fran7802 Posted October 14, 2011 Posted October 14, 2011 Hi ALL, im new to the Gauteng area, i live in JHB, can anyone please advise me on where i can go ride some DH in and around JHB/PTA. Im looking for something nice a flowing, im not yet on the extreme side,so looking for somewhere rookie to intermediate. Ive been playing at MTN PARK, but geting bored now, looking for a nice downhill. Anyway suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!! Cheers
nolipoli Posted October 15, 2011 Posted October 15, 2011 Welcome to Jozi. If you are looking for smooth and flowy, you are in the wrong province. Here, we have rocks - lots of them! Gillooly's is closest to you, but is pretty gnarly. Helderkruin is more mellow. Apparently, Track 139 in Pretoria is flowy, but i haven't had a chance to try it yet.
fran7802 Posted October 16, 2011 Author Posted October 16, 2011 Hi, thanx for the reply! ive noticed a path down the front of the hill by Giloolys, im i correct in assuming its down there, looks quite steep on the middle section, how do i get to the top?Cheers for the information, please if you have any directions or links to the other downhill places, pls forward to me, fran7802@gmail.com thank you
patches Posted October 17, 2011 Posted October 17, 2011 haha yeah, welcome to Jozi! As Nolipoli mentioned, Gillooly's is closest, but even the seasoned riders who live right next to it, don't ride there. I also haven't had the chance to get out to 139 yet, but the other local DHers love it! unlike the other gauteng courses, this one they actually had to look for rocks to build a rock garden. But yeah, quite a bit of fun to be had at helderkruin. Other options are riding lines like the Hurlingham or DHL lines on the Spruit. They's not nearly as long as a DH trail, but are great to practice certain skills for the DH runs. Give me a shout when you're keen to try any of the above and we'll see if we can make a plan.
TNT1 Posted October 17, 2011 Posted October 17, 2011 As Nolipoli mentioned, Gillooly's is closest, but even the seasoned riders who live right next to it, don't ride there. Why?
patches Posted October 17, 2011 Posted October 17, 2011 Why? cos it's crazy rocky and brakes both bikes and riders
TNT1 Posted October 17, 2011 Posted October 17, 2011 cos it's crazy rocky and brakes both bikes and riders Ah. Right. I thought it was maybe a safety aspect cause there's quite a few vagrants in that area. (At least there were a while back - Guys used to go bouldering and hiking there, but stopped cause a few got attacked...)
HaydenWilson Posted October 29, 2011 Posted October 29, 2011 there is a bouldering area there? seriously? where? i thought i had bouldered everywhere in joburg! in terms of the dodge factor it is fairly high. a bunch of guys have tried to mug two of my mates there on at least two occasions, fortunately they managed to escape with their bicycles.
Cuppa Bru Posted July 17, 2013 Posted July 17, 2013 Is Gillooly's still an option for MTBing? I got used to riding at Spruit, but have moved again. Back to the East Rand Looking for nearby trails. Want to ride!!!
Cuppa Bru Posted July 17, 2013 Posted July 17, 2013 cos it's crazy rocky and brakes both bikes and riders Is it that bad?
Cuppa Bru Posted July 17, 2013 Posted July 17, 2013 http://thabatrails.webs.com/ Great-looking trails! But it's 30 km to get there, and I'm looking for trails I can cycle to and back. Have you tried Gillooly's? Is it really so rough that there's a valid concern about breaking a bike on the trail?
HaydenWilson Posted July 17, 2013 Posted July 17, 2013 Great-looking trails! But it's 30 km to get there, and I'm looking for trails I can cycle to and back. Have you tried Gillooly's? Is it really so rough that there's a valid concern about breaking a bike on the trail? The DH track is incredibly rough and awful. however there are several trails that go along the linksfield ridge that are quite pleasant to ride. one loop i did went up through linksfield, along the ridge and then bombed down to giloolys farm. after that we cycled along the road to that golf course that runs between sandringham and linksfield. it was abandoned when i did it and actually a lovely ride. its fenced now i think. but seriously, if you want to do it, go and scout your route on foot with pepper-spray first. its gnarly. and not all the pathways are ridable and go places and its not like the spruit where if something does turn ugly in front of you you can turn around and ride the other way. that hill is steep and the trails are claustrophobic and dodgy. good luck and report back! also, have you considered modderfontein?
Cuppa Bru Posted July 17, 2013 Posted July 17, 2013 Sounds intense! Military-style behind-enemy-lines scouting is not for me. Modderfontein is only 14 km if I take Brickfield Rd. Suicidal.Isando Rd is only an extra 2 km.Great! Think I'm sorted!Turns out Modderfontein Trails are way closer than I thought. R40 a pop, but worth it for the security.
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