BLUE TRAIL SKILLS
MASTER MUD The UK winter produces some pretty foul riding conditions, but that doesn’t mean you have to have a miserable time on your bike. With the correct planning, kit, bike set-up and a few top tips, you can have a glorious time shredding in the mud. Here’s our top advice from over 30 years of riding in the best and worst that the British weather can throw at us.
G R E AS E
M U D G UA R D
This is your bike’s best defence against water ingress. Headsets, bearings, bottom brackets and seatposts all deserve a coating during the winter to help keep grit from clogging things up.
A front fender is one of the most useful products you can get for winter. Available in various sizes, they’re great at keeping wheel spray out of your eyes.
1. bike & body prep Correct kit makes wet rides more enjoyable Investing in decent winter riding kit and a few conditions-specific parts for your bike is essential, to avoid ending up soaked to the skin and freezing cold, and keep that smile on your face. Changing tyres is a faff, especially if you’re running tubeless, but it’ll improve control massively on natural terrain. And it’s amazing what difference dry nether regions make to your winter-ride morale!
B R A K E PA D S It’s a wise idea to invest in some metallic (sintered) pads for wet weather. They have a much longer life and offer better friction when the trails are saturated than the organic (resin) pads that come with most brakes.
TYRE Mud tyres have taller knobs to dig in better and wider spacing so the tread clears quicker, making them great on softer terrain. For hardpack trail centre loops, normal tyres should be fine, but dropping pressure by a couple of psi will help with grip on wet roots and rocks.
40 MOUNTAIN BIKING SKILLS
