Downland Biking

Downland Biking
Tailored mountain bike instruction and guiding on the beautiful South Downs

The aim of Downland Biking is to provide mountain bike instruction and guiding specifically tailored to the needs of you, the rider. Many companies have set courses and routes that you book onto but might not meet your individual needs. At Downland Biking each ride is designed specifically for you to meet the needs of your riding. In this way we hope to increase your ability and enjoyment on a mountain bike quickly and safely.

We can cater for groups from families that have just bought their first bikes, to riders with years of experience who just want to be shown some great terrain with a rider who knows the area.

At Downland Biking we have the fantastic Friston Forest and the far eastern end of the South Downs to play on. You can have a great day or weekend's riding on some of the most varied and beautiful terrain that the South east of England can offer. Above all, we strive to ensure that you have a great time riding your bike, having some fun and gaining some valuable information and skills that will help your riding evolve.

Instruction courses are geared towards beginner and intermediate riders. Beginners are those who may have just bought a mountain bike or have had one for a little while but need some confidence building to get riding off road. Intermediates are those that have maybe been riding for some time but lack the confidence and skills for their riding to progress. Either way we will ask you to provide information about your riding history to help us cater the instruction we provide to your needs. Instruction course have limits to the number of riders we will take. To ensure safety and that each person gets time with the instructor, we prefer to take groups of four, with a maximum of six per group (if they are of similar standard). One to one personal tuition is of course also available.

Guided rides are for more experienced riders who want a local, knowledgeable guide to show them the good stuff! The hidden gems of trail that most would pass by unless they were 'in the know!' These guided rides can take the form of epic six hour journeys incorporating the best the area has to offer, or spend shorter blocks of time taking in specific areas, concentrating on singletrack, open downland or the many pubs that we have conveniently positioned just off the beaten track! For safety and maximum enjoyment we put a limit on the number of riders for guided rides. This number is negotiable depending on the level of experience and skill of the riders, but will normally be between eight and 12.

Prices
At Downland biking you are paying for the services of an instructor or guide. His fee is £60 per day (9:30 am to 5:30pm). This makes things very simple. No matter what the group size the group will pay £60. So a family of four can come and spend the day learning basic skills and do some nice riding around Friston Forest and they know the cost will be fixed. A guided ride requires less input from the guide/instructor than an instruction course so a group of 8 experienced riders will also pay just £60 between them for the days guiding. Discounts on this rate are available for those who wish to ride for more than one day (e.g. for a weekend or long weekend):

Downland Biking are keen to encourage more members of the fairer sex to get into mountain biking, so offer a discount to groups of women for both skills sessions and guiding.

Instructor or Guide: £60 per day per group.
Multiday rate: £50 per day per group if riding for more than one day (ie weekend).
Womens group rates: £50 per day per group for groups made up of female riders.

Prices for unusual requests (e.g. guiding all 100 miles of the South Downs Way) can be negotiated.

Contact
Initially please email with an outline of your requirements to: grantryantaylor@aol.com (and do include the dates that you'd like to ride). Alternatively you can telephone: 07789930307 leaving a message and we'll get back to you, or write to: Grant Taylor, Downland Biking, 10 Weald close, Barcombe, Lewes, East Sussex, BN8 5AY

Safety/Disclaimer
Mountain biking is inherently a dangerous pastime. You participate in any instruction or guiding from Downland Biking at your own risk. Whilst every endeavour will be made by your instructor to ensure your safety, he or Downland Biking will not be held responsible for any injury sustained to you, others on the course or members of the public caused by you or your bicycle whilst riding. To this end you will be asked to sign a disclaimer before you set off riding on the day. You are also asked to provide any information of a medical nature that might be of importance, bringing with you any medicine appropriate (eg insulin, asthma inhaler). You are also asked to make sure that you have a properly fitting cycle helmet (you will not ride without one) and are advised to have a pair of strong gloves and appropriate clothing for the day. Your instructor is a trained first aider. You will also be asked for a contact telephone number in case of emergency and you are advised to bring a mobile phone with you.