Hello from all of us at Pedalabikeaway,
There’s something about riding the same trail over and over again that changes the way you ride.
First run? You survive it.
Second run? You spot a better line.
Third run? You finally trust that corner.
By the end of the evening? You’re wondering where those extra few seconds came from!!!
It all started from thinking how often do we actually session trails these days?
Kids do it all the time. That’s why they’re so ridiculously good. They’ll ride the same section again and again until every root, turn and compression is dialled. It’s not just fitness – it’s repetition, confidence and learning what the bike can really do.
That’s exactly what FOD Thursdays are all about.
From 4th June – 9th July, we’re bringing back six weeks of midweek gravity riding fun with a different trail every Thursday evening.
No pressure.
No serious race vibes.
Just good riding with your mates and a chance to get better every single lap.
What’s Included?
Ride Times
And because no good Thursday ride should end in a car park…
These nights always end up being one of the highlights of the summer.
Amazing tracks
Loads of laughs.
Loads of laps.
And not forgetting great food in the club house after!
These events are always popular, and usually sell out, so get booked on now!
See you on the trails!
Hello from all of us at Pedalabikeaway,
There’s something pretty special about a Thursday evening at Pedalabikeaway.
The trails are a little quieter, the fire’s on, and the smell of whatever the kitchen has cooked up that week is drifting across the car park.
Over the years, Pedalabikeaway has become a bit of a clubhouse for cycling in the Forest of Dean. The place where rides start and finish, where muddy bikes lean against the wall, where you bump into people you know, and where the post-ride chat somehow goes on longer than the ride itself.
Thursday nights feel a bit like that turned up a notch – good food, good people and plenty of stories from the trails.
Our Late Night Thursday Flavour Club is every Thursday from 5pm–9pm, and if you haven’t tried it yet, you’re missing out.
Each week we head somewhere different. One week it might be Korean burgers, the next Indian wraps, Brazilian sandwiches or Nashville chicken.
We’ve had everything from wood-fired pizza and ramen to proper burgers and mac & cheese over the last few months.
The best bit? You don’t even need to stay.
That’s right – the menu is available to take away too, and you even get a 10% discount!
So, if you’ve had one of those days where the thought of cooking feels about as appealing as pedalling up Ski Run, we’ve got you covered.
Ride after work, grab your tea and take it home.
Or don’t ride at all. Pop up, grab something ridiculously tasty, and head back to the sofa pretending you made it yourself. We won’t tell anyone!
It’s become a bit of a Thursday tradition for some of our regulars – a quick spin in the forest, then food for the whole family on the way home. No pots. No washing up. No one asking “what’s for tea?” for the tenth time.
On the Food Front – the vital ingfo…
The only small catch? Some weeks we sell out. Turns out word has got round.
So keep an eye on our socials, see what’s on that week, and if something takes your fancy, get up here early.
Thursday nights just got a lot easier… and a lot tastier.
See you on the trails – or at the counter getting ready for your takeaway!
We are excited to announce that we are will be ready to hire bikes along the brand new Wye Valley Greenway from Wednesday 28th April. Our website is live so you can pre-book your bikes now.
Our bike hire is based at the trail start and has free parking, making it a faff free day out. We have brand new Specialized bikes for the adults (including the option to hire with a child seat) and fantastic Whyte kids bikes, to ensure that everyone has a great time!
Looking for things to do with the kids? Fancy a scenic day outdoors? Then the new Wye Valley Greenway trail is the perfect day out…
This traffic-free cycling and walking trail winds its way 7km along the Wye Valley from the trail start at the National Dive and Activity Centre (NDAC) to the picturesque village of Tintern. It’s an entertaining journey that is made all the more special by travelling through a 1.1km long tunnel!
Once there, why not lock up your bike and have a wander around Tintern? You have, of course, the CADW owned 12th Century Tintern Abbey, a national icon and a splendid example of true Gothic architecture. Feeling peckish? The Filing Station café, is a bike-friendly café, with refreshments, bike racks and bike tools. Or you can just simply head to the river bank to relax before cycling back to the start, riding through the tunnel again.
It’s a lovely day out for everyone.
Here at Pedalabikeaway, we are very pleased to announce that we will be fully open to visitors from Monday, 29th March. We are so excited to be welcoming you back – we have new bikes in the hire fleet, a new menu and new lovely shiny things in the shop! Our hire pages are now live for bookings (bikes available from the 29th March).
