I went to Kirroughtree on Saturday, a new man made trail centre which has been built using funding from the Scottish Executive, aka Money Pit.
Compared to the other 7 Stanes routes it is a tad tricky with plenty optional stuff. Its really nice to ride somewhere new once in a while because riding the same stuff over and over makes you sloppy as you know whats coming!
Anyway, the red and black route (the black is an extension of the red) weighs in at roughly 35Km, and its all pretty technical - hard work for sure. When we got to the best bit, a trail built on top of huge expanses of granite (McMoab), I was already getting pretty tired and made loads of mistakes on this black diamond graded feature. Usually I would find it really tough but when you keep starting and stopping your enthusiasm to grit your teeth and keep the rhythm going fades away.
The above picture of me riding down a small rock chute was taken near the start. It was a really good day though, probably one of the best of the man made trails in my opinion.
Photo courtesy of Dougie Cowie