# The Pyrenees - Road Riding, Mountain Biking & Enduro Riding…… and more!



## Bonus (10 Dec 2018)

The "Pyrenees - Road Riding, Mountain Biking & Enduro Riding" thread is aimed at covering everything to do with Road Riding, MTB Riding, Enduro Riding, Social Riding & Local Races here where we live in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains.

I'll also try and post details of local Iconic Grand Tour Climbs, Nearby Attractions and Points of Interest....

(This will allow me to use the "Cycling B&B in the Pyrenees" thread for our house-build only)

For now, here's a picture from Sundays ride . . .


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## Bonus (15 Dec 2018)

On yesterdays ride I stopped in for a nice chat with Russel from Fox at the Fox Factory workshop support van.

They were carrying out product testing on the Zona Zero trails near my house.

Russel is from Cape Town but lives and works in Germany now. Was nice to talk about stuff we had in common :-)


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## Bonus (20 Dec 2018)

On Tuesday I had the pleasure of riding XC with Kevin from the UK and his dog Bella.

Kevin - @trailguru on Instagram - has been living in his beautifully converted van for the past two years. He works on-line, so can work from anywhere, and spends his time surfing and mountain biking. He's also the guy behind the "https://www.trailguru.co.uk/" website, which covers dozens of trails in Wales.

Our ride was based on Zona Zero route ZZ-019 - "The Route of the Arraclan" which we adapted slightly to suit us.

Starting from the village of Santa Maria de Buil we quickly got into some nice quick singletrack, which this route has lots of. Aside from the flowing singletrack, there's Jeep Tracks, Fire Roads and the route goes through several nice stretches of forest. It has a couple of quiet tough but not too long climbs and of course the amazing "Balcony of Sarrastano" section, with its views of the Pyrenees mountains. Throw in a couple of short technical descents and a quick food-stop at a Hermatige of Santa Waldesca on route and you have a perfect morning of riding.

We only saw 2 other riders all day - a couple from the south of France who said they come here every chance they get because the riding is so good!

Outside the Hermatige in my Winter kit!......






Kev & Bella . . .






The Hermatige . . .






Riding towards the Balcony


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## Bonus (27 Dec 2018)

2018 is nearly over and 2019 is just around the corner.

It’s been an exciting year for us. Not without its challenges - but we’ve had some great experiences. We’ve met some nice and interesting people, we’ve helped and been helped, and we’ve had lots of fun on the way.

In 2019 we’re aiming to put the plans we’ve been making over the last few months into reality.

We will be offering a host of services aimed at people who want to visit the beautiful area we live in.

Whether it’s to ride MTB on the trails of Zona Zero, Road Ride through the valleys and over the passes on our quiet well kept roads, hike the footpaths and caminos of our hills & mountains or simply chill out and enjoy our amazing scenery with its castles & churches, rivers & lakes and its villages – inhabited or abandoned . . .

We think you will love it here as much as we do!


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## Bonus (28 Dec 2018)

For anyone wondering what the Winter weather is like here where we live in the Spanish Pyrenees - this was taken at lunchtime today on a ride with friends. . . .

#livin' the dream


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## Bonus (31 Dec 2018)

Climbing up the back of the Pena Montenesa on the route the Enduro World Series used back in September when they held Stage 7 of the Championship here.

We climbed just over 800m in 8km of fire road. None of it is steep, it's just a nice gradual climb.


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## Bonus (2 Jan 2019)

Over last year I've ridden with people with a variety of different abilities who have come here to visit the "Zona Zero MTB Trails" from all over the world. New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, Denmark, Belgium, Holland, France, Argentina, Germany, Costa Rica, Scotland, England . . . even Boulder in Colorado and of course lots from Spain.

The majority of people I've ridden with have stayed in touch and become friends. Without fail they all want to come back here to ride again.

Here in the foothills of the Pyrenees there is something for everyone. From a leisurely family ride along one of our rivers, to full-on "Enduro World Series" Stages descending the sides of mountains, and including everything in between.

There are even decent roads to ride for those of us who also like to frequent "The Dark Side".

There are around 1000 kms of official marked out routes that the Zona Zero organisation have put together. There are dozens of Long Distance "GR" (Gran Recorrido) and Short Distance "PR" (Pequeno Recorrido) routes marked out that form an extensive network of Caminos (Footpaths) traversing the countryside. There are Fire Roads up into the mountains. Ancient Footpaths and "Sheep Trails" link up our many deserted villages with their Castles and Churches and we a multitude of Hermitages and Refuges in case the weather suddenly changes. In the summer there are dry river beds to ride in and wide slow rivers to swim in.