Wye Valley Greenway – new family cycle trail
We also have something else to tell you about….a brand new family cycling trail opening this Easter! Starting at NDAC (National Dive and Activity Centre, Chepstow), the Wye Valley Greenway is a 7km long, traffic-free, fully accessible cycle path currently ending at Tintern Abbey, Tintern. It winds through the wonderfully scenically Wye Valley and includes riding through a 1.1km long tunnel! Spend some time exploring Tintern Abbey and picnic on the Wye riverbank, before heading back through the tunnel again.
Our Pedalabikeaway Wye Valley cycle hire operation will be based at NDAC (only a short drive from the Forest of Dean) and bookings will be available through our website very soon.
Forest of Dean Cycle Centre
The Forest of Dean Cycle Centre may have been closed to visitors for the past few months, but the trail fairies have been very, very busy….
The Verderers mountain bike trail has long been a favourite of both locals and holidaymakers, and is suitable for all levels of riders (although a mountain bike is essential). However, in recent times the final descent had become more challenging and less flowy. Over the winter, the final descent of the Verderers has been completely resurfaced to make it a lovely, flowy long descent for all the family to enjoy. £80000 was invested by Forestry England to ensure that it is once again THE best blue graded mountain bike descent in the UK.
Over the past few weeks, Forestry England contractors have been replacing the broken connecting bridge at the centre with a brand new one. So, by the time we are open for bike hire on the 29th March, cyclists can once again join the Family Trail or head over to the introductory skills area without have to cross the road.
Hot off the press news is that Dean Trail Volunteers/Forestry England have raised and secured funding to reshape and resurface the Launchpad and Countdown downhill trails. It is classed as a 1-dot downhill track, but it’s a favourite amongst the youngest of rippers right up to the pros. Work on these trails are due to start soon and to reopen again in the next few months. During the past year, other resurfacing and reshaping has been completed by the amazing Dean Trail Volunteers. This includes the repairing of the Freeminers north shore section and resurfacing GBU.
With all these changes on the trails, we at Pedalabikeaway are excited to welcome you back, and you will be excited to be back!
This year, most of us have decided to bin that foreign holiday as we can’t take the risk of a 14 day quaritine when we return.
The Forest of Dean, has long been a popular destination for adventerous families, and not just for cycling!
Yes we have the Family Cycle Trail – voted one of the top ten family friendly routes in the UK, that starts and finishes from here at the centre.
We also have one of the best blue mountain bike trails in the country – the Verderers trail, which is currently having the final descent resurfaced to make it even better.
No forgetting the red freeminers loop, the several downhill lines, and the miles and miles of off piste trails to explore.
Sadly the uplift isn’t currently operating, but we have a fantastic range of the new Whyte E-150 electric full suspension mountain bikes that you could hire instead.
These machines will let you get 15-20 runs down the hill on a single charge, and with a fast charge top up at lunch, you can push that up to 25 – enough to tire anyone out!
If you haven’t got room for your bikes in the car for your mini break, don’t worry, as we have plenty of both leisure and mountain bikes available for hire – just make sure you book up early to get the size and model you want! You can book yours here
You can even book coaching or guiding through our sister company Wye MTB if you fancy brushing up on your skills or going for an explore
Once you’ve tired yourself out, why not go for a nice walk around Mallards Pike Lake?
Its a beautiful setting, with a lovely cafe on site, and a Go Ape centre right next door, which even does segway hire!
Other popular family days out include Puzzlewood where Star Wars was filmed, and the Clearwell Caves, which are perfect for that rainy day!
Just down the road at Symonds Yat, you have the river wye, which is beautiful for a natural swim, and has several canoe companies that operate trips down the river.
If you need even mountain bike fun then Redhill Extreme is just a 10 minute drive away, and has dirt jumps, a 4x track, pump track and big jump lines.
It is open every Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings, and 12-8pm Sat and Sunday, weather permitting.
Next door there is the Giant Maze, Crazy Golf, and the Battlesports lazer tag, more than enough to keep the kids entertained for a few hours!
You never know, these staycations might catch on…..if only we had some chairlifts ; 0
As lockdown measures continue to ease, we all want to get back to exercising as near to ‘normal’ as possible, escape the local area and spend quality family time together!
Here at Pedalabikeaway we will be back open every day 9-5pm from the start of the school holidays, but it’s not quite business as normal, so here are a few pointers to help plan your visit!
Social Distancing
There are now various one way systems in place . Yes it can be a little confusing, but we have put out as much signage as possible to help you get to the right place!
