Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

AustinW
Posts: 1024
Joined: Wed May 11, 2011 6:37 pm
Has thanked: 4 times
Been thanked: 16 times

Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by AustinW »

The Sunday off road ride was supposed to be a day of two halves. The morning riding out to a remote and isolated crofting community not normally accessible to vehicles and the afternoon crossing two major Scottish estates along 20+miles off stalkers tracks.

The morning ride was cancelled as the track is very exposed basically cutting along a cliff for 6 miles and given the windy weather and forecast of gusts to 50 mph I took the prudent decision to cancel as of Saturday morning. I did however go for a recce to checkout how exposed it actually was and to check the status of the track. Good job I did; the first mile was fine, good quality easy riding single track until the first big stream to cut into the cliff. The track cut steeply down to the stream where it had been setted with big stones but with some big steps for walkers. I rode down one section but the second was even steeper and as I was on my own decided to turn round. This was when I realised how steep the cliff fell away from the track. One slip of the feet or the wheels and it was about 100 feet of almost vertical rocky cliff to the sea. I eventually spun the bike round on the side stand together with a bit of manhandling. No pics I am afraid. This is not a track to be undertaken lightly. The morning ride was definitely cancelled.

That meant the Sunday ride was now a much shorter affair. I had permission to take around 12 riders over two major scottish estates using their estate roads and stalkers tracks to link up 2 public roads about 20 miles apart. I had been trying to get permission from other estates to make more of a circular ride but permission wasnt granted. Maybe next year.

Its impossible to describe how simply stunning the scenery was, how good the tracks were, how remote it was, and how lucky we were to be allowed to ride where we did. Thise that disnt come and who could have missed out on a fabulous rideout.


Pictures paint a thousand words and here's a few courtesy of SteveT.....

14SundayDirt1.jpg
14SundayDirt1.jpg (35.06 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
12SundayDirt2.jpg
12SundayDirt2.jpg (37.89 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
15SundayDirt3.jpg
15SundayDirt3.jpg (52.19 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
16SundayDirt4.jpg
16SundayDirt4.jpg (244.57 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
17SundayDirt5.jpg
17SundayDirt5.jpg (44.16 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
18SundayDirt6.jpg
18SundayDirt6.jpg (43.09 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
19SundayDirt7.jpg
19SundayDirt7.jpg (61.62 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
20SundayDirt8.jpg
20SundayDirt8.jpg (41.37 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
21SundayDirt9.jpg
21SundayDirt9.jpg (49.63 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
22SundayDirt10.jpg
22SundayDirt10.jpg (28.55 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
23SundayDirt11.jpg
23SundayDirt11.jpg (138.28 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
Attachments
14SundayDirt1.jpg
14SundayDirt1.jpg (35.06 KiB) Viewed 7541 times
User avatar
Steve T
Posts: 2621
Joined: Sat Jul 17, 2010 7:13 pm
Location: Moray
Has thanked: 256 times
Been thanked: 836 times

Re: Sunday Ride Out - includes some off road Ride Report

Post by Steve T »

We are not worthy Mr W
ZEN DOG

He knows not where he's going, for the ocean will decide
It's not the destination . . . . . . . it's the glory of the ride
LargeWayRound
Posts: 4048
Joined: Mon Jun 28, 2010 2:54 pm

Re: Sunday Ride Out - includes some off road Ride Report

Post by LargeWayRound »

Simply Awesome

cheers to Steve for the great pictures.


wishing I could have attended , but my back is still playing up.
Alba
Posts: 78
Joined: Tue Jun 21, 2011 6:39 pm

Re: Sunday Ride Out - includes some off road Ride Report

Post by Alba »

Absolutely gutted I missed this due to my shoulder accident on the Sat, glad to read all went so well and the scenery was as expected ..... Nicely planned Austin
Bianchi
Posts: 752
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2011 7:37 am

Re: Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by Bianchi »

So how many people ended up going on this
Ride out I know the list was endless to get on
It or was it the usual when it came to it people
We're dropping like flys

Cheers

Dave
Gavinskii
Posts: 1818
Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2011 3:47 pm
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by Gavinskii »

Nice write up Austin and fantastic pictures Steve T

B)
R1150GS

Montesa 4Ride

KLX 250

Suzuki Beamish

2011 Nature Rally - Bronze Award
AustinW
Posts: 1024
Joined: Wed May 11, 2011 6:37 pm
Has thanked: 4 times
Been thanked: 16 times

Re: Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by AustinW »

Bianchi wrote:So how many people ended up going on this
Ride out I know the list was endless to get on
It or was it the usual when it came to it people
We're dropping like flys

Cheers

Dave
6 of us went. Everyone else either buggered off early or didn't turn up at all. Their loss.

There should be more photos. Ian, T Bag and Ed were all snapping away. Or in Ian's case taking carefully composed professional photos on..... FILM
PHILinFRANCE
Posts: 6065
Joined: Wed Aug 24, 2011 5:35 am
Has thanked: 3467 times
Been thanked: 1823 times

Re: Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by PHILinFRANCE »

Nice one Austin , but looks bloody cold now i'm a suven softy
Phil
yoda
Posts: 1382
Joined: Fri Jun 24, 2011 7:12 am

Re: Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by yoda »

I've gotta work out some way of getting up to this next year.

Good pics and great to see someone organising such a fine ride out.
Chaos is the only camouflage that incompetence needs to operate at full capacity.



I dunno where that road goes, might as well go take a look anyway there's no where else i need to be right now.
beddowsm
Posts: 3459
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2011 4:01 pm
Has thanked: 11 times
Been thanked: 50 times

Re: Sunday Ride Out - Ride Report includes some off road

Post by beddowsm »

Great stuff Austin, well organised.
Post Reply

Return to “ABR Highlands Rally Ullapool 28th - 30th Sept 2012”