CYB MBR

[Caz]

Did MBR at CYB last weekend with Hugzee & JB. I found it really rocky and had loads of offs (no major injuries, just bruises)

What does everyone think of the MBR and are the other trails at CYB as rocky?

[dyls]

I think the mbr is ace.

Have you tried the Tarw, that is rockier than the mbr but again a very good trail. Once you get used to them they are ok.

[sikora]

Its probably my favourite trail. Only ridden it once and found it a little on the hard side for my skill and fitness level - but loved every minute of it! Felt like i'd really put the effort in that day.

Want to get my fitness up a bit before i go there again. Had run out of steam by the time i'd gotten to the Pink Heifer and couldn't get the most out of that section

[robcorney]

I really like MBR, but it is fairly technical. Am i right in think the Dragons back is less rocky/technical than the MBR, but longer?

[thesquaredog]

I found CYB to be a bit daunting the first time I rode it but knew what to expect the second time round. It is quite a jump up from Llandegla!

The Dragons Back is less rocky than the MBR but more rooty (is that a real word?!) making it equally technical in my opinion. The Dragons Back does however have a couple of nice smooth flowing sections - Dream Time and Uncle Fester.

When I go to CYB I normally add these sections to the MBR to make my own custom trail ;D

[mikebike]

I know what you mean about it being a drag, I've done it a couple of times and enjoyed it on the whole, but if your fitness is a bit low, like mine always is , it can be hard work, and like you say, you end up just coasting on the downs to try and recover.

[thistle]

I might have got it wrong, but when I was there today and looking at the information boards I'm sure they said the MBR was a black route and the Dragon's Back was a red route which would mean they've been regraded. (I've checked my leaflet and they used to be the other way around).

It might explain why Abel was rebuilt to include those new steps/drops with the skull and crossed bones sign, and why the MBR turns off seven sisters and goes down that nasty spiral route to the bridge right at the end!

I'm not sure why they downgraded the Dragon's Back though. Some of that is quite technical (Addams family bits - although I think these are in the red graded Cyflym Coch route) and it's a pretty long ride.

Those little looking jumps on Begining of the End though are brilliant. They're seem pretty small but seem to be angled just right to throw you sky high ;D

[ftasb]

Aug 9, 2009 19:22:36 GMT thistle said:

I might have got it wrong, but when I was there today and looking at the information boards I'm sure they said the MBR was a black route and the Dragon's Back was a red route which would mean they've been regraded. (I've checked my leaflet and they used to be the other way around).

I've read it somewhere recently that they've regraded some of the trails at CYB, can't remember if it was in a magazine or online though?

[Rob]

slightly out of date.

There have been some questions from riders about the grading of the trails at Coed y Brenin for a while, especially as they've become more heavily armoured and boulder infested to cope with more traffic.

As a result several of the major trails have been upgraded from red to black, while one of the classics gets a red re grade. Here are the exact details from ranger Andy Braund anyway:

"We've updated all of our trail info and revised the grading. The 'Tarw' and 'MBR' have been changed from Red/Difficult, to Black/Severe due to the overall rocky severity and technical nature of these trails. The 'Dragon's Back' has now gone from Black/Severe down to Red/Difficult, which is more appropriate. The other trails remain the same.

We are changing all of our info on the FC website and the new info is up on the boards at the CYB visitor centre tomorrow. We'll also be withdrawing all the old leaflets and we're now selling our new packs which contain all of these route maps, grading info, forest code etc in a see through plastic wallet."
We'll have the updated PDFs for Coed y Brenin and Marin up on the site ASAP too, so you can check out exactly what's changed here.