It certainly is a pleasure Living, Riding and Guiding in this part of the world.


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## Bonus (6 Jan 2019)

Ready to descend Maxi Avalanche 1 at Zona Zero in the Pyrenees . . . .


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## Bonus (11 Jan 2019)

Today we rode Zona Zero Route 47 starting and finishing in Tierrantona.

It's a 26.5km circuit that climbs a total of 964m (3162 feet), takes in the two villages of "Charo" & "El Humo de Muro", climbs to the Hermitige of San Salvador on its first climb and the Muro de Roda Castle on it's second climb, includes a kilometre of "almost dry" river bed and has some really nice technical descents!

On these rides, you can never capture the true awesomeness of the views and the mountains. I always try, but I never feel hat the pictures really reflect what's actually up there . . . anyway, here you go . . .


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## Bonus (23 Jan 2019)

Did a ride last week called the "Ruea de Piojos" - The Lice Route.

Only 34.2km long but included 1296m of climbing - the joys of living in the mountains!

The route is named after an old Inn "el Meson de Piojos" whose ruins still sit up in the mountains just off the trail. The story is that in the common bedrooms, the beds were so close together that if one traveller arrived with lice, by tomorrow morning everyone had them!

The ride starts out of Boltaña on a nicely maintained track towards the village of San Pietro with a 50minute climb that rises around 600m in 7km, so you need to pace yourself. After that the climbs are spread through the ride, so not too hectic. There are sections of very nice singletrack along the ridge, then comes some fast sweet singletrack down through the woods and then some "Black" descents down towards the village of San Vicente. Filled up my water bottles there at the natural spring and then it was up and over the last hill back to Boltaña.

A great day out!


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## Bonus (23 Jan 2019)

After an hour or so of fairly constant climbing, finally this comes into view! Nearly there now . . . .


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## Bonus (23 Jan 2019)

The abandoned village of "Muro de Bellos" down below me . . .


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## Bonus (23 Jan 2019)

Monte Perdido (The Lost Mountain) in the background . . .


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## Bonus (27 Jan 2019)

Up at the Muro de Roda Castle on route ZZ 047 "La Natiella Hacia Arriba" last week before the snow arrived. The descents are worth the climbs!


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## Bonus (31 Jan 2019)

This month saw the birth of Ainsas very own Cycling Club! The "Club Ciclista Zona Zero" was created and adopted its constitution at a meeting in mid January.

The club will cater for Men & Women Road and MTB riders of all ages and as well as organising the usual rides, it will also arrange rides specifically for Ladies, rides for Children and Social/Family rides.

We've joined the club and we're looking forward to an exciting year ahead!


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## Bonus (3 Feb 2019)

Yesterday we spent the day in Binefar (a town nearby) attending a First Aid course presented by the Red Cross.

It's a 20hr course spread over three Saturdays and covers all the usual stuff. We've both done first aid courses before, but some things have changed a bit and you need to have an up to date certificate for your MTB guiding license to be valid.

It's all in Spanish but we speak enough Spanish (and remember enough from previous courses) to follow it without any problems. The course instructor speaks a bit of English too, so anything important or new that we don't get, we can check with him.


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## Bonus (5 Feb 2019)

Some time ago I explained how "Zona Zero", the 1000 odd kilometre network of MTB Trails that we live in the middle of, came into being. . . .

A group of local business owners, working in conjunction with local councillors & authorities, realised that they needed to do something pro-active if they were to prevent their towns and villages from following the existing downward trend of declining business and de-population. . . .

Their ideas have worked. The town of Ainsa and its surrounding villages all benefit from the income generated by visitors to Zona Zero. Roads & services to remote long-abandoned villages are being installed/re-installed and properties are being renovated & repaired. It's a big job and it's going to take some time to finish, but it is happening and we are a part of it!

This article is in Spanish, but the high-lights are that it addresses the problems faced by people who live in remote areas of Aragon (the region we live in), suggests some methods of making life easier for those people and gives Zona Zero as a good example of what can be achieved.

Great news for us all - and a testament to the hard work and devotion of the people who had the vision to come up with this and make their ideas a reality.

https://www.heraldo.es/noticias/ara...U9_aCuLiO_EIZQX7Fk7s1HcIYL7eoHehMGjnX8kBB4hN8


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## Bonus (7 Feb 2019)

There are several Zona Zero routes out of Ainsa - this one heads south up a trail that passes the Vultures Dining Room, heads up to the Partara viewing point and then down the Partara Express!.

People rarely stop and look over their shoulders when they climb this trail, so they miss this view. Part of my job as a guide is to tell people when to stop and look behind them :-)

#lovemyjob!


