CheapTents.com Outdoor Gear Blog

You Can’t Have Our Mud!

You may remember seeing Welsh Tourist Board adverts on television during the summer. The adverts featured a man extolling the many virtues of taking a holiday in Wales, he finished up by telling us that under no circumstances were we to take away any Welsh mud. Its “good mud” he proclaimed.

You Can Keep Your Mud!

Guilty! Source: Flickr by foxypar4

On Monday the BBC reported that “mud contaminated with sheep droppings may have caused 161 mountain bikers to fall ill”, according to a report by The National Public Health Service for Wales (NPHSW).

The report was produced after it was found that a number of mountain bikers who entered the Builth Wells Mountain Biking Marathon had subsequently suffered from vomiting and diarrhoea.

The report recommended that in future the mountain bike course should avoid passing through fields with sheep droppings and that participants should eat out of wrappers to help prevent accidentally ingesting harmful bacteria.

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Not Much of a Dream about Mountain Biking

Last night I dreamt that I was going to go mountain biking in Aberdeenshire. Since it was a dream, there was no reason why I should not just get out of of bed one morning, drive from Warrington to Aberdeen for a couple hours trail riding and get back home in time for a lunch. The fact that its about 350 miles with a estimated journey time of 6 and a half hours has nothing to do with anything when you’re dreaming.

So in my dream I rang round a couple of friends to give them directions to the mountain bike trail. One of my friends has recently bought a sat nav, so all I needed to tell him was the postcode of trail and he would find it no trouble. This was the same friend who recently got lost while relying on his sat nav to direct him from Manchester to Bristol. Take the M6 to Birmingham, then take the M5 to Bristol, its not the most difficult route!

Then I was rudely awoken by my alarm clock. My dream about mountain biking in Aberdeenshire came to nothing.

Mountain Biking in Aberdeenshire

However I was not prepared to let the matter drop entirely. Having recently heard about the 7stanes mountain bike trails in southern Scotland, I realised that there must be some good mountain bike trails around Aberdeen.

Kirkhill Forest Mountain Bike Trail

Two-Wheeled Action. Source: Flickr by sharpneil

Had I not woken up, it seems most likely that I would have found my way to the popular Kirkhill Forest Mountain Bike Trail. Kirkhill Forest is a Forestry Commission site located on the A96 at Tyrebagger, about one mile north of the airport roundabout. OS Grid Reference: NJ850 120.

The trail at Kirkhill Forest consists of a 2 km long Fun Park and an 11.5 km loop Forest Trail.

The Fun Park has features such as jumps, bumps, berms (i.e. a corner which goes round an embankment) and switchbacks. The fun park has enough slope to keep your speed up without being too steep.

The Forest Trail is a way-marked mountain bike trail containing both double and single-track sections. Initially there is a long climb before the trail winds around Tyrebagger Hill affording spectacular views across Aberdeen.

Now that I know where to go mountain biking in Aberdeenshire, maybe tonight my dream will continue with some fast-paced two-wheeled action with plenty big air. The good thing being that if I hit the dirt there will be no pain!

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Live for the Outdoors (LFTO) wrote a serious, advisory post following an article in Trail Magazine about reasons that should make you think about turning back before reaching the summit.  Whether you are a walker, mountaineer, mountain biker, skier, runner or other, these reasons are certainly worth considering:

1. Bad Weather - snow, rain, cold and wind can all come in severe doses, so make sure your prepared but sometimes preparation isn’t enough, so know your limits!
2. Weather Hazards - associated consequences from bad weather such as rockfalls and lightning
3. Avalanche Risk - make sure you check local avalanche reports right up to the point that you depart, and on an ongoing basis if at all possible.
4. Fatigue - tiredness can put a real strain on your senses, your alertness and obviously your ability to continue safely.
5. Hunger - food and drink is your body’s fuel to continue safely and can affect your physical performance, rationale and ability to think quickly.  Remember to account for enough food and drink reserves to return you back again.

LFTO

Avalanche Warning. Source: Flickr, Joe Shlabotnik

Although, we thought there must be more reasons to turn back as there are so many influencing factors on a successful climb, run or ride…or are we just being soft?

