The upside was a weekend off for Tegid, Mach Comedy Festival was in full swing with Rhod Gilbert and other comedians wandering around, and the weather was gl

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Not so 'wet' now eh Alex?!

Phill - Head Guide

May 5, 2018
1 min

Not so 'wet' now eh Alex?!

Another nice surprise in April was the return of Alex (and friends) and Chris, both of whom came on the TCW in 2017. For Chris it was early in the year, and glorious after the driest spring in decades. For Alex though, it was a different story. It rained, howled and battered him and seven other friends for the whole weekend, survived to tell the story, and wanted more! So when he asked for better weather on April 20, I said "sure, no problem, I'll book it now" with my crystal

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Elan Valley - Easter

Phill - Head Guide

May 5, 2018
1 min

Elan Valley - Easter

Our first weekend of the year saw the return of Jo and friends from one of last years Trans Cambrian tours. It's always nice to see friends return, and Jo is an absolute love. She loves nothing more than being outdoors (and Terry) and her enthusiasm is infectious. But for Jo it brings it's own challenges, she suffers from Lupus disease which affects her joints and muscles, breathing, and is in all sorts of pain. But she never complains. We knocked out a very hard 49km on the

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Trans Cambrian Way in 3 words...

Phill - Head Guide

May 4, 2018
2 min

Trans Cambrian Way in 3 words...

Trans Cambrian Way in 3 words 1) Excellent 2) Challenging 3) Rewarding. Just do it. Day 1 I would say was an easy intro, it's all relative as you will find out. Plenty of ups and downs on grassy trails, with stunning opportunities to view the Welsh countryside. I say opportunity as the weather really needs to play ball to capitalize, unfortunately for us it did not on this occasion, but it is Wales and it does rain sometimes. All I can say is you can only get wet once, then

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