Three days of 30C heat, tents, and some bikes. What else do three lads need for a short biking trip? Steven, Murray and myself packed our bikes and our bikes, and headed to the borders for a few days.

Day 1 – Drumlanrig Red

First up was Drumlanrig. I’d raced here before, so had a good idea what t expect. The Premier Series races the weekend before had left the trails a ittle cut up, but they were still super fun. Tight and rooty, it’s a lot like riding at home back in Stirling. the only complaint I had was that the signs weren’t the most obvious, and were often quite a distance away from the previous piece of trail and obscured by long grass. ALl good fun though.

Kirroughtree Red

Want to ride something challenging and amazingly good fun? This is for you! The red route at Kirroughtree makes other red routes look like a 4 lane Sustrans route with jumps (You all know which one I’m talking about!). Lots and lots of fast twisty, technical singletrack, all linked by very little fireroad. A few challenges along the way, but overall just super fun, definitely making it worth the drive down. One middle section and the last section are a blast, and you’ll find it hard not to smile all the way down them.

Day 2 – Kirroughtree Black

Following much of the red on the way out and the way back, the black route has had lots of press in the last year or so. McMoab is good fun, but is possibly over-hyped by the press and general chatter. I rode it with my saddle up on a 80mm travel hardtail, and my only fall was on a flat section where you loop back on yourself, landing on my hip and my elbow as the front wheel rolled backwards while turning tightly. The rest of the trail is good fun, although somewhat tiring on a hardtail.

Ae Line

Ae Line was definitely the most hyped trail of 2005, perhaps this is why I was left somewhat disappointed. Some parts are great fun, but any time the trail gets more than 500M away from a fireroad it was as if the trail builders could no longer be bothered.

The section named ‘The Face’ was particularly bad. The berms before the bridge were no more than a steep, twisting, rocky chute as though it had been damaged by water and riders skidding down rather than using the berms (I won’t go off on a rant about the no-skills weekend riders on 2k+ 6inch travel bikes, many of whom frequent STW and talk-the-talk but don’t walk-the-walk). After that you have the climb, which wasn’t just steep, but was covered in loose rocks that ranged in size from tennis balls to bricks, making it very hard to climb, I almost thought about using my granny ring! To be fair a trail is always going to weather and maybe they just don’t have the resources and manpower to repair these bits.

Day 3 – Ae Line: Take 2

After riding Ae Line in the evening in 1hr 40min (Including riding too and from the campsite) I decided to give it ago in the 30C+ heat of midday. No surprises it took exactly the same amount of time, although I did enjoy it a bit more as I could let go on the descents and time my efforts on the climbs knowing what was coming up.

All in all it was a top few fays on the bike, and I certainly enjoyed riding on new trails. I’m sure lots of you will disagree with what I’ve said, so feel free to leave some comments.