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## Bonus (23 Feb 2019)

In December I had the chance to ride with a young French rider who has some sponsorship and is turning Pro.

He had arranged with Pedro, a local pro photographer in Ainsa, to do a photo-shoot for him and they asked me along. We used a bike shuttle to uplift to some nice locations and spent a couple of hours riding and "posing"!


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## Bonus (23 Feb 2019)

Riding from the mountaintop village of Tella down to the village of Hospital . . .


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## Bonus (23 Feb 2019)

When you love what you do . . . .


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## Bonus (23 Feb 2019)

Trying to keep the speed up . . . .


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## Bonus (11 Mar 2019)

After several weeks without my MTB, which is down in Madrid being looked at by "Specialized Spain" after Angel, my mate and LBS spotted a crack in the carbon frame, it sounds like I should be getting it back soon.

Once it's back safe and sound I will post on what happened, what I had to do about it and how long it took. . . . .


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## Bonus (21 Apr 2019)

My replacement bike frame arrived last week - it's beautiful!

My original bike was a Specialized Epic Comp Carbon 2014 model in White and it had an Ali rear triangle. I loved it and we rode many many miles together.
The replacement, which is a 2018 model complete with new shock and modern version of the "Brain" is Black and all carbon. It weighs in at 2kgs!

I've had to buy a few new bits for it - I needed a Boost rear wheel and the frame has no facility to take a front mech - so I had to go 1x10 with a new crankset (wanted to keep the old rear mech and shifter to keep the cost down) We also replaced the BB and the Headset bearings while we were at it . . . . I have ended up with what is essentially a "brand new bike" :-)

I'm happy to have it back . . . I've missed it :-(

The Original . . . .







The New Frame . . .







The New One - in progress







The New One - Finished and ready to roll . . . .


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## Bonus (21 Apr 2019)

I've been out on the bike a few times over the last week.

The first ride felt a bit strange - I haven't been on an MTB for a month! Had to make a couple of small adjustments but now it feels good.

Yesterday I went out twice. A long ride in the morning and then in the evening I put on my "racing kit" and went back out to put the bike through its paces. Happy to say that this bike is FAST!

Here's a pic from earlier in the week - a ride along the river with the Pena Montenesa mountain in the background . . . .


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## Bonus (26 Apr 2019)

An Easter week that has had more than its fair share of "heavy showers" (Easter lasts a week here in Spain and it's called "Semana Santa") has meant I've left the MTB at home and hit the roads for some nice road riding.

The roads where we live are in good condition and the drivers are considerate - so road riding is a pleasure. There are some routes I can choose that, whilst not exactly flat, are less "hilly" than others - so every ride doesn't have to be a mission :-)


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## Bonus (27 Apr 2019)

This morning the Zona Zero Cycling Club held a Skills Session for the youngsters before heading out for a ride. . . .

Great to see so many volunteers ready to promote safe cycling


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## Bonus (29 Apr 2019)

On Saturday morning after the youngsters "Skills Training", I joined Rafa, Ramon & Tito and help accompany a group of the Zona Zero Cycling Club Juniors on an MTB / Enduro Ride.

We started in Ainsa at the sports center and rode some of Route ZZ-006 "The Trilogy of San Vicente". The route was clean & dry and the sun was shining - it was a really nice ride.

The youngsters had climbed around 400m by the time we'd finished. They were strong on the climbs and fearless of the descents! They made us adults work hard!

Rafa took several opportunities to stop and explain to the youngsters "what was coming next" and how best to tackle it whenever something a bit tricky came along. He's a great teacher.

It was a pleasure joining in and helping out and I look forward to the next ride.

Well done to everyone who took part!


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## Bonus (29 Apr 2019)

A well deserved drink for everyone!


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## Bonus (4 May 2019)

Last weekend I had the pleasure of guiding Francisco from Brazil around some of our Zona Zero trails.

We did a bit of everything, technical climbing, singletrack descending and some Enduro trails, and all the while he was asking me lots of questions about how we came to be here in the Pyrenees and what we think of it.

He had a great ride, wants to come back again (everyone does) and showered at our place afterwards because he was traveling straight to Barcelona to meet his daughter.

I generally have a very friendly relationship with people I guide. Where possible, I adapt the riding to suit each person and we are always happy to try and provide any extra little service people need.

Francisco was on an e-bike while I was on a normal bike . . . . but that's for a separate post!


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## Bonus (8 May 2019)

This little technical section is part of ZZ-018 The Paths of Mondebueno and Madalena.

