Not sure if this is the best place to post this - just wondering if anyone has ridden the Taff Trail recently? Suitable surfaces for a road bike, or is it all a bit ruftfy-tuffty? I only ask because I'm likely to be doing it on the way back from a FNRttC, and I'd rather not be on an mtb for that if I can avoid it...
Taff Trail surfaces
- Thread starter theclaud
- Start date
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summerdays
Cycling in the sun
- Location
- Bristol
Which coast are you cycling back from that you would be using the Taff trail? I haven't ridden any of it for quite some time but there are some parts that are lined with diamonds or other stuff that glitters similarly in the sunshine - quite impressively!!!
What I mean is what part of it would you be using ... quite a bit of it ... or just a short stretch?
What I mean is what part of it would you be using ... quite a bit of it ... or just a short stretch?
Sorry - I wasn't being very clear - they are two separate rides. I'm doing a Taff Trail charity ride as part of a team. Brecon-Cardiff Bay I think. It just happens to be the same weekend as a London-Brighton FNRttC, and because it's kind of on the way back, it would be a pain to have to go home to Swansea first - hence the need to use the same bike for both...
Ridden the Taff trail many times over last few years. Most of the trail can be done on a standard road bike and all the trail is within the limits of a hybrid.
The bits that will give you some issues are :-
1. The climb from Tal Y Bont reservoir up to Torpantu (seven mile bank). the surface is not great with a gravel/stone surface. You can do on a road bike but you need to be careful to avoid larger stones and/or pot holes. You could avoid this section and go via the road (one hell of a steep climb :-) )
2. The forestry bits approaching Pontsticill. (Although this is easy to resolve, just go along the road by the reservoir as there is very little traffic anyway)
3. The high level route between taffs well and Castall Coch is similar to (1). Rough gravel/stone which can be ridden with care on a racer but you need to take it easy. To be honest most people tend to go the lower route (past Taffs Well train station) then the road into Tongwynlais.
4. Bits of the trail suffer from broken glass from local scumbags (notably the area around Pontypridd going through a housing estate)
If you want to use a racer with a little bit more confidence then change tyres upto 700-28 (possible 700-32 if they will fit)
