Aston Hill is a technical mountain biking venue, but in the hill-starved south east it’s the downhills that put the centre on the mountain biking map. There are five graded downhills in the park which boast a variety of riding conditions and difficulty levels, and have produced numerous nationally and internationally competitive riders.
The Red Run doubles as the downhill for the XC loop. However, don’t be fooled into thinking that it’s easy. It’s not as steep as the other tracks, but it does contain a few surprises to keep riders on their toes, with off-camber rooty sections and technical switchbacks. This run is used by riders getting used to the steeper, tighter riding of Aston Hill and is a great trail to build skills in an environment where you can ride safely and as fast as your confidence allows.
The Black Run is the oldest and probably the most popular trail at Aston Hill, and for good reason: it’s the steepest trail of the park. While DH3 and 4 have steep sections, the Black Run stays steep from the moment it starts right down to the drop into the bus stop at the bottom. On the way down you’ll encounter bermed switchbacks, roots, drops and steep off-camber sections, before merging with DH4 for the final 30 metres.
DH3 is probably the fastest of the five runs with bigger, sweeping turns interspersed with rooty sections. The top section is a gentle slope through the woods with a few small table-tops, before some big bermed turns into the steeper section of the course. While not as sheer as the Black Run, it still has plenty of challenge with fast off-camber sections and rooty drops, before a set of tighter switchbacks at the end.
DH4 uses the same start as the Black, Red and XC runs, but gets down to business a lot early – it branches off almost immediately and heads down from there. As a course it’s somewhere between the Black and DH3 in terms of its technicality and speed and features a large drop halfway down.
DH5 (4-2-3) Built in summer 2009, it was the course used for the 2009 Southern Downhill Championships. Keep an eye on www.rideastonhill.co.uk for developments.
