Ace video that really gets across those rides where you and your buddies try to push yourself to ride hard stuff. “That didn’t seem so bad… he had tons of grip”.

>>> Seven of the scariest mountain bike trails

What makes a trail hard? Well, in this case it’s not really anything to do with traction issues. The dirt looks primo (as they say) and the weather is sunshiney. Even though there’s roots a-plenty they aren’t death defyingly slippery.

What makes this trail so hard is a combination of awkward tight stuff and simple sheer steepness. There isn’t much scope for the usual momentum-cures-everything technique. There’s not much here that you can easily let go of the brakes and ride out without penalty.

It’s full of old skool tech moves essentially. There’s not much in the way jumps or hucks. It’s wheels on the ground daredevil teetering of the highest calibre.

This is quite a long video (18+ minutes) and that’s partly because it has kept in a lot of the non-riding scoping-and-pointing ‘chin-stroking’ sessions. Those classic minutes that a group spends analysing a trail obstacle. Loads of pointing and staring and subtle encouragement.

Video description

BCpov: “The crew head out for the “Big Boys Day Out”, a day where we try to push our limits and ride the hardest trails we can find. Turns out I was in over my head on this trail and got a rude awakening.”