BREAKING GROUND

Mountain biking is booming, and the demand for new and bigger riding spots is stronger than ever – step forward the Rother Valley, Sheffield

Under the radar in South Yorkshire, one of Britain’s biggest mountain bike clubs has grown from scratch out of a group of Facebook mates, and now boasts a brand-new trail, council backing and now Steve Peat as a patron. Not bad for a club less than a decade old.

It’s called Rother Valley Riders and is home to hundreds of bikers local to the same-name Country Park where a brand-new trail now complements the existing 7km of sanctioned singletrack. With Rotherham council and a local MP onboard, plus a few grand from memberships and donations, the club enlisted top trail builders Bike track (based a stone’s throw away) to lay down 27 berms and create a super-fast flow trail. With professionally built corners, rollers, drainage, and small jumps, the new 650-meter long Digger’s trail completely ramps up the quality and all-season durability and is the first piece in the puzzle of plans to resurface and redesign other trails threading down the Country Park’s hillsides.