Marmelete

Getting away from it all and ride!

"WE rode some great fun enduro trails outside Monchique, Algarve. The trails were a good mixture as in some were jump lines (no real gaps) some steep and technical and some just flowy and berms. All in all a good days riding albeit a fair amount of climbing given the heat for this fair skinned lad. Bikes were mint as was the guide Luis who tailored the ride to suit us. WE even got to try pork cheek for lunch which I wouldn't have known to order - a delicious treat and something new for me."

                                                                                                                                     Peter Clague

Hello again! This is my third time with WERIDE!

"Hello again :-)
By now I went out biking with WERIDE for 3 times.
The first time was in November 16. I have been on a business trip in Lisbon so I took the chance and booked a day of guiding in Sintra. But I had no bike no protection and no bike wear with me so Hugo organised everything for me :-) He was very patient with me and uncomplicated. Then I met Miguel (the guide) at Sintra who brought everything for me. The biking was a combination of pedaling until lunch and some shuttle assisted uplifts after lunch, so actually just perfect :-)"

"The second time was during a three-week-roadtrip this year in May. And again Hugo was very patient with me and tryed to organise everything to be fully satisfied. What wasnt easy because we were just 2 guys and pretty spontaneous ;-P
But he could handle this very well. So he "sent" us to Algarve to meet Luis and ride with him the trails at Fonte Ferrea in Sao Bras and the Red-Dirt-Cliffs at the coastline which was really amazing. Again we did a combination of pedaling and shuttle. And the trails there where awesome, technical and completely different to Sintra. 
Pretty similar but still different to that was the third time, one week later at Monchique/ Marmelete. There we met Luis again but this time he drove the van. Because there we had a full day of shuttle with Nuno as guide. That was another great day of enduro biking in Portugal! 
Miguel, Luis and Nuno they all were really good guides and nice guys. We had so much fun riding with every single one of these guys! And we could learn many things from bike settings over biking skills to specifics of the particular region...
So thanks again a lot for all of that guys.
And thanks Hugo for all the good hints concerning biking, camping and all the stuff ;-)
See u in September! 
Cheers buddies"

Roman Beckord

Susanne and Simon enjoying full days of MOUNTAIN BIKE in ALGARVE

"My boyfriend and me booked 2 full day tours. The communication via mail and phone was very easy. Luis pedro showed us very different trails in different areas. Very good bikes in a high quality and definitely no mass attraction. Worth to go there!"

                                                                          Susanne Buchner

Perfect day riding a great location

"Me and my son used WERIDE for just one day guiding while on holiday in Alvor (Algarve) with the rest of our family. WE brought our own helmets, shoes, clothes etc, but asked if WE could hire some bikes for the day. They came up with brand new, never ridden, Transition Patrols! Absolutely perfect bikes for the conditions.

WE met Luis outside a supermarket in the hills, jumped into his car and drove another 1/2 hour to the riding area. When WE arrived in a small village to start the ride my son realized he had forgotten his Five-Ten shoes. After first looking shocked, Luis ran up the street and came back with a pair of size 9 Five-Tens from someone he knew locally. Amazing!! And a special thanks to the guy who lent to a complete stranger his shoes for the day.

WE set about the climb to the trails and I can only say they were perfect, just what WE both like riding. Technical, fast and flowy single tracks with a few jumps and kickers thrown in. Mostly man-made but a real natural feel to them. The weather was also near perfect, 30 degrees but cooled by the shade of trees. The climbing was made easily by fire roads and B roads.

After lunch, which was only 13€ compared to 60€ by the sea. WE set off again. This time faster as our confidence grew. The day was over all too soon. I personally could have ridden all night.

I have ridden with guides all over the World, Morzine, Spain, Cyprus, UK, but I can honestly say Luis and the trails were some of the best. WE will be back but this time for a weeks riding.

Thanks Luis! See you again soon..."

Andy Mycroft

I am definitely coming back again to Sintra and Monchique!!!

"I got the pleasure to ride in both Sintra (Lisbon) and the Algarve (Lagos) over two different days! The trails are completely different in the two areas so if you get a chance to ride in both places do! However, you will need to get in touch with WERIDE as it will be very hard to find the trails on your own. They set me up with a bike in each place so i didn't have to worry about shipping a bike there either. I forgot my helmet on the trip so, Hugo just took me to a bike shop to get one which was super cool. They took the time to adjust the bike to my liking... even on the trail...

The Moorish Castle in Sintra

...the two guides, Hugo and Nuno, were both awesome to ride with. This is not an average mountain bike guide, these guys welcome you into their lives, community and trails.... it is definitely nothing you have experienced before. They took me to local, off the beaten path, place for lunch each time, which had great food by the way, and we talk about everything from economies to poisonous mushrooms during the riding. At one point my guide and two of the people at the lunch spot were all arguing about letting one of them buy a new bike (apparently his wife(?) said he had to sell the 12 others first) so i just sat back and laughed. That's how personal it was... I didn't feel like a client or customer, I felt like a friend with friends out riding for the day. 

If you want to ride hard, they will do that... if you want to take it easy... they will do that too. You would be hard pressed not to find something that fit you. I pushed myself while i was tired on some unfamiliar terrain and got hurt (pretty banged up with a swollen eye and lots of bruises), doing something stupid, did Nuno stop and force me to call it a day? Nope! He asked what i wanted to do... i said let's ride! So we did! After a beer of course. Sooooooo.... worth it. 

I cant really express how much fun it all was in the end. Bluntly, I am definitely going back again! Do it!"

Mo Jalaly

Mo dancing with lots of Cork Trees!

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