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There's more information on what's happening around the 7stanes in our press releases section.
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Latest news
This is an all abilities Ladies Freestyle weekend that will take place in the Freestyle Park at 7stanes Glentress on the 4 & 5th of October 2008. On Saturday you will have the opportunity to improve your freestyle skills with coaching from the country’s best riders, followed by a BBQ. On Sunday, showcase your new skills in the Iron Maiden competition
For more information click on the link to the flyer. To sign up go to www.downhiller.co.uk
Heavy rainfall has led to a section of trail on the Omega Man - part of the red route at 7stanes Ae - being diverted. The section between Dalcrum Burn and Post 29 is closed due to severe erosion from Auchenbraith Linn Burn. Please follow the diversion signs, where you will rejoin the Ae-line Trail at post 29. The diversion will likely be in place for some time.
The Tweed Valley Tourist Consortia have developed a brand new Mountain Bikers Hospitality Scheme after listening to mountain bikers and finding out exactly what they need from accommodation during a visit.
The scheme members are a special collection of hotels, bed and breakfasts and self catering properties which are totally geared up to providing mountain bikers with everything they need for the perfect break. As well as a lovely place to stay and a wonderful bike-friendly welcome, riders can be assured of safe, lockable storage for their prized mountain bike, a bike washing and maintenance area, a clothes drying room and plenty of quality high-carb meals to re-fuel for the next day’s adventure.
The Tweed Valley, which takes in 7stanes Glentress and Innerleithen, is the first area in Scotland to provide such a scheme, which assures riders of finding genuinely mountain bike-friendly accommodation and is focussed on providing a world class mountain biking experience in this beautiful corner of Scotland.
To find out how to book just visit www.visittweedvalley.co.uk and look out for the sign at accommodation properties throughout the Tweed Valley.
The opening of 'The Shredder' - the new downhill track at Ae - has been delayed as work is still taking place on making it ready for use. As yet we don't have a revised date for when it will open but we will let you know as soon as we can.
Readers of What Mountain Bike magazine have voted Glentress the best trail centre in the UK in the magazine's Summer 2008 Awards Issue. We're all stoked with this award here at 7stanes and Forestry Commission Scotland and would like to say a big thank you to everyone who voted and also to everyone involved with the centre.
If you've ever visited the MTB venues in southern Scotland, the Mountain Bike Business Network would like to find out about your experiences to help their members improve their services. All information is completely confidential and the MBBN will be very grateful for your input.
Take the 7stanes user survey.
The Ae 7stanes centre is now fully up and running, with new toilet and shower facilities, bike hire, bike shop and cafe. The cafe is open from 10.00am to 4.00pm, Monday to Friday, and from 8am to 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays . See www.Ae7.co.uk for details.
As part of the 7stanes arts project, seven sculpted 'stanes' have been created and placed around the 7stanes forests. The sculptures reflect local myths and legends and can be accessed on bike, on foot or by horse.
To mark the stanes' arrival, we're running a couple of competitions. You'll get full details on the arts project page and for details of the stanes themselves see the revised what are the 7stanes? page.
Other articles
There's been a change in the way that we are grading trails. Grades are now split between those for cross-country singletrack trails and those for bike parks (including downhill trails) and forest roads.
This is to highlight that forest roads can be of variable difficulty and are not part of a progression on to green and blue level singletrack trails, and similarly, orange-graded bike parks are not simply a progression on from singletrack grades.
You'll see these changes reflected in maps and on signage around the 7stanes. For a full explanation of what each trail grade means, see the trail grades page.
Harvesting operations will be affecting the red graded 'Ae Line - Scottish Power Renewables Trail' in Ae Forest until late Summer 2008. For safety reasons, sections of the route will have to be diverted during this period. For full details and diversion maps, please see the Ae section of the trail conditions page.
As at Mabie, there's now a regular weekly mountain bike group at Dalbeattie. Organised by the Hardrock Cycle Club, the group meets on Thursdays at 6.30pm, starting from the Dalbeattie trail head. All abilities welcome. For more details, visit the Hardrock Cycle Club website.
There is a regular weekly mountain bike group running at Mabie on Thursday evenings, meeting at 7pm at The Shed. If you're new to biking there will be qualified leaders present to take you or your kids out. We would prefer if Primary School age kids rode with a parent/gaurdian. For more details call Greg Knowles of Dumfries Cycling Club on 01557 332034, or look at www.ddcc.ik.org.
Run as a partnership between Foresty Commission Scotland and Scottish Borders Council, this project aims to provide an introduction to off road cycling for young people across the Borders.
With a fleet of new bikes, expert On Yer Bike tutors can provide skills sessions for school groups and equipment can also be hired by qualified biking instructors for sessions with local clubs/groups. Contact the On Yer Bike Mountain Bike Ranger for further information on 07926 998121.
Press releases
There's more information on what's happening around the 7stanes in our press releases section.