I’ve been running the excellent Charge Splashback tyres most the summer, and have been enjoying their fast and predictable feel- although with our notoriously slippy combo of claggy mud, greasy flint and rock, they’ve started to come unstuck over the last few rides.

I haven’t really wanted to take them off as they’re very light and roll so fast- as well as looking fantastic with the skin walls. It’s not mucky enough out yet for super chunky tyres, so I’ve fitted a pair of trusty High Roller LUST tyres, but have cut the rear tyre down to minimise rolling resistance. Leaving the side knobs as they are keeps them planted on off camber and other dodgy terrains, but they have plenty of grip to keep the speed up- and hopefully rubberside down on the trails…

The trusty Crud Catcher is coming back in to play as well, stopping that irritating spray coating my face- although I won’t be needing anything full-on like the fast Fender just yet. Touch wood…

You can see all the gory Glory action in an MBUK headed toward a newstand near you soon. In the mean time though, I’ve got some serious TLC to administer…

Anyway, I’m back – as you’ve probably guessed. That was easily one of the best trips I’ve ever been on – no question.

We rode everything from SRAM’s test track to 15 minute long flat-out sand and rock terror tracks which spat us out onto full-speed road descents past ancient churches and right onto the beach!

The heat was head-bending though, 35 degrees plus most days. Shade was definitely a valuable comodity and come the middle of the day we had to retreat from the hillside to the relative cool of the communal pool.

The tracks are ultra-gnarly and require a lot of mental re-jigging. The loose, dusty surface doesn’t reward the British norm of ‘front brake on the way in’ braking and you just have to get used to the bike constantly flicking about – it’s tricky at first but really rewarding.

I also had two massive fails; the first was having a big old crash which left me with bruised ribs and a dislocated finger. The second was buying a six-pack of non-alcoholic beer.

It was hot. I didn’t speak the language and I was being rushed! Okay?! Anyway, Pete from Silverfish told me they were the best ones to get. He’d know.

Anyway, here are some ‘behind the scenes’ shots from the trip. You can read full details of our stay with Switchbacks DH in an issue coming your way very soon.

On Friday I had a day off booked and with the weather man predicting sun, sun, sun there was only one place I wanted to go – the Forest of Dean with FlyUp DH.

After the Clic24 enduro race the majority of riding I’d been doing had just been lazy BMX track sessions so I was long overdue a good thrash on the downhill bike.

I crawled out of bed, necked some coffee, stuck the Glory in our Mercedes Vito Sport and hit the M4. You know it’s going to be a good day when there are blokes actually removing 50mph average speed limit signs …

Despite missing the first run of the day and the one before lunch with a puncture I managed to get a shed load of runs in. The best thing about

FlyUp, though, is the variety of riding that you can tackle. There are seven easily accessible tracks straight from where you’re dropped and they all offer something a bit different.

The uplift itself only takes five minutes and thanks to all the tracks being fairly compact, you’re never waiting about too long. Si the boss is an absolute gent and keeps everything running smoothly and has some big plans for the future.

If you’re anywhere near Gloucestershire (or South Wales), ever, then book a day with FlyUp – you won’t regret it!