Night ride at coedy

[andy]

Is anyone up for a spin round the bull on fri or sat night? If so I'll invest in some lights or loan some (hint)... I'm holding off the fork and shock upgrade until the 04 stuff is out ( so I can get 03 stuff cheap :) )

I think it would be pretty cool doin a lap in the dark, quite a buzz I reckon!

[jon]

night riding is the biz :D

i might well be up for that, although ruth thinks i'm mad for even entertaining the idea :shock:

[ruth]

It's scary enough in the daylight! But if you decide to go you'll be able to borrow my lights (Jon's spares) :-)

[stevie]

Sweet idea ... I'm up for it. I'll have to dig out my lights again. They have gone into hiding since last winter and all I can find is one light and one battery :?

There is of course the small matter of increased risk of personal injury, but since when has that stopped us? If I can't see the drop-off then I can't brake at the top of it and fall off ;)

The only question being ... do we do it before or after dinner?

[andy]

Thats a tricky one! We could always grab a snack earlier and then pop in somewhere and grab something on the way back... I open to suggestion also!

[jon]

you're not going to find any food on offer after 9pm

*however*

i have a cunning plan :D

how about we take some stuff down to make fajitas and do them in the cabin? they're a doddle to do and it's a well-known fact that we all love them!

[ruth]

that sounds like a plan! and as I won't be riding I can get on with the prep, although I don't do washing up! 8)

[stevie]

There's a kebab/burger/pizza place in Dolgellau that's open quite late. All the retaurants stop serving at 9, so there's not much chance of getting a night ride in before eating. On Friday, depending on when everyone arrives, we can probably get a good ride around the MBR in the afternoon and go for dinner earlier (6/7ish) and then ride later (9ish).

[jon]

i'd still much rather have home-cooked fajitas than kebab :D

[ruth]

Surely it will be dark by 7pm in october, so you actually won't need to go that late?

[stevie]

But home cooked fajitas are no longer an option *sob* :(

Trouble is if we ride earlier (say 7) then we probably won't finish until 8:30. Which means that by the time we're ready, we can't get any food in pubs or restaurants since they stop serving at 9. So I guess the options are to go earlier and get take-away or get a pub meal early and ride later.

I suppose that both options might mean that we're on lemonade for the evening, but what's new there?

[jon]

Why are fajitas no longer an option stevie? I wasn't referring to the Rhiw Goch - i was referring to the stove in the log cabin where we will be staying. Ruth has offered to prepare them whilst we are out on the ride so they'll be ready for when we get back, irrespective of what time we decide to go out! They won't cost very much to make and we can even do different fillings to suit all concerned :D

[stevie]

Ah ... sorry ... I missed your comment about making fajitas in the cabin. That's a novel thought though, actually using the self-catering facilities ;)

A good thought though 8)

[jon]

;)

[cheungy]

i really hate to sound like a wet lettuce but i am just trying to weigh out the pros and cons and or being the devils advocate :evil: in this case and maybe a thought as to how we should prepare ourselves better for the night ride than just a hot meal ...... bear in mind there are no mobile reception in the mountains, the tracks are very rocky and i suspect that IF a fall does happen, it wouldn't just be a bruise .... what if it's something more serious ie a gash or god forbid, broken bones. It's quite a distance back to the car, especially if the faller gets knocked unconsious. I guess a chance of this happening are significantly higher being in the dark with limited vision ahead of you.

I'm ever so sorry to put a 'downer' on the matter but being a father of 2 and experienced 1.5 yrs of rehab with my knee injury, last thing i want is for me or anyone to get an injury that 'could' put one off on ones bike forever. Sounds melodramatic but that's what the words 'accidental death' stands for on death certificates .... plus there are swarms of midges and mosquitos after 5pm, but being in October, maybe not. :duh:

However, count me in ... i need to borrow lights off someone .... that's if i'm not already kicked out of the mtb-thrashers gang for being a boring bastard :oops:

[jon]

I appreciate your concern Mike, nightriding is definitely not for everyone!

However, i've done a fair amount of trial riding in the dark, and have to say you'd be surprised how much you can see with a decent set of lights :D

[stevie]

I have tried a bit of night riding before too and actually the visibility is pretty good. The lights are not far off the brightness of car headlights, if you're not going too fast, you'll have plenty of time to see what's coming up. And generally, the red bull isn't a very fast ride ... a bit more of a twisty one than most of the others, and I expect we'll be taking it fairly easy. And we're not going to be pushing anyone to come along if they're unsure. I think there will be a few people staying in for the evening.

[andy]

I'm looking well forward to a nightime mission, hopefully I'll have some lumis in time! Also going to buy some freeride trousers to be on the safe side, if I'm gonna stack it, it will be then!