It's part of a little 1hr "after work" route I've made up from home and i love it!


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## Bonus (11 May 2019)

Did a couple of road rides this week on the road out towards Los Molinos and San Victorian.

Sunny days and empty roads in the Pyrenees :-)


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## Bonus (14 May 2019)

Last weekend I rode the trails of Zona Zero with Sebastian, a visitor from France. The trails were dry and the sun was shining . . . .

Spanish was our common language - so "Google Translate" came in useful!


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## Bonus (18 May 2019)

Guiding Rodney from Zaragoza yesterday on a cracking XC route around the trails of Zona Zero!

We did a bit of everything - some technical climbing, fire roads, singletrack and some pretty demanding descents.

It had been raining, so the trails were slick - but it was great fun.

We climbed around 727m over 32.37km in 2.5hrs of riding . . .

Today we have a similar ride planned . . . .


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## Bonus (19 May 2019)

2nd Day of Guiding with Rodney yesterday . . . and the sun was out :-)

We did another cracking XC route with more technical singletrack climbing and some pretty tricky descents.

Today we climbed 728m over 29.85km in 2.5hrs of riding....

We actually climbed 1m more yesterday than on Friday and rode for 16 seconds longer - how's that for consistency?


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## Bonus (19 May 2019)

My last day of guiding Rodney from Zaragoza today.

He's an American married to a Spaniard and he's lived here for 30 years. He has a great sense of humour and is about the same fitness as me - so it's been great fun.

Today we kept it short & steep and climbed the track from Ainsa up to the Partara summit. The first half of the trail is technical and has a mental gradient - more than 10% in places. The second half of the climb is a bit easier, but only a bit!

The view from the top, which I've posted on here before, makes it all worthwhile though and coming down the "Partara Express" is just magic :-) 

Edit: I'm not going to comment on my clients dress sense today . . . .


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## Bonus (24 May 2019)

I love my Job!

Guiding the Zona Zero MTB Trails . . .Ainsa, Spain :-)


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## Bonus (26 May 2019)

Got a call at work Thursday morning from a guy who wanted to hire a bike and ride some trails. I was busy until 7pm so we met up just after that and put 25km and 470m of climbing behind us in short order!

Great way to unwind after a day at work :-)


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## Bonus (26 May 2019)

Friday afternoon I took my latest visitor our for our second ride. 3hrs of Cross Country fun starting from Santa Maria de Buil


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## Bonus (26 May 2019)

Taking a break after racing up the climbs with someone who weighs 15kg less than me! :-)


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## Bonus (26 May 2019)

The "Abandoned Villages" of Sobrabe . . . lonely and overgrown :-(


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## Bonus (26 May 2019)

Some amazing cloud formations over the Pyrenees!


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

On Saturday I did a Juniors group ride with the Zona Zero Cycling club.

It was a great ride, the youngsters learned a bit about bike maintenance and pumping up tyres before riding out to the "Badlands" for some skills training.

I learned a few things too!

Getting ready . . . .


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

Twins!


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

Team Work . . . .


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

My Bike - ready to roll . . . .


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

Well behaved riders!


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

Going down . . .


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

"el maestro. " (The Teacher)


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## Bonus (28 May 2019)

The "Badlands"


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## Bonus (29 May 2019)

Mrs Bonus enjoying the sunshine and the quiet Pyrennean roads . . . .


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## Bonus (30 May 2019)

The Zona Zero Pyrenean MTB Trails, Ainsa, Spain.

"There's always another Singletrack!"


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## Bonus (1 Jun 2019)

My visitor from Holland left this morning. It's been fun guiding him this past week and we both learned some new things. He's an endurance athlete so climbing wasn't a problem for him. I was thankful for the technical climbs that gave me a bit of an advantage over him :-) 

Our last ride took us up to the Partara view point which sits at 859m. Approx 300m higher than the town of Ainsa below it. It's quite a tough little climb, a bit technical in places, but not too long - and the view makes it all worthwhile.

Now I'm looking forward to a weekend of exploring on my own before the next sessions starts . . . .


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## Bonus (1 Jun 2019)

The final climb and descent of the day . . . .


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## Bonus (8 Jun 2019)

Got a call yesterday from a guy in Zaragoza that I guided a couple of weeks ago and am now friends with.

He wants to come back to Zona Zero with a cycling buddy from his cycling club and for me Guide them both around the trails we did last time, and maybe a new one . . . . 

References / Referrals from "satisfied customers" are absolutely essential to any business, and equally importantly, they make me feel good and give me confidence that I'm doing all the right things.