1. Injury - some people like to bag summits a little too recklessly, some injuries worsen if not cared for (think of the last time you continued to walk with a sprained ankle, and consider the bruising and swelling that continued to grow from not resting it properly).
2. Illness / Conditions / Vulnerability - without the suitably warm outdoor gear, such as a fleece or insulated jacket, it could very well mean that you become susceptible to cold and wet conditions which might bring on hypothermia.   Illness can overcome your body fast if you’re tired - a common cold can really effect your progress and make you even more vulnerable…be careful.
3. Without the right outdoor gear - that mac that you screwed into your pack might be OK for the odd shower but torrential rain and gale force winds are dealt with far better by a waterproof mountain jacket.  Another example could be needing crampons for more technical, snowbound climbs up hill-faces…
4. Broken gear or equipment - if you took the right gear, but broke it by accident, maybe it’s time to return back if you cannot fix it in any sort of semi-permanent way.  A broken tent pole for instance could cause a very unpleasant nights sleep under the stars if you don’t repair it or replace it sufficiently for the weather conditions.
5. Unsure of your route - you might have made it so far but inexperience or lack of clarity in the mapping might mean that it would be safer to return before you get lost.
6. Closed routes - similar to the point above, if you cannot follow the route that you intended then it’s worth considering returning or at the very least let people know that you will be changing your route.  For this reason it is often advised that you have a primary and secondary route that you share with someone who is not going with an estimated time of return (ETR).
7. The route is beyond your abilities - it might be that you set-off thinking that your route is within your technical and physical capabilities, but things may have changed or maybe your research was not comprehensive enough?
8. Broken-communication lines - there are some places people only like to venture when they know that they have support at a form of base-camp, or Without communication lines (mobile phones, satellite phone communications, etc) it can leave you alone and without the right support if the worst was to happen.
9. Make progress to the abilities of your weakest member - check around with your hiking, running or riding mates to see if each of the above are are all in check and there’s no reason to consider turning back.  it might that you’re OK, but what about others?

Any others reasons for turning back?  Your mum calls and says that dinner’s ready, or that you forgot your hairbrush…?  Share your ideas with others…

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Mecca for Mountain Biking

The 7stanes are eight mountain biking centres in southern Scotland. The public sector organisations behind the mountain biking scheme have recently announced that they will provide £1 million of funding over the next three years.

The BBC have reported that the announcement has been praised by Environment Minister Mike Russell, who called the 7stanes mountain bike trails a “major success” in building Scotland’s image worldwide.

Have you been mountain biking on any of the 7stanes trails? What do you think of them? Share your thoughts! Click on the “comments” link below.

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The iRoc Race is a new race set-up by inov8, a UK company specialising in trail running shoes for UK running conditions.

The iRoc race is an adventure race relying on competitors to run, mountain bike and find their own way around a course.  We think this is great news considering how it will put a prominent race towards the end of what is known as the trail running season.

More about the race from iRoc and inov-8:

Uniquely each of the races will have a mass start and will pass back through the event village at least once before finishing. This will ensure that iROC offers the best adventure race spectating ever seen in the UK.

Each race will be between one and four hours long. They will be as hard as you make them… intense, or just challenging experiences that will contrast hugely with the relaxed, chilled-out atmosphere of the event village.

iroc-race.com

iRoc Race Dates and Times:

The very first iROC race will take place on the 18th & 19th of April 2009.

Running, mountain biking and navigation is a great way of testing your skills in some of the most beautiful UK countryside there is.  There will be 5 quite different and exciting races, of which will test you as an all rounder as much as they will test you during each race…most competitors will be taking part in all 5 races, but only the best all rounder will win.

iRoc Race Entry Prices

Prices depend on whether you are entering as an individual or a team of three, but bear in mind there will be an early bird discount for all entries received before the 31st December 2008.

The entry fees, as quoted above, will also include:

• Cash prizes for the winners and runners up!
• Organised, high quality adventure racing including your choice of 2 mountain bike races, 1 trail race and 2 orienteering races of which will test your endurance and wide variety of  outdoor skills.
• An amazing goody bag… actually a special edition inov-8 rucksack that’s never been seen in the shops before, and stuffed full of freebies from the race sponsors.
• Five Friends & Family race passes for those who want to do a little more than just spectate.
• Free weekend camping to include Friday and Saturday night.
• Free car parking over the weekend.
• Friday and Saturday (latenight!) bar, along with entertainment on Saturday.
• Accurate, pre-marked and waterproof maps for orienteering around the course.
• SportIdent electronic timing.
• On site catering for the duration of the weekend to help keep your energy levels up!
• Online results and reporting at the iroc-race.com website.
• Online purchase of action pictures at the iroc-race.com website.

iRoc Race Scoring

Everyone who completes an iRoc race will score points. The points that will be awarded are based on the number of competitors.  So if there are 500 starters competing in the race, the winner will score 500 points, second place 499 points, third place 498 point all the way to 1 point for the last finisher. After all five of the iRoc races, the person / team with the highest number of points will win. Rather than using cumulative time to determine the winner, this scoring system is designed so the overall winner will need to score highly in every races rather than just dominating one or two races.

iRoc Race Prizes

There will be CASH prizes for the winners and runners of the mens and womens races, as well as exclusive inov-8 rucksacks full of goodies from the sponsors too.

