Well I'm off to Essex then. Forget Wales. How could I be sooo blind?!?!

I'm worried that we'll become the laughing stock of the MTB world....i really can't see why Essex is preferred over some of the other awesome venues we could use.

We keep hearing that this is an Olympics for Britain....well share some more out!

Ha ha ha thats ridiculous. "to one of the flattest counties in Britain, which at its highest point is just 147m" can we some kind of petition going to stop this happening?

Sounds like someone's getting a back-hander.

I have visions of them making a hill and manufacturing some North Shore stuff to make it more challenging.

During the Athens race, they made a bridge to link 2 areas together

This is daft..even the Surrey Hills would be a better location...why Essex?

I mean come on - I believe the stipulation is within 3 hours of the Olympic village. I certainly don't think you would have problems finding a quality site with that in mind.

Is there anyone we can lobby about this? Petition?

Apparently the mountain biking mecca that is Norfolk was also in the running but was ruled out because Londoners would have to drive for an extra hour to get there.

Seriously, it's not the London Olympics in 2012, why not give the other 50 million people who live in this country a chance to enjoy this spectacle.

I can barely believe that Seb Coe could keep a straight face when suggesting to Rhodri Morgan that Essex (yes, Essex) is a better mountain biking venue than Wales.

I can't beleive this - I have ridden all over the UK and I have to say Wales, Scotland and northern england locations are fantastic for mountainbiking and racing. If however I was to take my 74 year old gran out for an XC race then yes I would definitely choose Essex as an introduction.

This is pathetic - Lord Coe is obvioulsy getting wheel barrows full of money to keep the games in London and forgetting about the UK.

Why did he even bother coming to Wales in the first place to promote the games to children???

If anybody is interested 5 Live tongiht I think Lord Coe is on there for 2 hours at 7pm I think for a Q & A session - but there may be a few other people ringing in to as this whole Olympic event is turning in to a shame!!

P.S If I didnt mention ur ideal place for cycling in the UK I didnt mean to leave you out - lets just all agree that Essex is not the venue for an Olympic XC race!

Okay, I live in Essex.. just down the road from where they are suggesting.

I can't really see why they are so dead set on here other than they have to have the course with a time and distance from the olypic village.

Being that we have the A12, A13 and A127 running directly from central London it is the cheapest way to do it.

They will have to build and spend money on it, But, so what.. its given the sport some massive publication and press attention so that can't be a bad thing?

Funny thing is that most people from Essex who REALLY want to go for some good riding get in there cars and drive to Wales etc.

It should be good though and I hope something comes out of it.

If its sorted out properly then we as riders should be happy, Essex will never be as good as Wales, can't hurt to try though.... we are lacking the mountains though!

Lets just hope they don't get the muppets who designed the Logo to design the MTB Track!

Why's Seb Coe making the decision anyway? Does he really know much about cycling, he should know decisions as important as this need to be left to people that know about the sport. I remember when the BCF tried putting on one of the NPS races in that area (where there are no real mountains) and it was embarrassing.

I'm bound to be biased because I live in South Wales (about 10 minutes from Cwmcarn) but surely the likes of Coe should have the vision of showing off some of the best areas in the country (wheter that's the rest of England, Scotland or Wales) instead of keeping events to the areas where the visitors aren't going to see the best the country has to offer to partake in the sport? Surely the investement they are making should be to benefit the UK over the next 10 years plus, not holding an event where the riders could use their road bike to race the course and that's it.

Oh and another thing. Wasn't it Barbara Cassani who did the real work for the Olympics and then Coe literally picked the baton up in the last few metres (but the media make out it was him who did all the work). Sure we needed someone with the profile of Coe, but should he be making business decisions like this? Yeah I know it's not all about business, but the people in charge of the 2012 Olympics need to ensure the country benefits in the future.

If you're still reading thanks for listening.

Chuck

Come on people.

Mountain biking is a national as well as international past time, if you live in wales you are lucky, I have to travel 4 hours to get there and Scotland, well its 6 hours by car or train. Give us lowlanders a chance, we have the north and south downs as well as other great venues. Thetford each year has a great turn out for some excellent XC and the hills there are flatter than anywhere.

Where I live there are three large parks, Bedfords, Havering and Hainault Forest, all of these combined, with some excellent track and trail design would be a perfect venue for the MTB 2012 olympics.

