Everything about Mountain Biking in the North East of England
Stainburn
Took a slight diversion on my way back from Burnley where I had been with work today to give Stainburn a whirl. Wasn't to sure what to expect as all the comments I'd read on the web suggested it was a bit "marmite" ie it splits opinion between those that love it and those that hate it.
I started out riding the Norwood Edge trails which are all natural singletrack that the Singletraction guys (the ones responsible for Dalby, Guisborough, Wharncliffe and Silton) have cleared and maintained. There is some great riding here but don't expect to just sit there spinning up fire roads to get to the top - it's all tough, technical climbs with roots, rocks and soft, fairly muddy ground (in fact the Singletraction guys advise not riding this side of the forest when it's wet to avoid ruining the trails). The descents are steep and challenging as well and the first section which brings you out at the mast sets the stall out for the type of riding Stainburn will deliver.
After the mast there is a small descent / traverse which brings you to a small section of North Shore followed by the first really impressive feature - a large rocky outcrop that you ride up and sort of through. There are two lines - the first goes down a steep rocky face with a tight turn immediately at the bottom, the second goes across a small NS ladder and drops off the side of a 3-4ft high rock (I took option 1!).
You then climb again briefly before coming out at the top of the trails by another large boulder / outcrop and then dropping down the other side of the hill.
This section is brilliant, with a large slab at the start that you drop off with (as I saw it) 3 line choices.
1) Right - the biggest drop but a clearish run out
2) Middle left - medium drop but straight into another rocky drop off
3) Far Left - smallest drop but straight into a little gully around the 2nd rocky drop off.
The trail then carries on down over another rocky drop, and then down a steep rooty section to pop you out on a fire road, with another singletrack section starting directly opposite.
The next section I found pretty tough as it traverses the edge of the hill on an off-camber trail with rocks, roots & gravity all trying to force you down the hill and off the trail. A tough climb follows an then the trail rises and falls for a bit before a final descent to the edge of the road and a little bit more North Shore before popping you back out at the carpark.
Next up was the red route, which is very short but a good fun section to ride before heading on to the double black diamond rated "Warren Boulder Trail", which is described as "extreme XC". This is rocky, rocky, rocky with some very challenging sections (who am I kidding, it's one long challenging section starting about 20m into the route). I was pretty pleased with myself as I managed to ride everything (up to the point I stuffed the bike), including one section that I couldn't see a way of rolling without my tires possibly washing out on the various rocks set at different angles, before it dropped down into another rocky section. After a quick pep talk to myself at the top, I decided to just give it some gas and let my momentum carry me through it, which it did.
Unfortunately, on one of the sections I had a comedy slow-mo over the bars moment, and the back end of the bike swung around and bashed into a rock with quite a bit of force. This did something to my rear brake which meant I could pull the lever into the bars without any resistance, but the calipers were locked on.
This ended my ride, so I pushed back up to car park and went home, missing out on the main North Shore section and the descent line, both of which I had really been looking forward too.
All in all, although the routes are very short in comparison to what most people are used to, I think there is more than enough here to keep you entertained, and more than that, really challenge most riders. It's like the trail centre equivalent to edited highlights of a footy game - you get lots and lots of good bit's (going up or down) with absolutely no crap in between, just constant, challenging fun.
If trail centres had slogans, I think Stainburns would be "all thriller, no filler". I'll definitely be going back (and I'll be wearing pads next time ;-) )
I started out riding the Norwood Edge trails which are all natural singletrack that the Singletraction guys (the ones responsible for Dalby, Guisborough, Wharncliffe and Silton) have cleared and maintained. There is some great riding here but don't expect to just sit there spinning up fire roads to get to the top - it's all tough, technical climbs with roots, rocks and soft, fairly muddy ground (in fact the Singletraction guys advise not riding this side of the forest when it's wet to avoid ruining the trails). The descents are steep and challenging as well and the first section which brings you out at the mast sets the stall out for the type of riding Stainburn will deliver.
