Another Wintery January……Another Strathpuffer
Posted on Jan 14, 2025
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The Strathpuffer 2025 came around again very quickly so on the 11th and 12th of January we were back in a snowy and cold Contin forest for another twenty-four hours of mountain bike mayhem! Having done this event for at least ten years now I honestly believe a tougher Puffer you’ll never ever get. Beautiful but brutal sums it nicely and here is why.
The Weather
In Aberdeen we had snow on and off for around 10 days and Contin was no different. Temperatures were sub zero the whole weekend and as low as -12°C at one point but thankfully there was no further snow over the weekend.
Team Line-Up
The planned team line-up was the same as last year, i.e., Michiel, Luca, Alec and Neil (myself). Unfortunately, Luca had to drop out, but Scott stepped up from his “backup” rider role extremely late on (he volunteered, honestly) to save the day. Scott stepping in was perfect as he had done the Puffer before so there were still no excuses with three bikes and four riders starting.
This year there were 188 solos, eighty-one pairs, sixty-eight quads and four schools entering, making the 12.5km track as busy as ever.
Base Camp
With the camper van again, the further improved gazebo as the bike workshop/sitting room/store, the usual massive tent was swapped out for a smaller one to speed up site setup and take down and everything worked well again. We even got the same spot along the road from the main campsite.
Our Race
The Track
It was the same as last year, but for the Strathpuffer 2025 that low bridge was replaced by a much nicer footpath (thank you very much). Hopefully, next year the organizers can install a culvert in that small stream everyone has to cross as it caught Scott out (it is too deep now to cycle through and too wide to jump as its just after a low-speed corner).
Conditions
Were so tough, the snow in places behaved just like snow but in lots of other places there was what I have been calling “sand snow” i.e., snow that would not freeze solid even at -12°C and it would not melt either. It had everyone fishtailing, tank slapping and wheel spinning all over the place constantly. Overtaking was extremely difficult as a result (I almost fell on a trackside tent just trying to get back onto the line after overtaking) and there were lots of low-speed offs and constant dabs until everyone got to grips with things.
Nice time of the year for camping. 
Yes the track is in there somewhere! 
Sometimes walking was the only way forward.
Conditions did improve in most areas with line(s) becoming wider, however in other parts the ruts just got deeper, and a couple of parts got icier! By the end everyone had adapted to a motocross/speedway style of riding to stay upright on the tricky parts.
Tyres
Ahh tyres, they are often a bit of a guess as to which ones to fit before leaving home. Well not this year as everyone fitted ice tyres but were we right? I did some research during my laps (I chatted about tyres and pressures with anyone going as slow as me). I also managed some traction comparisons on the hills and concluded that ice or mud tyres made little difference.
Technical Issues
One puncture (spotted just before going out lost us a bit of time) and freezing water bottles (whilst out on track!) were our only issues but brake squeal was a regular annoyance, and other riders seemed to suffer with frozen dropper posts and gears.
Our Result
This year “The Pscyclepath” team only managed fourteen laps which placed us forty-fifth out of sixty-two. Not what we were hoping for but given the conditions it was an incredibly good effort. If the race was the following weekend, it would have been a different story as everything melted on Monday!
However, on our last lap we did get “a glorious Scottish winter sunrise” as advertised on the Strathpuffer website.
Thanks
To Luca for entering the team again, to Scott for stepping in so late on, to Nathan at Nuffield Health in Aberdeen for helping get a chubby old guy (Neil) in much better shape for this event, to Alta Suspension for fixing the numerous issues on Neil’s Chain Reaction Cycles “bargain” (lemon really) bike and to Digital Downhill for the purchased photo in this post.
Next Year?
Absolutely, it has turned into a bit of ritual and a good fitness goal. So, yes hopefully we will see you there again in 2026 (entries open on the 4th of July 2025)!
More Information
For more information on the Strathpuffer 2025 see https://strathpuffer.co.uk/ and for their 2025 charities see Trussell and Mikeysline.
Finally for more information on Bloxwich Group, Bloxwich Truck & Container, Bloxwich Stamping and Bloxwich Trading please call us on +44(0) 1543 435 160 or