Swinley Forest

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BY: Louise Robinson

Published: 28th April, 2013

Back in 2012, when it was first announced that the Crown Estate was to turn Swinley Forest into a trail centre, there was quite a lot of local dissent about the project. So how did it turn out?

 

A touch of Wales in the Berkshire countryside

 

For me, a trail centre on my doorstep sounded like a great idea but then I also have loads of even more local trails to ride freely whenever I want so this would just be icing on the cake. For years the trails at Swinley had been designed, built and maintained by local group, Berks on Bikes (BOB).  The idea of someone else coming in and determining where we could ride and which direction we could ride in understandably caused objection. When it is your freely given blood sweat and tears that have created the trails a bit of scepticism is understandable.

 

Climbing is always better in the sunshine

 

Four weeks ago the trails opened after six months of closure. The anticipation was palpable and the trails were packed. The Blue loop is 6 miles of pure man made single-track.  It has been very cleverly designed so that it can be rolled easily by newbies or ridden flat out by the XC racers. It takes in a number of the established bits from the "old" Swinley trails and joins them up with newly built single track to give a non-stop roller coaster of a loop.  The red trail is much more "au naturel" with much less of the hard pack trail surface and much more of the original rooty single-track included. Many people have been disappointed by the red trail. I think this is partly because the blue trail is so good, and partly because not all the work is completed. I am reliably informed that there are plans to introduce a number of additional sections of single track (to replace the fire road stretches) and to include a "black" section. I have no idea if it was always the plan to build the trails in a phased approach or whether it was the horrific weather of this winter and spring that forced this but getting the trails open for the start of summer was definitely the best call.

 

Oh happy days 

How does it compare to Rowan Sorrell's other trails in place like Brechfa? Well the height gain is significantly less for a start. But this does not mean there is less climbing, it's just that you climb, then descend then climb then descend (you get the picture). The single track is equally flowing and if you were not that familiar with bermed corners before you start you sure will be by the time you finish. There are no rocks at Swinley but it does have its fair share of roots on the red trail. It is fabulous fun and for those of us stuck in the South East, a good sight closer to home than the Welsh trail centres.

 

"The Rock" (pebble) on the Stickler trail 

 

My initial concern with Swinley becoming a trail centre was that it would increase usage of the area and make riding at speed much harder. But actually the opposite seems to be true. There is no more encountering riders going in the opposite direction, having to stop as a group of 20 plus riders plod past or just plain having to ease off round the blind bends just in case someone is coming the other way. The other thing that strikes me is how friendly it all seems.  Lots of riders out, enjoying the trails, aware that other riders will be using the trails too and everyone giving each other enough space to do their own thing.  The only down side is the parking. It is diabolical. Being local, I usually ride over but when bringing the family the car is the only option. After 10am on a Sunday morning you stand a snowballs chance in hell of getting a parking space. I can only imagine Bracknell County Council will do something about this though, they have unused land on the site and at £2 a go, what cash strapped local council is going to turn away paying customers.

 

The Start of the Red Loop

 

So were six months of closed trails worth it? Well, I think what we have is a fabulous resource, and not just for XC racers. My main aims for the year were to get a bit faster and get the family involved in riding. I can do both here. There is something nice about riding for 13 miles (blue and red) and not having to think about navigating. It's a bit like doing a spinning class, just point and peddle.  Ridden flat out this is going to get to you fit.

 

Big Berms on the Blue

 

And then there is the green trail; exceptionally tame by Welsh standards but has been deliberately built to appeal to children and new comers. The one mile trail is wide, gradually sloping and gently winding. My four year old daughter loved it on her 14" Isla bike and my seven year old son has taken to doing "Strava" laps on it, bombing round and seeing how fast he can get back to the start. Even my mum loved it. 65 years old and she has just bought her first bike (assuming you don't count the one with stabilisers). She hasn't done any serious exercise since she did it in her vest and pants at school but the Doc told her to lose some weight so she thought she would give biking a go. We took her last weekend and she can't wait to go back. This is what mountain biking is about, getting people out on bikes, enjoying themselves and making them want to come back. And people are seriously travelling to get here. I met one girl in the car park who was all the way  from the Pyrenees!

 

Whoever you are, whatever you ride, you're gonna love it! 

Oh and if you do want to set a "Strava" KOM it is best to come early, and I mean really early. I am reliably informed that the trails are very quiet at 6am, well except for some nutter training for Exposure 24 next month.