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Mountain Biking
Mountain biking provides your group with a great opportunity to get out into the countryside. The following sites will give you an idea of what’s about - we hear the Forest of Dean Bike Trail is rather special, and closer to home there’s the trail along the river in Leigh Woods.
Young Bristol organise a selection of rides from Pooles Wharf Activity Centre, Hotwells, such as one through Leigh Woods to Avonmouth. They also provide equipment and clothing and an optional minibus pick-up. Subscribe to their mailing list for details of beginners’ rides, generally every two or three weeks, and normally on Saturdays.
Charterhouse Centre, near Blagdon - explore the hills, forests and moors of the Mendips, off road.
The Forest of Dean has many waymarked graded cycle trails, that vary from easy to severe. Two skills loops have also been created to aid cyclists learning off road skills. Check out the Visit Forest of Dean website for links to pages covering all aspects of cycling in the Forest of Dean, as well as a map of all the graded trails. Why not visit the Cannop Cycle Centre in the Forest of Dean. It is the starting point for the Forest of Dean Family Cycle Trail which consists of eleven miles of waymarked, surfaced tracks, most of which are on former railway lines. It offers bike hire, refreshments and toilets.
Check out Nick’s Cool Routes website for great mountain biking routes in easy reach of Bristol.
Bristol Mountain Bike Club - lots of information about mountain biking in and around Bristol, with tips for beginners. They also have a mailing list to get information on local rides as they are planned.
North Bristol Mountain Bike Club - A club for mountain bikers of any age, with free membership. Generally meeting to ride on a Sunday morning in North Road for a ride in Ashton Court and Leigh Woods.
For comprehensive information on local mountain biking clubs and organisations as well as loads of other useful information including a route planner see the Better by Bike website.
Exmoor Adventures offer excellent mountain biking sessions, which have been tried and tested by Impala groups.
Sustrans is an organisation dedicated to promoting cycling, and has good maps and suggestions for cycling routes locally and nationally – 7000 miles worth, in fact.
What to take biking … To have a fun and safe day, don’t forget to take a helmet; water (at least half a litre per 10 miles in the winter, twice that amount in the summer. Drink little and often); a spare inner tube, tyre levers and a pump; money for a phone, tea and some food; something to eat, but avoid chocolate and sugary stuff - bananas, dried fruit, flapjacks and cereal bars are good.
See also Bikes.
Music Workshops
The good thing about living in or near Bristol is that there are loads of musicians to call on, and to cater for pretty much all tastes. A selection is listed below or you can also try the Creative Learning Agency’s artists' database under Music.
Youth Music Action Zone (YMAZ) is the UK's leading music charity and has a Bristol office (Remix) and South West co-ordinator "to facilitate and fund high quality and diverse musical experiences for all young people".
But here are a few more:
Duende provide workshops for up to 60 people at a time, introducing Latin American music with pan pipes for all - £400 for a full days workshop, shorter sessions charged pro rata.
Folk south west - a folk arts development organisation for the South West of England, woking to stimulate enjoyment, participation and creativity in the music, song, dance and traditions of the South West
Hello Interactive bring mobile recording studio to create original music (instruments and digital), record on to CD and even perform live. Educational workshops (write a rap to learn your history facts); training at staff inset days; a creative learning resource for schools. Tailor-made approach, including special needs.
Pax Productions - run an Open College Network (OCN) accredited Performing Arts course for young people aged 16-19.
Actiontrack is a music and performance participatory art company offering workshops, and participatory arts projects for educational, social and community organisations. Projects can involve any combination of music, theatre, design, dance, and spectacle and are always practical and totally participatory in nature.
Aune Head Arts is a rurally-based contemporary arts organisation, which commissions work, provides workshops and training (CPD), and works closely with communities in and around Dartmoor National Park.
Liam Gallimore-Wells - Poeticize is an interactive performance forum fusing cutting -edge spoken word, new media, and live beats from a Black perspective. Stage progressive cross-art form showcase events; A key focus of Poeticize's approach to facilitating live spoken word sessions and workshops is to promote oracy, literacy, and positive self-expression.
Metalworks Gamelan - gamelans are a large Indonesian instrument, but these folk are a group of 8 musicians who play an English built gamelan of brass, aluminium and wood. Give them a ring for something completely different – they want to encourage young people to compose their own gamelan pieces.
Acoustic Arts make instruments from around the world out of recycled material. Will bring along a collection of them for inspiriation. Follow through with percussion workshops
Multi Arts has a bank of music workshop leaders for in or out of school work. Also arrange visits from big performers and companies
Girls only? Try Women in Tune for information on a women-only music festival in August. They have a wide range of women musicians and are happy to advise.
Tomorrows Warriors - nurture and develop talented young jazz musicians who wish to pursue a professional career in jazz. They offer youth music education and professional artist development
Wholeland Chris Holland does workshops which involve a display of about 10 didgeridoos, some Aboriginal Australian, some English and even some made from metal and plastic. Chris will play, tell creation stories and some of the history and cultural significance of the didgeridoo. You will find out Aboriginal Australian names for the didgeridoo, why the kangaroo hops about these days and what happened when the first didgeridoo was played in the Dreamtime. Then out comes the bag of practice didges! Up to 60 people can have a go all at once - and telling stories with sound effects on the didge.
Wren Music is a Devon-based organisation that facilitates concerts, workshops, celebrations, events, playing, singing, choirs etc.
SETTING UP A BAND - Lots of young people start bands and being in a band means learning a whole range of new skills - these may include enthusiasm, patience, negotiation, team work, working against the odds, creativity, confidence and cooperation. Rock School is an online action plan offering information about the trials and tribulations of setting up a band.