Despite worries that the conditions at Glentress would be somewhat challenging due to the big dollops of snow the area has been encountering recently, we’re pleased to say that day one of the British Mountain Bike Demo Series went incredibly well.

Hundreds of riders made the pilgrimage from all over Scotland and the North of England to get their hands on some of the UK’s top steeds made available by the eight big exhibitors; Specialized, Giant, Trek, Gary Fisher, Merida, Santa Cruz, Yeti and Genesis.

Each brand made riders more than welcome, taking the time to talk through each bike, before a choice was made and then making sure that bike was set up perfectly for that rider. Suspension was dialled, pedals fixed and the best possible riding setup sorted before the riders then headed out to test the best on a cracking demo loop. There was plenty of advice for the ladies too, with a good range of women specific models on offer across the brands.

There were plenty of other things to test too; Accelerade were on hand showing off their range of nutrition products featuring their popular protein enhanced energy drink and gels, whilst Fox provided the chance to try out their range of helmets and gloves. Meanwhile Osprey were busy providing demo hydration packs from their excellent Raptor series for riders to take to the trails with.

With such an excellent turn out coupled with brilliant blue skies, over 400 hundred demo rides in such a stunning part of the world, scrummy cake and lashings of hot beverages from The Hub, we can truly say the day was hit for everyone involved.

Many thanks to the Forestry Commission for making the day run smoothly and of course many thanks to everyone who came along, chatted, rode and went away hopefully as buzzing about it as we did.

Stu King of Yeti commented: “Despite the icy conditions, Glentress was a great start to the series for Yeti – plenty of willing riders to check out and compare the best bikes around. Roll on Sherwood Pines.”

The demo organisers were delighted with the first event, saying:  “It was a fantastic start to the Demo series that far surpassed our expectations. Conditions at Glentress haven’t been brilliant these last couple of weeks, but the Forestry Commission have pulled out all the stops to ensure we had a great demo route.

“Riders came from near and far and the place was buzzing all day as riders hurried from brand to brand keen to see what was available to ride. We even heard that a few riders headed off soon after to their local dealer to purchase the model they’d test ridden, so that was a bonus! Can’t wait to see it all unfold again at Sherwood, it’s sure to be a blast!”

Don’t worry if you missed our little adventure into Scotland, there are still five demo weekends spread throughout the year. The next one will be in Sherwood Pines on the 27/28 March, where the eight brands will be joined by Pace. Just remember to bring some ID – Passport/ Driving licence and a valid credit/debit card and you can get a ticket to ride all day.

World Champion Steve Peat will be making a brief at this round too, and three-time Olympian Oli Beckingsale might even be around, warming up for the first round of the

British Mountain Bike Race Series, which kicks off on the 28 March.

For full details of the exciting British Mountain Bike Demo & Race Series head over to www.britishxc.com