If the Locals councils are going to gain 139m from this then let them spend some of that money on creating a XC experience, so that all the MTBers in Essex dont have to travel hundreds of miles to have a good day out.

Give us a chance guys, we love to ride to.............

I agree Monkeyb0y.....

I don't get why people are still banging on about this....

The games are being held in LONDON... the VENUES have to be CLOSE to LONDON so WALES is out of the question anyway as its bloody miles away....

Its not that they are saying Essex is better cause we all know its not a touch on Wales etc... but given the restraints its one of the best options all round and has potental for the investment to make it great.

STRUTH...

Oh there we go, the proposed venue can't be used because it's not high enough - the nightmare is that we've been embarrased in front of the UCI - aren't these organisers completing their research before they go to the likes of the UCI?

Yeah I know Wales is miles away (well about 170 or so really depending on what part of London you're coming from) but it's not a case of putting it in Wales, just somewhere that will be memorable for all involved. Anyway with the way the infrastructure is in London you'll probably be in Wales in the time it takes you to get out of London and to the mountains (sorry lumps of Essex and Thetford).

It sounds like quite a rash and not well thought through comment to make and true Wales obviously have better terrain than essex in terms of elevation for MTB but the simple fact is and there is no getting round this - its bloody miles from London.

Wales already has healthly stock of MTB trails and centres and the primary selling point of this games was legacy and if this 2012 thingy can bring a world class racing/riding circuit to the area then I'm for one behind it as at the moment essex has nish. I met some young kids the other week in epping forest who rides downhill and the rangers destroy the jumps they make and they have to travel to Leicester to ride.

plus its always bloody raining in Wales :-)

BTW why should be worried about being a laughing stock in front of the UCI they already do a good job of that themselves

Hey

We are all of the same feeling, we ride and love it.

It really does not matter what we all think to be honest, in the end they will make the decision.

But when they build another great trail somewhere in Wales, Scotland, Yorkshire or any damn place in Britain, (and we read about it in MBUK, again) just hold a thought for us in London, we just want somewhere close to home to ride and meet like minded people, enjoy a pint and some good food.

Epping is great, but its not just for MTBers.

Otherwise im moving to Fort William to annoy all the Scots.

Drewcole81 said:

The games are being held in LONDON... the VENUES have to be CLOSE to LONDON so WALES is out of the question anyway as its bloody miles away....

And I couldnt agree more. They wouldnt stage the sailing events 150 miles away in Dorset, would they? Oh, wait a minute....

"If the mountain won't come to Muhammad, etc."

I can see both the positive and negative sides to this. The money spent by the government in Essex can only bring good things to those who aren't able to make it to the south downs and wales for a weekend or two every now and then . surely expanding the number of bike rich area's in the uk can only be seen as a good thing?

though I've never experienced southern riding - I have northern, and from what I know about the north and have heard about the south, are they not satisfying enough as they are? surely it would be better to invest in somewhere else and make that somewhere else equally as enjoyable as those which we already have?

on the negative side, somewhere as flat as Essex is never going to have that vibe that true mountain bikers will know, from the grinding ups to the breathless downs, and we know that the level of the competition will suffer because of it, and its a shame to take some of the pride away from areas of the uk that are simply some of the best mountain biking around, on the basis of location rather than its suitability to the competition.

but overall - any injection of cash, any level of media interest and anything that will showcase the abilities of top riders cant be seen as a bad thing. the expansion of the sport on all levels, from commuting 5 km to epic road tours, to monster south down loops to 30 ft drop offs, everything we do shows solidity and strength in our sport. and we should be happy for ourselves. I dont think that many people have watched olympic mountain biking- well, just wait until 2012.....

thanks for your patience...Samarius

I feel sorry for all of you who do live in the flat lands and have to travel to enjoy the famous rides of the UK as listed in MBUK and the likes - I prob do take it for granted living in wales - open my door and I have cwm carn and afan argoed and the breacons on my doorstep literally.

I'm just thinking to be honest - as in this year and in 2012 the biggest race in XC for these two years is the Olympic games XC race - and as the host nation/city we should aim to get the best venue sorted for the event.

I am not trying to be rude here but I can't imagine Sausser Kileen and the likes being impressed with a lap around a couple of fields and a few rock gardens thrown in place. these days 120 miles travelling is nothing to the pro's in either direction. Yes £140 million being invested is great for the area I agree - but that area is alreay gettin 9 billion for the games as it is isn't it?? Admittily most of it is to fund Seb Coe's disatrous PR campaign!