Onwards and Upwards! :-)


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## Bonus (9 Jun 2019)

Great ride with my friends Patrick and Lesley this morning - it was a hot day but the light breeze made it manageable. The Pena Montenesa watching over us as usual.

Then back to Boltana for a nice roast dinner prepared by Mrs Bonus.


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## Bonus (11 Jun 2019)

All the mountain villages here in Zona Zero have a "fuente" - a drinking water point where you can drink and re-fill bottles.

Perfect for hot days.


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## Bonus (13 Jun 2019)

Tonight Stage 4 of the "Transpyr Coast to Coast Pyrenean Stage Race" finishes in Ainsa.

The riders have another 3 stages to ride before they finish in Hondarribia on Saturday evening.

The race stats for a week of riding are impressive - 1035km, with 21385m of climbing and descending (The race starts at the finishes at sea level - just two different "seas"!)

There are two versions of the race - an MTB version and a Road version.


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## Bonus (17 Jun 2019)

My friend Pat riding just outside Ainsa.


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## Bonus (24 Jun 2019)

Back in May I guided a guy from Zaragoza for a few days. He had such a good time that we're now friends and last week he came back for some more guiding.

Repeat customers / referrals from happy customers are important when you're starting out with any business, and when it's a service like this that is very personalised, even more so. 

Rodneys request this visit was for a XC ride plus he wanted to see some abandoned villages - there are lots of them here in the mountains. I put together a 50km XC ride with just over 1000m of climbing/descending. 

We had a good time - he knew he'd ridden in the mountains by the end of it - and I'm sure he'll be back for some more :-)

We started our ride on the outskirts of the Village of Janovas.


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## Bonus (24 Jun 2019)

Janovas actually straddles the Greenwich Mean Line.

This means that on one side of the village you are in the Eastern Hemisphere of the world and on the other you are in the Western Hemisphere. If I started walking North from Janovas I would pass through Greenwich in London.

The *line* in *Greenwich* represents the historic Prime *Meridian* of the World - Longitude 0º. Every place on Earth was measured in terms of its distance east or west from this *line*. The *line* itself divided the eastern and western hemispheres of the Earth - just as the Equator divides the northern and southern hemispheres.

I point this out to anyone I take to Janovas because I think it's very cool :-)


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## Bonus (24 Jun 2019)

Janovas sits on the river Ara - one of out two big local rivers. The river is fed from the mountains so a lots of the water in it is melted snow. Lovely in the summer but a bit cold right now - although there were people paddling!


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## Bonus (24 Jun 2019)

It was a hot day and the "Badlands" were dry and dusty, but there was plenty of shade for a lot of the ride while we were on singletrack through the trees.


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## Bonus (4 Jul 2019)

Guiding with Jose Luis Sustatxa from the Basque Country.

This photo was taken at the exit of Route ZZ-018, above the swim spot that Mrs Bonus & I use in the summer :-)


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## Bonus (4 Jul 2019)

Enjoying the evening views while Guiding with Jose Luis Sustatxa.

Temperatures had dropped a few degrees since last week, thankfully!

The Mountains never fail to impress me :-)


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## Bonus (5 Jul 2019)

Guiding Tom from Belgium yesterday. As a Landscape Designer, he enjoyed our local scenery . . .

:-)


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## Bonus (13 Jul 2019)

Another ride guiding Tom around Zona Zero......

We were out for a couple of hours and we rode in The Badlands, did some technical climbing, rode some nice singletrack......


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## Bonus (13 Jul 2019)

..... and finally took in a view of the Pyrenees mountains from Guaso, where our Build Project is.

It was a great evening and I enjoyed it!


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## Bonus (20 Jul 2019)

Riding with mi amigo Jose Luis Sustatxa on the trails around Boltaña and Guaso.

I showed Jose our build project up in Guaso and he loved the tranquility of the place :-)


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## Bonus (23 Jul 2019)

"Inspired by le Tour" . . . last night I put on my racing kit and did a flying lap around one of my fav little loops.

22km and 360m climbing in an hour and twenty mins - stopping at the Plaza up in the Old Town for a nice cold water bottle fill up. I started at 8pm and the average temperature for the ride was 27.4 C . . . .

Route: https://www.relive.c...ew/g37810530528


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## Bonus (31 Jul 2019)

After weeks of very hot temps, looking north towards France and some pretty heavy weather!

Some rain to settle the dust would be nice :-)


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## Bonus (6 Aug 2019)

An evening spin last week along the bank of the Rio Ara towards Ainsa . . .

I'm riding between 8pm and sundown to avoid the heat :-)


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## Bonus (8 Aug 2019)

Evening training ride from Boltaña up to Guaso and back on singletrack.