Our shop is now outside and next to where the toilets used to be. Bike hire is in it’s normal place with a one way system in and out (but you must pre book your bikes by midnight the night before via the website)
That last part is really important, as we have a smaller fleet than we are used to in the summer, and many bikes are selling out days in advance…..so get booking early!
The cafe also has a one way system where you order at the main door, and collect at the far end of the building by the outside tables.
The outside cafe is open every Saturday and Sunday 10am-3pm, serving freshly made pizza, ice cream and snacks!
Unfortunately some tables are currently taped off, to keep people 2 metres apart, but there is still plenty of space, and we have invested in a huge marque to cover 6 of the outside tables as well!
We can’t maintain social distancing within our toilets, as there is only one entrance for the whole block, so instead there are now 2 sets of 3 portaloos on site, one set by the main building, and another in the overflow car park.
Obviously please be a trail centre hero and stay 2 metres apart, especially if you have to wait and queue : )
Be Prepared
No one goes cycling planning on having an accident, but even if you are be careful, they do still happen!
There is no first aid provision on site at the moment, so there are 2 things you need to be able to do:
If you are more than 50 metres from where an ambulance can get to (a wide well surfaced fire road), then you will need to call 999 and ask for the Police. Give them your grid reference, and they will co-ordinate the response, using the Severn Area Rescue Service. (like mountain rescue)
Likewise you might have a long walk if you don’t have all the tools you need to keep your bike running. It’s worth carrying as a minimum:
You will also need to make sure you have plenty water before you arrive on site. There aren’t any working outside taps, so fill that bladder or bottle before you travel (we can of course sell you bottled water – but that’s an expensive way to do it!)
Most importantly, whether you are riding the Family Cycle Trail, Mountain bike trails or downhills, get out there and have fun, wear a helmet and enjoy the great outdoors!
It’s a first world problem, but not everyone happens to live on the doorstep of the Forest of Dean, and access to all its great trails.
Even if you are lucky enough too, like us, then the ‘Car, No Gnar, Not Far’ moto coined by Singletrack magazine should to be applied, so our rides are super chilled and well within our riding limits!
So how can you get your #MTB fix?
A great way is to use this time for some skills development – simple ‘back garden’ skills that can be done in a relatively small space. We have started to post a few on Pedalabikeaway tube so why not give it a follow and try them out?
Practicing a wheelie, manual or bunnyhop will allow you to come back to the trails as a more complete rider!
Don’t go mad though. We have seen plenty of people posting videos of jumping and some insane tricks. Have fun but don’t take any unnecessary risks : )
(remember to practice social distancing – we didn’t have a manual machine picture : )
When you are all tired out from your ‘back garden skills’ then why not engage in some retail therapy! Most of your local shops will have developed an online offering out of necessarity over the last week or so, even if they didn’t have one before.
Please try and support them! They won’t be as cheap as your online cycle giants, but supporting your local shop will help ensure they are there when we are the other side of #Coronavirus and all able to get back fully open.
You can check out our fledgling online bike shop here and our ex-hire and demo bikes here
If everyone of our customers bought just one item over the next few weeks, it will help get us through these super tough times!
Use the time to go explore you local area.
Dust off a map and pour over it. We really like the Ordnance Survey website and use it loads for plotting routes with Wye MTB , it’s great for zooming in and spotting cool little bits that you’d never normally notice! Keep a lock out for those restricted byways, green lanes and bridleways. There are more than you think in most major cities!
We never thought we would say this, but give your gravel bike a dust off (if you have one) or use a hardtail. It may well be the best machine for mixing up some urban riding with some canal paths or local pieces of bridleway. You’ll sometimes be surprised and might find the odd spot of #localgold !
Plan your post #lockdown escape!
Is there anything more satisfying that planning an awesome trip to celebrate when we get out of #lockdown?
It may be safer to plan something UK based rather than abroad given we don’t know how this will pan out globally.
We have been busy planning some great riding trips and events for September (we must be out of this by then, right?) and often you don’t need to go that far. #FODfest will be back on the 19th Sepetmber, so keep that date in your diary.
There will be loads of suppliers like Raw Sports, Crankbrothers, Troy Lee Designs, Burgtec, Whyte Bikes, Orange Bikes, a locally brewery, hog roast, races and DJ!
Wye MTB are currently hard at work launching a new ‘best of wales’ 3 day trip, with a days riding in the Wye Valley and Forest of Dean, a day in Mid Wales riding the amazing Dyfi off piste tracks, and finishing off with a morning raid up Snowdon…. How good does that sound? The first trip launches in September too!!!! Lucky that : )
More than anything, #staysafe all, and we can’t wait to welcome you back to the centre in hopefully the not to distant future!
