The Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire has long been a favourite with downhillers, with loads of twisty singletrack and regular short-course races, but riders have always faced a steep push uphill to get their gravity fix – until now.
A new mountain bike uplift service is being launched at the Pedalabikeaway cycle centre near Coleford. Called Flyup Downhill, there'll be room for 16 riders in the minibus, with a purpose-built trailer to carry their bikes.
The service will run from Friday to Tuesday and will cost £20.50 for a full weekday and £23 for a full day at the weekend or on bank holidays. Uplifts will run from 10am until dusk in winter and 6pm in summer.
Founder Simon Ruskin said: "The aim is to allow riders coming to the Forest of Dean to enjoy the good bits – riding downhill – and put an end to the effort involved in pushing to the top. As a rough guide, users can expect up to 15 runs in a day.
"The centre has a mixture of trails, from short, technical sprints to longer flowing runs with jumps and drops, most of which can be linked to tailor make a personal track. The centre has a bike shop, cafe, bike wash and toilets ... [and] there are numerous campsites and B&Bs within minutes of the site."
The service officially launches on 29 May. The website, www.flyupdownhill.co.uk, is already live, and bookings can be made online. We're hoping to check it out for ourselves sometime soon.