I have some guiding coming up and I need to stay in shape!


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## Bonus (10 Aug 2019)

The track that runs alongside the Rio Ara between Boltaña and Ainsa.

I rarely see more than the odd jogger or occasionally some older people walking along here. More often than not I see no one. 

Ainsa old town is up on he hill and behind it the Pyrenees. . . . .


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## Bonus (23 Aug 2019)

Climbing up the singletrack on Zona Zero Route 18 between the villages of Margurgued and Guaso you come across this skull . . . .


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## Bonus (27 Aug 2019)

Guiding this week with Grant & Carol from Wellington, New Zealand.

Yesterday we did one of my Techy XC routes, today Zona Zero Route 7. . . . Grant is on a beautiful Santa Cruz Bronson . . .


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## Bonus (10 Sep 2019)

Grant & Carol climbing to the top of the Partara. Another nice afternoon of guiding . . . .


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## Bonus (12 Sep 2019)

Guided Brandy from the US for a day last week.

Beautiful hot day when we started. Over the first hill and we heard thunder in the distance. Up on the plateau we just caught the edge of the rain and took refuge in one of the many old stone shelters we have here. Towards the end of the ride as we headed back towards the car the weather cleared again and we finished in sunshine.

The car meanwhile, despite never being more than a few km's away from us, saw no rain at all.

Such is the weather in the mountains!


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## Bonus (16 Sep 2019)

Met up with a visiting fellow Brit at the weekend and guided him around some of our Zona Zero Singletracks.

Leo lived in Cape Town for a few years as a teenager, and I visited there several times when I lived in Jo'burg - so we had lots to talk about!

We also had some interesting chats regarding ideas for advertising & promoting ourselves here in Spain and we're going to keep in touch now and help each other out a bit.

Always good to share ideas and offer help if you can. It's one of the things that makes the world go around :-)


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## Bonus (26 Sep 2019)

Had some visitors from the UK earlier this week. 

Simon has been following our progress on-line pretty much since we started and wanted to catch up with us while he and some friends were riding the trails here at Zona Zero. 

We did a ride XC from Ainsa up to Guaso so that they could see our "Project". Mrs Bonus met us up there and we showed them around.

It's always reassuring when people tell us how much they love our location and our plans for the place. They've promised to come back and support us when we're done . . . great stuff.


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## Bonus (3 Oct 2019)

About 6 months ago I started helping Dale, who lives in the Philippines, to plan a visit to Ainsa to ride the Zona Zero trails.

I helped him arrange car hire & accommodation, we became friends on FB and finally last Friday, after reading and commenting on my MTB posts for months, he and his two friends Anthony & Tweed arrived and I guided them for 5 days.

The Philippines only has two seasons - a dry season and a wet season (Monsoon) and averages 90% humidity every day - so the hot and dry weather we have here was very different for them.

They are used to riding on dirt (or in mud during the wet season) so the rocks here took some getting used to, but they all handled everything here very well. 

Some pics from day one - we did a warm up on the singletrack through the Badlands and then rode XC over to Guaso, via Boltana, to see our Build Project. . . .


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## Bonus (5 Oct 2019)

A Relive graphic of our Day 1 ride.


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## Bonus (5 Oct 2019)

On Day 1 we did Ainsa, Boltana, Margudued and Guaso.

On Day 2 Dale, Ants, Tweed & I did Ainsa, El Pueyo de Araguas, El Soto & Usana . . . .

It was another beautiful day with a picnic break up at the highest point of the ride :-)


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## Bonus (7 Oct 2019)

Day 3 with the guys from the Philippines and we drove out to Santa Maria de Buil to ride a variation of Zona Zero route 19. I start the route, which is circular, at the halfway point - so I do the second half first and then the first half last..... I think it rides better that way around! 

The first part of the ride is mostly nice flowy singletrack, then there's some climbing - fire road and technical singletrack. Stop for a quick sandwich at the Ermita de Santa Barbara and then through the trees and out onto "The Balcony" from where you get to see some amazing views of the Pyrenees.....

It was a great day out, as always. . . . .


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## Bonus (10 Oct 2019)

Day 4 was e-bike day!

A couple of the guys wanted to try out e-bikes while they were here. Dale and Ant were going to hire e-bikes while Tweed and I rode normal bikes . . . but then they talked Tweed into giving it a go, so they hired an e-bike each and one for me too! How cool is that!?

My first time on an e-bike and also my first time on an Enduro style bike. I ride a Specialized Epic 29'er - which is more of a Cross Country Racing Mountain Bike - it handles pretty much everything I want to ride here, but I was interested to give the Enduro frame a go. 