Race Competitors

If you are planning on getting involved in the race or supporting as a marshal, please feel free to get in touch and share your excitement!  If you’re taking part to raise funds or awareness to a charitable cause, let us know and we’ll be more than happy to plug your charity on our site!

More details to be announced soon!

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Help getting sponsorship…

We realise it’s not easy breaking into the professional world of outdoor sports.  The British Mountaineering Council have been lobbying for many years for more funding and increased status of outdoor sports, so we know it’s not easy.

We can help you increase your profile…

If you’re an amateur outdoor sports person we might be able to give you the leg up that you need to increase your profile and get sponsored by one of the big outdoor brands out there. Being seen to be actively in the public limelight is a major advantage.

We can get up to 50,000 visitors or more through our site each month, so although we do not have the budgets to provide financial sponsorship, we will be more than happy to help you raise your profile by plugging your achievements, your ambitions, and anything else for that matter via the CheapTents.com blog!

Already Sponsored?

If you are already sponsored by an outdoor gear manufacturer, then why not increase your profile some more and blog for us?!  It will help keep them sweet by providing ongoing exposure in a very prominent way and encourages their continued support.  Sounds good doesn’t it?

Mountain Bike Rider Sponsorship?

Cross country mountain biker, downhill mountain biker or road racer?  Get in touch!

Source: Flickr, Marilia Almeida

Trail Running Sponsorship?

You might be an endurance runner, ultramarathon runner or adventure runner.  Get in touch!

Triathalon Sponsorship?

Runner, swimmer and rider?  Maybe your triathlons include alternative sports, such as kayaking?  Get in touch!

Mountaineering Sponsorship?

Expeditions, travel and summitting mountains is not cheap, and sponsorship is not easy to get hold of so increase your exposure by blogging on the CheapTents.com blog!

Source: Flickr, Ikerenders

Climbing Sponsorship?

Free-climber, sports climber, boulderer, alpine, ice, big wall climber?  Get in touch!

Worldwide Travel?

Maybe you want to raise awareness to international news, provide advice, or share traveling tips.  Get in touch!

Get in touch!

If all this sounds perfect for you and you’re more than happy to provide an insight into your sporting life, then by all means get in touch with a mini-bio and some achievements you’ve had to date, at ben[at]cheaptents.com (replace [at] with @).

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• Outdoor and camping advice is our thing…
• 2008 Outdoor Industry Consumer Survey Results
• Glossary of Outdoor Gear Terms

The Outdoor Industry Association published the results of an industry-wide consumer survey today, providing a great insight into consumer buying decisions.  Are you a bite-size outdoor sports enthusiast or a fully-committed one sports person?

What outdoor sports and activities do you do?

Respondents claimed to regularly participate in outdoor sports and activities.  These include:

• 91% - recreational walking
• 29% - road cycling
• 22% - mountain biking
• 15% - mountaineering
• 14% - snowboarding
• 13% - off-road running
• 13& - climbing

Bite-sized outdoor activities

Increasingly, it is understood that more and more people are taking up a wider variety of outdoor sports.  This makes great sense as it provides a different activity for different energy level, motivation, adrenaline needs, and season.

Some may say that it is also a reflection of the culture that we live in - searching for quick kicks, and variety in our day-to-day lives.  And we believe this is a great thing!

Economic change and environmental awareness

The growth of family camping is more than likely to be attributable to the economic climate, but also due to people’s increasing awareness of their impact of flights on the environment, in addition to an increasing desire to appreciate the environment that we live in.

As many as 67% of those questioned in the consumer survey claimed to buy environmentally friendly products (this does not mean just outdoor products), and 78% believe they are more expensive as a result.  Of those respondents 51% said they would pay more nonetheless.  Interesting stuff for outdoor gear manufacturers I’m sure.

The Respondents Profile

10,000 people were interviewed for this consumer survey, of which a total 61% of respondents were male and 38% female, and…

• 25%, 35-44 years,
• 25%, 45-54 years
• 22%, 55-64 years
• 15%, 25-34 years
• 7%, 65 and over
• 3%, 16-24 years

…providing a really interesting profile of the outdoor industry as a whole.  More to come on this very soon!

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