Ian from Rock and Ride Outdoors shows us round his home trails in Northern Ireland.

WORDS IAN BAILEY PHOTOGRAPHY CAOLAN HAWKINS

CLASSIC RIDE

Loosely tracking a section of the Ulster Way, this classic ride skirts the foothills of the Mourne Mountains while linking sections of sumptuous forest singletrack. All done in the shadow of Slieve Donard, Northern Ireland’s highest peak.

Summer can be a bit of an abstract concept up here in Northern Ireland, a land not exactly renowned for its temperate climate. All we know is that at some unspecified point between March and October the slop will temporarily subside and for a fleeting moment we’ll smell dust in our nostrils and hear the buzz of tyres on dry roots. Those joyous occasions remind us that we have way more than our share of top-class trails, handily compressed into a tiny geographical area, particularly in the locality of the Mourne Mountains, County Down. Inevitably, mountain biking has flourished here, despite the weather, with several local trail centres developed and a plethora of hidden woodland trails tended by a dedicated selection of local builders.

Bright coloured photo-gimp avengers, assemble!

Now obviously I’m exaggerating the meteorological woes, but we definitely have a sharp appreciation of the good times, spurring us into action to grasp the clear days with both hands, occasionally defying all sensibility and, on this particular occasion, considered medical advice…

An unseasonal spell has recently scorched the Mournes, the evocative smell of burning heather hanging in the air, pasty white limbs unveiled and social media feeds crammed with exaggerated descriptions of riding exploits. Nursing recently acquired injuries and awaiting surgery on a mangled thumb and torn shoulder respectively, my friend Eddie and I have jealously observed the fun unfolding, tortured by the knowledge that we may be witnessing our only shot at summer pass by without us. With the forecast due to turn imminently and the trails at their most prime, an idea was born that could only be considered by grown men who really should know better. It was time to ‘test’ the injuries – after all, surely we couldn’t make them much worse and what doesn’t kill you…