Desert Rose Academy - Stage 1

er-minio

Well-known member
UKGSer Subscriber
Joined
Mar 10, 2008
Messages
6,921
Reaction score
556
Location
London/Rome
After several months greenlaning on the GSA, plus a few incursions in the Salisbury Plains, I decided it was time to get some proper training offroad.
I'm comfortable on asphalt, but I don't really know much when I hit the dirt.

I wanted to start from scratch to learn all the basics and prevent building up bad technique, so booked level 1.

The venue they are using for leve 1 is amazingly beautiful.
I asked a bigger bike and got a Husky 701 (I still tried some bits with the smaller 350s later in the day) because I wanted to understand how I'd feel with a single 600ish bike offroad (I'm used to the GSA) weight-wise.

I really appreciated how most of the morning is on bike positioning and slow speed clutch exercises (I assumed I was better at that, but no).
End of story: in the past year offroad I was doing a lot of stuff completely wrong. :D Enjoyed the day and learnt a lot. Mostly: I can handle a 600ish fairly easily. The guys in the course with me had a good banter going on, so Harry the instructor. It was a very good day.

I'm a bit gutted I cannot repeat the exercises or try my cornering now... as some of them are a bit hard/expensive to do with the GSA on semi-normal tyres :D
Have to buy that thumper soon.

Looking forward to booking Stage 2 from September on.


Very short, very uneventful, video:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f3sLxfWvURg" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
260.
That includes the bike(s) and all the kit if you don’t have it.

One of the participants came over with his own bike on a trailer. Apparently it is cheaper if you bring your own, as they can waive the rental fee, but I think it has to be discussed with the directly, as I don’t think it’s an option on the site.
 
I've just booked my 8 year old daughter on their introduction to trials course (on leccie Oset)

Should be fun!
 
Should be fun!

It will be.
To be fair I was slightly worried going there (I'm out of my element), but actually it was a real fun day.
Also, not sure about the kids, but most of the exercises you do at the beginning are at very slow speed or near static, that helps a lot with confidence.

We had mixed weather, and that was actually good. Decent mix of mud/compact dirt.
 
Also, not sure about the kids, but most of the exercises you do at the beginning are at very slow speed or near static, that helps a lot with confidence.

.

You've not met my youngest daughter - she's a little nut job and loves anything that involves danger or speed.

I am fully expecting her to nail it and crash very early on!!! :D
 

Hey,
A nice ride! I was hoping to get some training offroad with a private instuctor. But I will have to undergo meniscectomy next week (they will remove a torn meniscus from my knee)... And the doctors say I won't be able to ride a bike till next summer...

__
Arthur
 
just spent 3 minutes on the site. Its slow to to load, and I still don't know where they are located for stage 1 courses. Location?
 
Loads in under a couple of seconds on my computer.

I think the locations might vary slightly according to which course and time of the year. You normally get the confirmation when you book the course.
The one I did, in the video, is on private grounds, 15 minutes away from their listed address in Kent. The nearest postcode (the farm opposite the entrance) was: TN21 8TU.

Strongly considering doing stage 2, but I want to do some more riding before booking it.
 


Back
Top Bottom