On Saturday 6th April, we arranged a day of guided mountain biking for a couple from Valencia.  This was part of a surprise weekend break, and included two nights at the rural guest house La Casona Ferrando in our home village of La Drova. Fernando and Vibrana were new to mountain biking so we opted for a beautiful route that passes through a wooded limestone gorge, not technical but sufficiently challenging to provide a great environment in which to learn some basic off-road techniques. After the usual safety briefing, we began with a gentle trail before taking on a steep [read more]

January has been a beautiful month with plenty of winter sun.  In between trips with clients, an important task is that of designing and riding new routes.  We´re often adding routes to our diverse selection as a way of catering for all levels of rider. The objective of today´s trip was to put a few finishing touches to a route that we´ve been working on a for a while. The day started with a climb up a very quiet mountain road as a way to gain a lot of height in a relatively short time period.  The trees were in [read more]

Looking ahead to the new year, an important task is to add some new routes to our collection.  We have routes to suit all abilities including complete novice, families with young children, casual riders and experienced cross country bikers.  This week´s project was a route that uses a quiet mountain lane to gain height in one of our spectacular local sierras.   Once up high, we used rocky trails to descend into some little known hidden valleys.  This part of the route took us into some remote country, with a feeling of isolation and peace.  The trails demanded attention but [read more]

On Thursday 29th November we had the pleasure of working with Blanca-Fit, a health and fitness company based in Moriara, Spain. They provide specialist holidays for those wanting to lose weight and keep fit. We were delighted to provide an activity day as part of their schedule.  We put together a day of guided mountain biking but also built-in a few sessions of technique and skills training. After the usual introductions and a brief safety demonstration, we set out onto the trail. An initial descent took us down into a wooded valley, where we joined a stony trail that ran [read more]

As part of the bespoke activity holiday that we´ve recently designed for Anne & Nigel from UK, we provided what is becoming an increasingly popular choice – a day of guided cross country mountain biking that included a few sessions of skills coaching.  Anne was particularly interested in developing her technique of descending rocky tracks. With that in mind we started the day with a sustained climb up onto the Sierra de Marxuquera, and up onto a trail that would provide some great descents.  Having spent some time perfecting body posture and braking and steering techniques we enjoyed the sweeping [read more]

We have recently arranged a week´s activity holiday for Anne and Nigel from Worcester, UK.  Together, we designed a bespoke package that included guided mountain biking and mountain walking. They stayed at the guest house Villa Florencia, situated in the beautiful valley of Marxuquera.  During the “welcome dinner” on the evening of their arrival we discussed the various options for the week.  Although both were very experienced outdoor enthusiasts we opted for a relatively gentle ride for the first day – a route of some 36km through a very pretty limestone gorge. We set out along a wooded trail before [read more]

Last weekend I had the pleasure of meeting Perrine and Laurens from Belgium.  They had recently contacted me to arrange a weekend in our area as part of a longer stay in the Valencia region. Having listened to their plans, I suggested a package offer that combined pick-up from the local railway station, 2 nights accommodation at a local country guest house, a day of guided mountain biking and drop-off at their next hotel.  Having agreed terms, they made the reservation and soon after I met them at Gandia railway station. They spent their weekend at the guest house “Casona [read more]

Last week, having spent a few days out in the hills with clients I was in the mood for a long ride with a difference. Most of my clients are looking for cross country mountain bike routes, although from time to time, some clients tend to look for something without the technical challenges of off-road riding but still want a long day out.   With this in mind, I wanted to work on a route that would offer something completely different – and with huge variety. Essentially, I wanted to design a route that would begin in the countryside of [read more]

On Thursday 9th August, I provided a guided mountain bike trip for a father and two sons who were holidaying at Villa Florencia in Marxuquera.  The eldest of the sons was celebrating his 18th birthday on that very day. The forecast was for temperatures to peak at around 32 degrees C but all 3 riders were fit and experienced.  With some sensible precautions, it´s possible to ride in these conditions.  Having ensured that we were carrying sufficient water and sun protection, and having amended the route accordingly, we set out.  I´d modified the route such that the main climb was [read more]