I just honestly feel that we are letting the riders down for 2012 that is all!!

P.S I am not takin the mick about all u peopel who do live in the flat lands Im sure there are rides and venues you enjoy there and will continue to do so!!

cheers

The whole of the UK is paying for this London Olympics so why aren't we all getting something out of it Mr Coe???

Wales has mountains, Essex doesn't!

Surely Olympic Mountain bikers will expect mountains Mr Coe!

Have a word with yourself man or maybe we should be employing a more competent person to do the job.

We have to ask why this man is in charge - just because he has won an Olympic medal doesn't mean he is capable of organizing the Olympics!

People REALLY need to get there heads around the how 'Having to be close to London thing'....

Also, you don't need 'Mountains' to do MTBing... the site where they are looking at now is a massive down hill part of countryside. Old dig site, bomb site, maybe..

So just cause its not above sea level doesn't mean its not up hill, who says you have to be above sea level to have a good track...

I'm from Essex and it ain't hilly enough for this type of event, simple as that! This is madness on Coe's part yet again. It should be wales of course ........ ?!

In response to drewcole81:

Are you honestly saying that an old 50m-100m bomb site or dig site will challenge the pro riders of mountainbiking? That would be like staging the tour de france and saying right chaps no mountains this year just flat roads all the way to Paris good luck - who would be interested in that? Mountain biking, correct me if I am wrong is about mountains - otherwise it would be called bridle path biking!

I am not saying that there are no enjoyable rides in Essex but there is nothing there to challenge the technically gifted riders of the MTB world as compared to wales, scotland, the moors and others alike!

Mark my words in 2012 every single rider who comes to race at the event will be P!ss*d off!!

No I wasn't saying that, I was just making a point that to ride up hill you don't have to be above sea level like it has been suggested.

I know that Essex is flat and Wales would be the better option, but its just that... not an option due to the distance.

It hasn't even been decided that it will be in Essex and it won't be down to Coe, its the people that advise him, he's just the puppet the public face (like Bush).

Even if it is the site they are talking about now, with the amount of money they are looking to put into it then they could pretty much make it into anything they want.

To have a built MTB track in this part of the country would be good for the sport and everyone who wants to try it.

Just cause the likes of Wales have better tracks doesn't mean its the BEST place to host it, a track can be anywhere they want to build one. What Essex does offer which Wales doesn't is access.. which would be harder to sort out than a track.

I think we all need to wait and see.

It seems madness to argue the point on distance, I believe that the sailing is taking place in Weymouth?

Surely the Chilterns, North/South Downs, all makemore sense if distance is an issue, even south wales isn't really that far on the M4. admittedily you have to get across london first.

Ok, ok and ok

Everyone has a great and valid point to put across with regard to this debate.

If we chose somewhere away from London, it should be the South Downs, its is close to London and already a bike mecca for us lowlanders.

If it is Essex and from my point of view, I hope it is, then they should get some external advice from trail designers and course designers. If they put it in south Weald, they will have made a big mistake, I have ridden there enough times to know that the course would be short and boring and the local infrastructure would not cope.

I live at one of the highest points in Essex thats overlooks London and the Village, three large parks spread over a course than when I ride is 16-20 miles, with input and support this would be a better venue. Hainault Forest/Bedfords Park and Havering Park.

Let us have somewhere to ride, when the olympics is over.

ok so how many of you guys complaining here have actually ridden any of the suggested routes in Essex??

Hadleigh is unique in that a fairly modest lap you can get in over 200m of good climbing, with a lot more if required. It also has the added bonus of beig the most accessible directly from london with a main line trainline running virtually through the middle of it..

If anyone wants to come and actually have a look please feel free. If it does come here it'll also be great for the local mtb'ers actually having a decent race course (and annual races) here, since the winter series' over 10 years ago there been nothing other than beastway (if you canget to it in time) and two races at langdon hills...

Come and have a ride here before slating the place...

Bigdawg I agree mate.

Anyone who is complaining seems to have the great rides on their doorstep, well consider yourselves real lucky guys, would you travel all the way from Afan or the Dales to ride in Essex?

You would if they spent some money on a local ride of a world cup standard.

Remember a climb does not make a winner, its also the technical aspect and the skills to overcome the obstacles that allow them to triumph.

MRMO... of course the sailing is taking place a distance away.... you can't race boats in London... the water keeps going out.....