Ballyhoura Mountain Biking

mossym

was there one night in rain so bad some of the trail was under a few inches of water. guy with me lost his iphone to water leaking into it.

one of the best runs i've done there. you always have the option of doing the boardwalks slow/walking them as Raam said

shaka

Boardwalks get greasy easy so like what lads said above , walk them or take them handy. Personally the slower I take them more of a tendency I have of taking a nose dive into the bog

cruhoortwunk

Cheers for the info lads. I'm gonna call it off the ground will be fierce soft after all this rain

ryan_sherlock

cruhoortwunk wrote: »

Lads, I was thinking about heading down to Ballyhoura Sunday morning. But looking at the 5 day forecast, there will be a fair bit of rain over the next few days.
Would that make the trails very tricky? I presume it would make the wooden parts treacherous.

I have raced down there in both dry and torrential conditions, other than brake pad usage (faster in wet) and taking it easier on the boardwalk (which is MUCH improved now) there isn't much difference. Race speed for me drops by about 1kmph... Just lots of splashy puddles but not mud etc. Worth the visit in all conditions.

fryup

west cork lad wrote: »

€5 per car/van for parking.

does the car park take cash or do i need coins?? i persume its an automated barrier

is there security cctv for the car park??

ravendude

You need coins. You can get change at the bike hire place though. No cctv, but it doesnt seem to get targeted by lowlifes as there is usually someone around, eg. Caretaker or bike hire lads. Ive never heard of a break in there and have parked there dozens of times. Its not something I would be concerned about really.

fryup

anyone have any idea what the current conditions are like there after all the wet weather?? should i wait till it dries out a bit

i'm a novice

thebouldwhacker

fryup wrote: »

does the car park take cash or do i need coins?? i persume its an automated barrier

is there security cctv for the car park??

There's a lad with a big black thorn stick hiding in the bushes and is ready to leap out at the first sign of scum.....
Also the care taker and rental lads are there keeping an eye out. They call the gardi if needs be. That's why it has never been an issue.

ravendude

fryup wrote: »

anyone have any idea what the current conditions are like there after all the wet weather?? should i wait till it dries out a bit

i'm a novice

Not at all, its an all weather surface, loads of grip in any conditions.
Just take it handy on the boardwalks, maybe just walk them the first time if its very wet and you are new to it.

Tenzor07

FYI, if anyone's looking for an excuse to head down to BallyH, the Biking Blitz is on the 16th Feb...

fryup

went there for the first time on friday, very impressed, facilities on site were excellent..great to have a bike mechanic there too, he's a gent

just did the green & brown loops and was absolutely bollocked after it (the uphill detour didn't help)

do many do the the blue & white? how long does it take?

ADW1

fryup wrote: »

went there for the first time on friday, very impressed, facilities on site were excellent..great to have a bike mechanic there too, he's a gent

just did the green & brown loops and was absolutely bollocked after it (the uphill detour didn't help)

do many do the the blue & white? how long does it take?

Great facility, I go up there every Friday.
Blue Loop time ranges from approx. 2hour30min up to 4Hours
White loop times range from approx. 2hours to 3hours 30min.
Times are all dependent on fitness and getting used to the bike and terrain.

All loops are segments on strava so you will get an idea of times.

Qumoqq

Do the white and blue comfortable in 2:30 and 3:00 but that's taking it handy some nice sections to be had on white, the drop in from brown to whit is great craic

Qumoqq

Qumoqq wrote: »

Do the white and blue comfortable in 2:30 and 3:00 but that's taking it handy some nice sections to be had on white, the drop in from brown to whit is great craic

The white loop is very handy, if i push hard its a few minutes over one hour. Don't worry, I nearly died before the top of the first climb at the start of last summer, but improvements will come quickly. By the end of summer me and a buddy were doing the long route

youllbemine

Hi, I'm thinking of hitting the trails after work next week. Are they still open after 6pm or does the car park close after this time? Thanks

youllbemine

Hi, I'm thinking of hitting the trails after work next week. Are they still open after 6pm or does the car park close after this time? Thanks