We went out for 4 hrs and rode every steep technical climb I could find.... and we had a blast. All the climbs we did I've done before on my own bike - the two differences I found with the e-bike were that you climb much faster, naturally, but also - with it being an Enduro bike rather than a Cross Country bike, you don't have to watch where you're going. When I climb on my bike I have to "pick my line", on the Enduro bike you just hit every rock, step or root head-on and you can get over it.

On the downside, the e-bike only helps you up to a certain speed - on these bikes the sweet spot was 26.4km/h. So on the flat I rode more slowly than I normally would. Anything above 26.4km/h and the motor stops helping you - then it gets real hard real quick!

One of us ran out of battery towards the end, but thankfully within a couple of km's from the end of the ride. Again, with a dead battery the bike becomes a really heavy piece of kit to keep moving....

Overall it was a great experience and I can see why people like them and if you want to, you can still get a good workout!


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## Bonus (14 Oct 2019)

Day 5 was the last day for me to guide my visitors from the Philippines.

We split the day up into two rides. An hour and a half on a circuit around the abandoned village of Janovas - which has the Eastern Hemisphere/Western Hemisphere "Greenwich Mean Line" going through it, followed by a couple of hours between Boltana and Ainsa - finishing with us coming down a technical descent that we first did on Day 1.

The challenge was for them to "do it better" this time around - and they all did :-)

The weeks riding with them had been a pleasure and their trip here was rounded off with them inviting Mrs Bonus and I out to dinner at one of the best local restaurants, where they spoiled us.

:-)


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## Bonus (18 Oct 2019)

Had a visitor from Switzerland last week. Martin is doing a tour of Spain & Portugal in a VW Camper van.

He parked behind our flat and we got talking. Gave him some advice on where to ride and where to camp, and the next day we ended up riding together. Now I have another new friend . . . that's how we roll! (as Mrs Bonus' teenage son used to say!)

The weather was perfect and the views were beautiful, as always.





I rode in my "South Africa" top for a change . . . . :-)


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## Bonus (27 Oct 2019)

Last weekend I had the pleasure of MTB Guiding Jason & Lilly from Seattle in Washington State - they were here on their honeymoon.

It was a really nice day out - we rode in "The Badlands", did some climbing, rode some very nice descents and did some site seeing - a bit of everything. They even got to see our Project up in Guaso. Jason is a builder - so he was interested to see how it had originally been built.

From here they headed down to ride in the Sierra Nevada mountains before heading back to the States.


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## Bonus (1 Nov 2019)

Riding down from Guaso village church on Zona Zero Route ZZ-09.

Some days are quicker than others, but it's always fun!


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## Bonus (16 Nov 2019)

There are 6 categories of Routes here at "Zona Zero" in Ainsa - totalling over 1000km of trails......

ZZ Routes - The standard Zona Zero routes that form the basis for the Trail Network here. New routes are being added all the time. 

ZL Routes - The "Light" Routes. There are 6 of them and they tend to be easier than the ZZ Routes. That's not always the case though - some of them are pretty "interesting" in places! 

ZE Routes - These are the "Special" Routes. Enduro riding, including the sections that made up the Enduro Series Stages that were held here in Ainsa-Sobrabe in 2015 and 2018. 

ZA Routes - These are the "Alpine" Routes. Up in the Alto Pyrenees, these routes offer some spectacular views and some great descents.

ZR Routes - A set of 13 "Road" Routes here and across the border in France.

EZ Routes - Coming soon! Routes prticularly suited to e-Bikes. 


Plenty to enjoy!


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## Bonus (26 Nov 2019)

Zona Zero Route ZA-03 - "The Comodoto" - 22km long and climbs 1200m....

I rode this route for the first time a few weeks ago with two mates from the UK, one an old friend and the other a new friend. It was a great day out - spectacular views, steady climbing and some awesome descending. The final part of the climb is too steep to ride, so it's a case of pushing or carrying your bike - but we broke that section up with a little chocolate break half way up - just to sit and take in where we were.

If you didn't want to climb to the very top, there is a way around..... maybe I'll try that next time and report back. But for the first time, I definitely wanted to do the whole thing.


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## Bonus (26 Nov 2019)

As you climb up out of the Pineta valley you have some awesome views of Monte Perdido and it's sisters - and you're looking at them from the northern side. Whereas from where we live we look at them from the southern side.


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## Bonus (26 Nov 2019)

After climbing on the fire road track you round the bend into a pasture hidden behind a low outcrop of rock. Then its a bit of walking/pushing/Hike n Bike before you get to where we stopped for a mini-picnic. The sun was warm and the views were amazing.


