Riding in mud - any tips?

[hebe]

Thank you for all the replies!

Bridleways aren't singletrack, if that's what you are wondering.

IMBA teaches not to ride in mud on singletrack, but as has been stated, that appears to be a non issue for bridle ways.

Yes, I think they are muddy by default. Is singletrack built just for bikes?

Hebe, can I come visit? It sounds like fun!

(Well, I'd need a new bike first. Hmmm...)

You'd be very welcome! It is gorgeous riding, this part of the country is absolutely stuffed with history and pre-history (Stonehenge, Avebury, earthworks, ley lines...).

the rule is you should never ride into water that you can't see the bottom of because you never know what is there. I would think that that would be twice as true for mud puddles.

That makes sense. I knew someone who sped his car into a deep puddle post storm, and took out a whole load of undercarriage to debris under the surface. One corner of the bridleway is puddled completely, but there is an 18inch mud verge that I took instead.

Also keep your cadence up, and check your brake pads aferwards. Any grit in them will grind away your sidewalls which will scream in pain.

That makes sense, thank you.

I'm going to post some pics of typical riding around here, at the risk of hijacking my own thread. This first one is of a local bridleway that goes into the centre of town. It now has a development of new houses adacent, but is still gorgeous.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/miketoons/4117691431/

And these two are from a nice set of photos that I found when searching (speedbird747.com). The first one shows a typical muddy Wiltshire track. This one looks like it's open to motorised traffic too so is probably a byway rather than bridleway. Imagine this but wider and more yellow and you have my Wednesday trip. Except for mine the hill at the end went up rather than down.



This is what it can look like:

[pll]

That's gorgeous! Thanks for posting the pictures.

[Bike Writer]

Beautiful countryside. I enjoy photos of where people ride, I am a visual person and it helps to bring posts to life.

[jessmarimba]

I think the term "singletrack" generally implies bikes are what the speaker has in mind, but the trails are just thinner (one person wide) and are sometimes restricted to people only, sometimes allow horses as well as bikes, and sometimes allow even motorcycles. The problem when they get muddy is that people go around the puddles, widen the trail, and destroy vegetation around them. Someone will eventually come close off that part of the trail to allow the plants to grow back. Rail trails are about the equivalent of bridleways, it look like!

Your photos are gorgeous You definitely have some mud to deal with though. I wonder if my doctor would count that as "off-road"...maybe I should go there and ride my bike instead!

[hebe]

I can't take the credit for the photos, they are gorgeous though! I am so grateful that my bike gets me out into that loveliness, I'd never have time to do it on foot - I just can't fit that much walking into an hour.

Mud seems to be a feature of the flatter paths - the hilly ones seem better drained. Silver lining, I suppose.

We do have some "rail trails" too, though none within easy reach of here. They are often nicely surfaced and have amenities such as bike hire and cafes along them.

[malkin]

Another mud recommendation is to clean your bike afterwards!

[jessmarimba]

Just wanted to give you a few pictures back! Some of our rail trails are paved but out west they are usually gravel. Here is one in Telluride, CO that used to be a mining railroad:


And here is my favorite singletrack photo ever