January isn’t the most inspiring time to get outdoors in Scotland, but the lovely people at Macs Adventure don’t let the threat of poor weather stop them having fun! We hosted six staff from the self-guided walking & hiking adventure specialists at Mugdock Country Park for an Introduction to Mountain Biking session.
Six of the finest adventure staff go mountain biking at Mugdock.
The forecast for the day was changeable to say the least, but being experienced outdoor enthusiasts, the Macs crew were prepared. Multiple light layers of clothing with a good waterproof outer shell meant that they could adapt their clothing to suit throughout the day and stay comfortable the whole time, even in January.
After hiring their bikes from Mugdock Country Cycles, and although the group considered themselves cyclists, most had no experience of cycling off-road, so we headed out to do some assessment and basic skills tuition nearby.
After a successful morning of learning the basics, followed by some lunchtime refuelling at the cafes in courtyard, the group were keen to put their new skills into action out on the trails.
We spent the afternoon riding the trails around Mugdock, stopping to assess and repeat particular features in the trail that required the group to put all of the skills from the morning session into action at once. There was plenty of mud to tackle, making the going fairly tough, but everyone put in lots of effort and commitment and reaped the rewards. From being a tad wobbly and unsure in the morning setting off, to tackling rocky and root-laden descents, with some wooden features to boot, everyone made fantastic progress throughout the day.
By the time the light started to everyone was buzzing with their achievements from the day and newfound skills, already planning the next MTB session with Trail Coach!
