Day one began with a gentle ride through orange groves and olive groves, all on easy dirt trails, allowing them to become familiar with the Trek mountain bikes that they had rented from us.  There then followed a section of more rocky terrain, providing a good opportunity to practice the correct techniques for safe and controlled descent.  After this, there followed a relaxed ride through more orange groves to the beautiful and historical town of Xativa, birthplace to the only two Spanish popes and the first place in Europe to produce paper.

After a coffee in the old cobbled market square, we headed for some slightly more demanding trails. The pretty riverside trail provided great opportunities for practicing accurate riding along narrow tracks, how to climb rocky terrain and how to handle some longer, loose descents.

After a long session spent perfecting these techniques, we enjoyed a picnic lunch then headed back through the orange groves, albeit on different trails back to the van.

Day two began in the same place but began with a short road ride of approximately 20 minutes that took us up into the Barx valley.  The trails there included a slightly steeper descent and a short steep climb on loose rocks.  Both provided excellent opportunities for developing the techniques introduced on day 1.  Then we tackled a long climb up onto the Sierra de Marxuquera.  The effort was rewarded with some great views of the Vall de Albaida, followed by a quick descent to the farming village of Pinet.

After a coffee break, we took to some quite remote mountain trails, where we spent more time on techniques for riding on loose, rocky terrain and sand.  After  good rest and lunch break in the shade of a pine forest we then took on the day´s final climb before enjoying a long and sweeping trail that took us through a wooded mountain pass and back down to our finishing point.

We´d spent a great couple of days together, had a lot of fun, seen some beautiful scenery and hopefully all three will return home with a new set of skills that they´ll use for years to come.

Posted by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Guided Mountain Biking & Skills Training appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

As well as an ideal training ride, we also included some fundamental off-road skills training.  The day began with a ride through the Barxeta valley, then through orange groves to the beautiful and historical town of Xativa.  After a coffee break in the market square, we headed out onto the trails that took us through a very pretty limestone valley.  This provided ideal opportunity to practice some techniques for safe and efficient descent and ascent on rocky ground, albeit it beautiful surroundings.

After a picnic lunch under the imposing crag of Aventador, we headed along some different tracks back through the Barxeta valley before taking on the final climb of the day back up into Barx and La Drova.

Hopefully the day had provided Karen with some useful training and skills which will be of use when she takes on her challenge in October, which will surely be a tough challenge but for such a worthy cause.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia

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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 descent into the valley.  After a section of fairly level woodland trail we moved onto much rockier ground.  After a few practice sessions, we then took on some descents and a rocky ascent, all of which were successfully completed and in complete control.

A long section of fairly relaxed riding took us out of the valley and into a local farming village where we enjoyed a coffee break.

Our return route included a river crossing and a gentle but long climb back up to the trail that would lead us once more through the gorge.  The sting in the tail of this route is that there are three short but very steep climbs to finish on.  Each one was taken on in exactly the right frame of mind and with superb technique.  All three were climbed successfully – a wonderful achievement for a great couple!

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Guided Mountain Biking for Couples appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

The first day was a relatively short ride of some 35km albeit with some quite steep climbing. This took us up into the Sierra de Marxuquera, along some gravel trails before descending into the Albaida valley for a coffee break in a farming village. We then took to some slightly more demanding trails to practice specific techniques for safe climbing and descending on loose, rocky terrain. After lunch we made the day´s final climb into a beautiful hanging valley from where we began the long winding decent down a rocky track back to the van.

Day two was a much longer route of 60km, that began in Xativa and took us along a singletrack high above a river. After lunch we climbed out of the valley and enjoyed a long flowing stretch of rocky trail high in the Sierra de Quatretonda.

Once back at valley level, we enjoyed a leisurely ride through orange groves before using the initial riverside singletrack to return to Xativa.

Day three was departure day so we started a little earlier and opted for a short but strenuous route on the mountain of Benicadell. An initial climb of 6km took us high onto the mountain from where we followed the entire ridge before a long, fast descent back to the valley. The relaxed return route through the Albaida Valley made for a superb ending to the trip, all in good time for my clients to shower, change and drive to the airport.

