The Pyrenees - Road, MTB & Enduro Riding, Trail Building, Iconic GT Climbs & Nearby Attractions....

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Second video from yesterday - some nice views from halfway down the singletrack descent.

 

https://youtu.be/E3b7iuZP-xI

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You can find us on Instagram . . . .

 

@tonymtbainsa

 

for more pictures and videos.

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Loving our little trip to New York..... But missing my bike and the mountains.

Normal service will be resumed next week when we're back in Spain.

 

Meanwhile, I'm seeing loads of bicycle couriers here in the city, but they are nearly all on E-Bikes.

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Back in Spain after a fairly chilly 10 days in the US.

 

The trails are looking good and the weather here is very nice at the moment. Sunny and dry. It's not hot, but it certainly isn't cold either. 

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This viewing point is on Zona Zero Route ZZ06.

 

It's actually only a ten minute stroll for out the back of Ainsa Castle and very easy to get to. I often stop by there if I'm nearby when I'm riding just to take in the view and remind myself of where we live . . . 

 

:-)

Edited December 13, 2018 by Bonus

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Beautiful

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On yesterdays ride I stopped in for a nice chat with Russel from Fox at the Fox Factory workshop support van.

 

They were carrying out product testing on the Zona Zero trails near my house. Russel is from Cape Town but lives and works in Germany now.

 

Was nice to talk about stuff and people we had/knew in common :-)

 

 

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On Tuesday I had the pleasure of riding XC with Kevin from the UK and his dog Bella.

 

Kevin - @trailguru on Instagram - has been living in his beautifully converted van for the past two years. He works on-line, so can work from anywhere, and spends his time surfing and mountain biking. He's also the guy behind the "https://www.trailguru.co.uk/" website, which covers dozens of trails in Wales.

 

Our ride was based on Zona Zero route ZZ-019 - "The Route of the Arraclan" which we adapted slightly to suit us.

 

Starting from the village of Santa Maria de Buil we quickly got into some nice quick singletrack, which this route has lots of. Aside from the flowing singletrack, there's Jeep Tracks, Fire Roads and the route goes through several nice stretches of forest. It has a couple of quiet tough but not too long climbs and of course the amazing "Balcony of Sarrastano" section, with its views of the Pyrenees mountains. Throw in a couple of short technical descents and a quick food-stop at a Hermatige of Santa Waldesca on route and you have a perfect morning of riding.

 

We only saw 2 other riders all day - a couple from the south of France who said they come here every chance they get because the riding is so good!

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Outside the Hermatige in my Winter kit!

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Kev & Bella . . .

 

 

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The Hermatige . . .

 

 

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Riding towards the Balcony

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2018 is nearly over and 2019 is just around the corner.

 

It’s been an exciting year for us. Not without its challenges - but we’ve had some great experiences. We’ve met some nice and interesting people, we’ve helped and been helped, and we’ve had lots of fun on the way.

 

In 2019 we’re aiming to put the plans we’ve been making over the last few months into reality.

 

We will be offering a host of services aimed at people who want to visit the beautiful area we live in.

Whether it’s to ride MTB on the trails of Zona Zero, Road Ride through the valleys and over the passes on our quiet well kept roads, hike the footpaths and caminos of our hills & mountains or simply chill out and enjoy our amazing scenery with its castles & churches, rivers & lakes and its villages – inhabited or abandoned . . .

 

We think you will love it here as much as we do!

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For anyone wondering what the Winter weather is like here where we live in the Spanish Pyrenees - this was taken at lunchtime today on a ride with friends. . . .

 

#livin' the dream

 

 

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Climbing up the back of the Pena Montenesa on the route the Enduro World Series used back in September when they held Stage 7 of the Championship here.

 

We climbed just over 800m in 8km of fire road. None of it is steep, it's just a nice gradual climb.

Edited December 31, 2018 by Bonus

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Over last year I've ridden with people with a variety of different abilities who have come here to visit the "Zona Zero MTB Trails" from all over the world. New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, Denmark, Belgium, Holland, France, Argentina, Germany, Costa Rica, Scotland, England . . . even Boulder in Colorado and of course lots from Spain.

 

The majority of people I've ridden with have stayed in touch and become friends. Without fail they all want to come back here to ride again.

 

Here in the foothills of the Pyrenees there is something for everyone. From a leisurely family ride along one of our rivers, to full-on "Enduro World Series" Stages descending the sides of mountains, and including everything in between.

 

There are even decent roads to ride for those of us who also like to frequent "The Dark Side".

 

There are around 1000 kms of official marked out routes that the Zona Zero organisation have put together. There are dozens of Long Distance "GR" (Gran Recorrido) and Short Distance "PR" (Pequeno Recorrido) routes marked out that form an extensive network of Caminos (Footpaths) traversing the countryside. There are Fire Roads up into the mountains. Ancient Footpaths and "Sheep Trails" link up our many deserted villages with their Castles and Churches and we have a multitude of Hermitages and Refuges in case the weather suddenly changes. In the summer there are dry river beds to ride in and wide slow rivers to swim in.

 

It certainly is a pleasure Living, Riding and Guiding in this part of the world.

Edited January 2, 2019 by Bonus