Okay, so having taken a little stick from friends, family and now the forum , it was time to prove i could get dirty with the best of them and offer up a little proof of mud. Brian having mentioned it blowing a hooligan that night and that trees may fall, i took rather lightly being all the way over in Sussex... Oh dear, what a mistake . Here's my Sunday Story...
A beautiful sunny day although bitterly cold. Things soon warmed up when i over looked the fact that there'd been rain for weeks and i hit the first mud bath. Slipping and sliding it sapped up lots of energy fighting to hold her up right. The front end contiually tried it's hardest to send me down, but i fought on. Some how having made it through the first few sections without killing myself on the stock bridgestones. Speaking of bridges...
I began to realise i really do need to swap over onto something like the Mitas CO2 and maybe C19. At present, i may as well have been on a damn motard... Great fun spending so much time side ways though. Would the Mitas really make that much of a difference to my control over the front end and to actually hook up at the rear? I mean, at this stage i began to think both were so non existant that i'd have to give up the area i was in as not passable and move on. I spent about 20 mins trying to escape a 1 mile stretch!
So things got going and due to the circumstances of having got through everything in my path, confidence quickly grew. I found myself venturing further on through the byways i'd marked up prior as way points upon my phone gps. Having a hunger for adventure and wanting to get away a little from sunday dog walkers and families. I decided that some of the trails were so hammered by the weather, these would be sure to put off most people and be the most fun. The higher the better too, who doesn't like a good view after a burn, completely disregarding the earlier struggles.
As i began to climb, a good half hour went by before i realised that the trail was beaten to hell and incredibly steep too. A slick, deep, rutted mud slide of a route again that i may end up having to turn around and travel back down... When an opportunity came along to take an alternative byway outta there that wasn't further up, i took it!
An incredibly steep ski slope entrance to the next route. Total mud slide. Just put it in gear, the rear will lock up for sure and down i slide ...no problem and lots of fun. Right up until i slide around the very first corner and find a fallen tree completely blocking the trail. Doh, i'm now trapped and can't turn back...
Finding myself with no way of turning back with the slicks, i took a best effort to slam the bike up over to the left in the hope of getting as high as i could. As suspected, the trailwings sent me sliding strainght into the trunk and i spent the next 20 mins pushing and shoving to lift her up out of the kind of basin i was stuck in. Once up, bouncing down the other side was a doddle. I must say, it had it's moments though...phew .
A lovely mud slide all the way to the bottom, which rathter abruptly dumps you out straight onto a main road , and then it was plain sailing all the way back to a well earnt bacon sandwich and wash down.
Shockingly, the only casualty of the day was one snaped off rear indicator from dragging her over the tree... nothing a little solder and super glue won't quickly fix.
4 hours and only about 45- 50 miles travelled, but for having had a couple of years out from proper ridding like this and also being alone on the trail, it sure was fun packed and memorable . Thanks to all that set me the challenge of, get dirty and prove it. It really inspired me to push that be further and a little harder. Now i say to any newbie that joins, like wise, get dirty and prove it!
Nice report , good to see your using the wr for what it was made for, yep better off road tyres will make all the difference . Word of warning though , I would take your rear pegs off, i have had my foot get caught on a bank and run over by the rear peg, a chap on the usa forum broke his leg doing the same
Particular thanks for the heads up re: off with the rear pegs. I'll be honest, buddies have said to do away with them many times, but never giving a good enough reason to do so (e.g saves weight, looks slick ect). I'd left them on because they do protect the bike (very much the exhuast side) if in a slide across the tarmac style wipe out. It's also great to be able to sling your girly on the back when needs be. That being said, i'm not in Thailand or in the sunshine at present, so slinging some what more mud and filth than i am sweet island girls . I like to right hard and push my skills and abilities. At the risk of a broken leg, the pegs are coming off right now!...sorry girls.
Good to hear more words of wisdom confirming the general concensus on the Bridgestones. I'll put out a few questions i have in the tyre section sometime soon. Greatly looking forward for an excuse to completely tear up and shred these shoes...if only i could get some traction to do so... lol
Thanks for posting up the pics and ride report Paul - good to see you getting the WRR muddy
Good point about the rear pegs....
Regarding fallen trees, I always carry a folding pruning saw which makes light work of clearing trees up to quite a size - especially if you have a couple of blokes on the task
I would much rather clear a fallen tree and carry on with my planned route than turn back.
...ha ha Now there's a man with the right mind set....turn back...never!
I'd thought about some sort of saw a while ago. Let the idea go because i kept thinking, i'll never get through any sort of trunk . Feel pretty stupid now. Of course the saw is just there to help make quick work of cleaning the tree up to get around it. Not to cut straight through it ...lol.
Nice report. Well done. And the bike's got dirty at last. The first time is always the hardest.
Brian's right about the saw. It can get you out of all sorts of situations. Buy a decent one though. You'll be pleased you did when sweating your way through a 6" branch.
I am a professional gardener and always use Bahco or Silky cutting tools. They really are worth the extra few quid.
, it was time to prove i could get dirty with the best of them and offer up a little proof of mud. Brian having mentioned it blowing a hooligan that night and that trees may fall, i took rather lightly being all the way over in Sussex... Oh dear, what a mistake 
. Here's my Sunday Story...
Great fun spending so much time side ways though. Would the Mitas really make that much of a difference to my control over the front end and to actually hook up at the rear? I mean, at this stage i began to think both were so non existant that i'd have to give up the area i was in as not passable and move on. I spent about 20 mins trying to escape a 1 mile stretch! 
When an opportunity came along to take an alternative byway outta there that wasn't further up, i took it!
...no problem and lots of fun. Right up until i slide around the very first corner and find a fallen tree completely blocking the trail. Doh, i'm now trapped and can't turn back...
. 
, and then it was plain sailing all the way back to a well earnt bacon sandwich and wash down. 
nothing a little solder and super glue won't quickly fix.
. Thanks to all that set me the challenge of, get dirty and prove it. It really inspired me to push that be further and a little harder. Now i say to any newbie that joins, like wise, get dirty and prove it! 
. I like to right hard and push my skills and abilities. At the risk of a broken leg, the pegs are coming off right now!...sorry girls.
Now there's a man with the right mind set....turn back...never!