A great long weekend of mountain biking, superb trails, great company and a lot of fun.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

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They took the train from Valencia to Gandia, passing through the natural park and rice fields of Albufera along the way.  We met in Gandia and made the short road journey to the start of the route in the La Safor mountains.  Although both very active people, they were new to mountain biking, so the day commenced with a brief safety demonstration, and a little time well spent setting up the bikes to ensure maximum comfort.

The route started with an easy descent into a valley followed by a pleasant trail through woodlands, before emerging beside a very pretty river that flowed between high limestone cliffs.  A long section of great rocky trail took us through the narrow limestone gorge before we arrived at a wide fertile valley with olive and almond groves and vineyards.

After a brief lunch followed by coffee in a local village, we opted for a return route that involved a (cold!) river crossing.  Once back on the bikes, we took to the rocky trail back through the gorge, this time spending some time on safe descent techniques.  A couple of short steep climbs took us back up to the van.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Mountain Biking in Valencia. appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

As Keith was a very accomplished biker, I´d suggested a route that left Simat and headed out through the valley to the town of Alzira.

From there we began a long, steep and sustained climb on rocky trails that took us up into a hanging valley in the Sierra de la Agujas. This valley has a feeling of remoteness and raw beauty and the biking whilst not severe, does demand a good level of fitness and ability.

After the long climb, we enjoyed the trail up through the valley before finishing the day with a very steep, fast descent back into the valley of Valldigna and a short ride back to the village of Simat.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Guided Mountain Biking for Individuals appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

We had designed a bespoke package that included 6 nights at the Casa Rural Villa Florencia in Marxuquera, and 5 full days of guided mountain biking.

After such a long journey, day one was designed to provide a relaxed ride over the Sierra de Marxuquera on some great mountain trails, with coffee breaks at a couple of Valencian farming villages.

Day two took us high up onto the mountain of Benicadell in the Albaida valley. After a 6km climb, we biked along a high level trail that gave superb, far reaching views way out across the peaks and valleys of this spectacular area of Spain. A long and fast descent took us back into the valley where we biked back through fruit groves before ending the day with tapas and a beer.

Day three was a varied route that included a steep sided valley on a riverside single track, rocky flowing mountain trails and a visit to the historical town of Xativa where we lunched in the sunshine of the old market square.

Day four was the longest day, a route of 80kms that linked together some of the areas visited during the first three days with a limestone gorge that the group had biked in during their previous visit. Well rested we then headed into the town of Gandia where we spent the evening touring the tapas bars.

The final day was a relatively short one in view of their early start the day after, but we opted for a more technically demanding route in the high mountains of the Sierra de la Bernia.

An absolutely fantastic week of superb biking and great company.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Welcoming back returning clients. appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

We chose a route of some 40km, that took in some superb trails up in the Sierra de Marxuquera, close to Gandia before descending into the Albaida valley where we stopped for a coffee break in the square of an old farming village.

We continued on some great rocky trails then climbed up out of the valley, stopping for lunch in a beautiful sunny spot beside a stream.  After lunch we continued the climb out of the Albaida valley on a farm track before taking once more to the rocky trails that criss-cross the mountains of this beautiful area.  A long , flowing trail took us down through a very pretty wooded valley back to the van.

It´s always special to welcome back returning clients and the combination of good weather, fantastic trails and great company had made the day a real pleasure.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Weekend Break & Mountain Biking in Xativa. appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

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 full blossom and provided an encouraging sign that Spring is not far away.

We then took to the trails, to begin the day´s first descent.  The first section was rocky and demanded care but was a pleasure to ride.

There followed another steady climb up onto a col between two peaks, which gave great views across the sierras.

The day ended with a beautiful descent back to the valley, the stunning blue of the Mediterranean providing a fantastic backdrop.

For bespoke guided mountain bike trips for small groups, couples or individuals please visit Mountain Biking Valencia.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia.

The post Designing New Mountain Bike Routes. appeared first on Mountain Biking in Spain MTB.

We began the day with a short road ride over a pass before we took the the trails.  Our route for the day was 40kms in length and included a couple of longish climbs and some fantastic, flowing rocky trails.

It´s always great to provide something bespoke for a client and to give Andy a small taste of Valencia as part of such an epic trip was an honour.  Great company, a superb biker and a pleasure to meet.

Written by David Warrington.

Mountain Bike Guide & Instructor at Mountain Biking Valencia

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