Skills for thrills weekend edition

• May 20-22 or May 27-29 2016
• two nights accommodation with all corresponding meals
• mtb technical exercises and short rides in Bran Country
• special offers for couples and families

What is the best mtb upgrade? A dropper seat? Two rings in front, or just one? A new frame with updated geometry? Or maybe a brand new bike, with bigger wheels and all the new bits everyone is talking about?

Well, all that and none of it. The best investment is upgrading your own skills. Learning those good habits that can make an average bike a proper tool for enjoyment. Mountain biking is about equipment, but it is a lot about proper technique.

Riding a bike is one thing, mountain biking is all that and something more. It adds to the free-floating sensation one gets while rolling on a bike the shear pleasure of doing it up the mountain, climbing and descending on rocky trails and over roots, through forests or across alpine meadows.

Join us on a Skills for Thrills weekend in the mountains, to talk and practice mountain biking techniques around Șimon village in Bran Country, near the Bran Castle. We have special offers for adults coming with their kids and even better ones for full-family appearances.

A mtb instructor qualified in Austria, with special training for kids workshops, Mihai Constantenec is coming over in May to share his experience in years of racing, guiding, teaching mountain biking. Here’s what’s on the menu:

• setting up the cockpit: positioning the shifters and break levers on the handlebar, etc.
• the proper position on the bike
• with or without SPDs?
• turning, breaking techniques
• climbing and descending
• bunny-hops

For some of us learning the mtb skills is an organic process. We learn by doing, by trying, by falling. Small steps evolution. (We’ve been there, so we know.)

Others, however, might not have the time for taking things slowly. Or maybe they are just smarter, realizing that this whole process can be shortened significantly. Or they want to invest in their kids skills, as they do when they send them for swimming sessions, on ski camps or for piano lessons. Maybe they want to team up with fellow mountain biking enthusiasts, to share the joy of riding a bike up the mountain on rocky trails or over roots, in sunshine or rain, through dust or mud.

For all this people we planned two weekends of mountain biking technical workshops: May 20-22 and May 27-29, at Conacul Șimonean, a pension near Bran Castle with good accommodation and delicious home-made food. Friends and families are welcome, there are a lot of hiking options or visits to Bran Castle. (On request mountainguide.ro can organize more serious hiking trips.)

Program:

Friday:

• individual arrival in Șimon village, Bran, Brașov County starting with 18.00
• assembling the bikes, checking equipment
• warm dinner, discussions

Sâmbătă:

• breakfast
• morning technical session
• short bike ride on Balaban ridge, doing exercises in real-life situations (sandwiches for lunch)
• warm dinner, discussions

Sunday:

• breakfast
• short technical session in the morning, repeating exercises from the first day
• a longer tour of about 20km, with longer sessions of climbing and single trail riding, putting to practice things we learned in the two days (sandwiches for lunch)
• warm soup before the end of the program

We’ll take lots of photos and we’ll film the activities so we can all brag about later on Facebook!

The program and the exercises will be adapted to the specifics of the group.

The price per person is 690 RON and it includes the workshops, the guiding (there will be two guides for bigger groups), accommodation in double rooms and food according to the program. Soft drinks and alcoholic drinks not included. The single supplement is 90 RON.

We have a special offer for couples or families: only one person will pay the full price of 690 RON, the rest (partner, husband-wife, child) will only pay a 290 RON supplement, not matter if they will participate in the mtb workshop or not. A single family cant not use more than one of the two available appartments or a double room.

You can choose the May 20-22 weekend or the May 27-29 weekend. The pension has 7 double rooms and two apartments. The rule is first come, first served. Closing time for booking is end of April.

The workshop is organized by Step by Step Agency SRL, an outdoor adventures tourism agency from Brașov (www.mountainguide.ro). Booking confirmation is done after full payment (bank transfer or on-line credit card payment available).

You can subscribe to one of the two camps by emailing us at contact@mtbtours.ro or at contact @mountainguide.ro, or on the Facebook event page (May 20-22 here https://www.facebook.com/events/208990476140214/, or May 27-29 here https://www.facebook.com/events/232191233803181/). We’ll get back with payment details and all other required information.

Looking forward to hear from you!