After the mast there is a small descent / traverse which brings you to a small section of North Shore followed by the first really impressive feature - a large rocky outcrop that you ride up and sort of through. There are two lines - the first goes down a steep rocky face with a tight turn immediately at the bottom, the second goes across a small NS ladder and drops off the side of a 3-4ft high rock (I took option 1!).
You then climb again briefly before coming out at the top of the trails by another large boulder / outcrop and then dropping down the other side of the hill.
This section is brilliant, with a large slab at the start that you drop off with (as I saw it) 3 line choices.
1) Right - the biggest drop but a clearish run out
2) Middle left - medium drop but straight into another rocky drop off
3) Far Left - smallest drop but straight into a little gully around the 2nd rocky drop off.
The trail then carries on down over another rocky drop, and then down a steep rooty section to pop you out on a fire road, with another singletrack section starting directly opposite.
The next section I found pretty tough as it traverses the edge of the hill on an off-camber trail with rocks, roots & gravity all trying to force you down the hill and off the trail. A tough climb follows an then the trail rises and falls for a bit before a final descent to the edge of the road and a little bit more North Shore before popping you back out at the carpark.
Next up was the red route, which is very short but a good fun section to ride before heading on to the double black diamond rated "Warren Boulder Trail", which is described as "extreme XC". This is rocky, rocky, rocky with some very challenging sections (who am I kidding, it's one long challenging section starting about 20m into the route). I was pretty pleased with myself as I managed to ride everything (up to the point I stuffed the bike), including one section that I couldn't see a way of rolling without my tires possibly washing out on the various rocks set at different angles, before it dropped down into another rocky section. After a quick pep talk to myself at the top, I decided to just give it some gas and let my momentum carry me through it, which it did.
Unfortunately, on one of the sections I had a comedy slow-mo over the bars moment, and the back end of the bike swung around and bashed into a rock with quite a bit of force. This did something to my rear brake which meant I could pull the lever into the bars without any resistance, but the calipers were locked on.
This ended my ride, so I pushed back up to car park and went home, missing out on the main North Shore section and the descent line, both of which I had really been looking forward too.
All in all, although the routes are very short in comparison to what most people are used to, I think there is more than enough here to keep you entertained, and more than that, really challenge most riders. It's like the trail centre equivalent to edited highlights of a footy game - you get lots and lots of good bit's (going up or down) with absolutely no crap in between, just constant, challenging fun.
If trail centres had slogans, I think Stainburns would be "all thriller, no filler". I'll definitely be going back (and I'll be wearing pads next time ;-) )
Tags: stainburn
Add a Comment
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Comment by MARK on June 11, 2008 at 5:15pm - Looks nice.
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Comment by badblood on June 11, 2008 at 11:38am - that looks steeeeeeeppppp!!!!!!
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Comment by Dave F on June 11, 2008 at 10:33am - This place looks like a right hoot (and just a tiny bit frightening - gulp!) Looking forward to going, as soon as I can get my pesky hols out of the way!!
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Comment by Crispy on June 10, 2008 at 5:34pm -
Another good video of Stainburn - there are a few bit's I didn't see on here which look tough. Will have to keep an eye out for them next time so I can stand at the top and bottle it ;-)
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Comment by Crispy on June 9, 2008 at 1:07pm
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I'd say about 1hr 15ish from Darlo, mebbe a bit less - it's just the other side of Harrogate. As I said, don't expect a "normal" trail centre experience, but there are more than enough features & technical sections (both up and down) that you can ride / session and you could easily kill a lot of hours there. If you go, make sure you ride the descent line (it splits off to the left at the top of the red climb) and let me know what it's like as I didn't get that far. The boulder drops look great!
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Comment by Dave F on June 9, 2008 at 11:49am
- This looks like a good place for a trip out - how long do you reckon it takes to get there from our neck of the woods (i.e. Darlo)?
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