There is the obvious financial benefit – 2nd hand bikes are going to cost a lot less, meaning that you could get more bang for your buck.
You’re going to find that you will be able to get a much higher spec bike than you would if you bought new. Typically for a 12 month old bike, you will save around 30-35% off the orgininal cost price!
However, it is highly unlikley that you will get any kind of warranty, so there are a number of things to check before you buy;
Give the frame a close inspection – look for damage to the paint work or chips, particulary if it’s a carbon frame as this could spell trouble.
Service history – when were the suspension forks or rear shocks last serviced? If it’s not within the last 6 months you’ll need to factor in at least 200 notes for this. While you are there, make sure that the stanchions and shock shaft are mark free. Chips or scratches here usually mean they are a right off.
Drive chain – take a chain wear indicator with you. If the chain has stretched and worn too much , then it is likely that the cassette and chainring will need replacing too. Depending on the spec of the bike, this could easily be another 200 notes to replace!
Tyres and brake pads – is there plenty of life left in both? A good set of tyres will set you back £100 and brake pads roughly £15-20 a pair.
Wheels – are they spinning freely, with no side to side wobble and free of dings or dents? If a wheel has been trued, then it is likely that it won’t last that much longer before a new rim and rebuild is required. You are looking at anywhere from £40-80 for a new rim, plus rebuild costs, so this could easily be another £100.
Another option would be to look for an ex-demo or ex-hire bike from a local bikeshop. Any dealer worth their salt would have already done and checked all the above before putting them up for sale. Yes you might pay a few £’s more than from e-bay, but it’s worth it for the piece of mind.
Some may even have some form of warranty with them (many ex demo’s will have new owners warranty!), and you will get the back up and support that you would usually expect from a L.B.S, so if anything does go wrong then they will be able to help you get it sorted!
Why not check out our range of ex-hire or ex-demo bikes?
Intense Tracer 2019 Large
Orange Alpine Small
Redbull recently highlighted the Forest of Dean as one of the best places in the UK to spend a ‘dirty’ weekend, and it’s not hard to see why!
The FOD, as it’s known locally, is a bit of a mecca for off road cycling.
Starting with the Family Cycle Trail, a 10 mile circular route that starts and finishes here at Pedalabikeaway, it’s perfect for all levels! The gradients are gentle, and it’s a very scenic amble around some historic parts of the forest.
The Family Cycle Trail in the Forest of Dean
If you don’t fancy the whole loop or have young children cycling, you can do the shorter length Hicksters loop, which is under half the distance and fully way-marked too.
To extend it, then why not take the short diversion down to the beautiful Mallards Pike Lake? It’s the perfect place for a picnic, and there is even an amazing cafe on site as well! The below shot was from the mini freeze we had this time last winter!
You also have the option of accessing the Family Cycle Trail via the Lydbrook, Coleford and Parkend links so you can ride to and from your accommodation!
Talking of accommodation, there is a massive amount of choice in the Forest for your stay. The Wye Dean tourism site is a great place to start, but a personal favourite is the Fountain Inn run by Alan, who helps dig and maintain the trails here in the FOD, while Broadstone Farm is a fantastic little campsite with great homemade cider and superb access to the Forest!
Group enjoying the Verderers Trail
If you are a little more adventurous, then the mountain biking on offer is almost limitless. All the way-marked trails start and finish here from the centre, including the blue-graded Verderers trail, the red-graded Freeminers trail and several downhill tracks. There is also a pump track and advanced skills area with jumps and drops, and a huge amount of off-piste tracks to explore!
You can get an idea of what some of them are like, by checking out our You tube site
To maximise your riding time, you could hire an e-bike (check out our previous blog on the Whyte Bikes E-150 ) or book on to one of Wye MTB’s uplift assisted trips to explore the beautiful Wye Valley. They also offer trips further afield into the beautiful Welsh Black Mountains and Brecon Beacons, which are less than 45 minutes away.
You’ll have loads to do for the little ones as well. There is a Go-Ape Mini’s site just a 10 minute walk from the centre, Puzzlewood – the enchanted forest (where some of Star Wars was filmed), Canoeing on the River Wye, Clearwell Caves or why not try Battlesports?
Fun for all the family
When you are all done, then don’t forget to call back into the cafe! We pride ourselves on serving the best coffee and cake in the forest. Perfect for that caffeine hit to keep you awake on the drive home!