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## Bonus (26 Nov 2019)

Then it gets tough for a little while - a good opportunity to tease each other to keep your spirits up!

Finally the top - 2355m above sea level and about 1200 above where we started.


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## Bonus (26 Nov 2019)

A ride along the ridge, followed by a pretty tricky section of descending, before we got down to a more recogniseable path that leads pretty much all the way back down the otherside of the mountain. Finishing off in fields above the village of Espierba before cutting through the trees on a singletrack and heading along the road back to the car.


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## Bonus (7 Dec 2019)

November was unusually wet and cold this year, but happliy this week the weather has been amazing - so hopefully December will be a good one.

Some pics from todays spin from Boltana over to Ainsa and on through the bottom of the Badlands, which were deserted! 

Autumn colours at Zona Zero . . .


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## Bonus (7 Dec 2019)

I had the Badlands to myself!


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## Bonus (7 Dec 2019)

Feeling the sun on your face in Deceber in the Northern Hemisphere! Can't be bad :-)


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## Bonus (15 Dec 2019)

A quick trip up to the village of Campodarbe last weekend. 

The last picture shows the path back down to the small town of Boltaña, where we rent a flat.


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## Bonus (25 Dec 2019)

Stage 8 of la Vuelta a España 2020 will pass through Ainsa - our hometown - on Saturday August 22nd!
Bring it on!

:-)


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## Bonus (11 Jan 2020)

Mid January . . . . the sun is shning and the trails are dry....

It's not what you would call "warm" here yet, but dress properly and after the first climb you'll be fine :-)

Did a ride today up to the village of Sieste, which is just outside Boltaña and then came back down on Zona Zero route ZZ-18. It's a nice little loop with some beautiful views of the mountains to the north and of Morcat to the south.

Parts of the trail that don't get any sun at this time of year were frozen, but not dangerously so.

Was nice to get out there and stretch my legs and my lungs - I have some guiding work this week so I need to be up to scratch!


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## Bonus (15 Jan 2020)

I'm guiding a guy visiting here from the Labanon. On our first ride we expored the Zona Zero Badlands.

It was a chilly start while we rode alongside the Rio Cinca but as soon as we climbed up into the hills we warmed up.

Turned out to be a beautiful day. The difference between riding in the sun and the shade is significant at this time of year - Sunny and warm versus frosty/icy and cold. Thankfully the shadey spots are few and far between!

You can see from the second photo that the Badlands are quite a vast area......

And in the last photo Nehme is crossing a semi-frozen stream!


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## Bonus (5 Feb 2020)

Sunny skies, snow topped mountains, dry trails . . . . 

I love my life!


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## Bonus (24 Feb 2020)

Several tough rides over the last few weeks and I'm getting back into it after the winter break. Always amazes me how quickly the human body can get itself back into fairly reasonable shape . . . but then it also amazes me how quickly the human body can get itself back out of shape again if you take a week or ten days off!

Temps this weekend were in the low 20's. No one here can believe it because it's really not normal. This time last year there was a dusting of snow on the ground. 

I'm loving it, but we may pay for the lack of snow in terms of water come summer . . . .


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## Bonus (1 Mar 2020)

This huge abandonded house - "La Capana" - and its outbuildings, which include a Hermitage and a small Church, are beside the trail of Zona Zero Route ZZ-014 "Camporrotuno and the Treasure of Dineretes" ...... 

You have a beautiful view from up here, including 2 different parts of the Mediano Dam. 
As you can see, our exceptional weather for this time of year carries on!


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## Bonus (17 Mar 2020)

Sadly, just as the season should be picking up speed and people should be flocking to our area to ride the Enduro & XC MTB Trails of Zona Zero or road riding the Cols & Valleys of the Pyrenees, the Corona Virus has, overnight, stopped everything dead in its tracks. 

I had friends visiting - they arrived from a wet and windy Scotland on Thursday night in their two camper vans for three weeks of riding in the sunshine - and by Sunday lunchtime they were on their way home. Both of them and I are gutted. 

Spain enetered a State of Emergency on Friday and on Sunday evening a sever restriction of movement of people was announced, to start 8am on Monday morning.

The trails are closed, even to locals. There's a 2000€ fine if you get caught Running / Jogging or Cycling at all during the next 15 days. The reason behind this isn't so much a case of keeping people away from each other but rather reducing the number of people who could potentially hurt themselves / be involved in some sort of accident and require hospital treatment. I know some people will argue that you could just as easily have a kitchen related accident over the next 15 days as fall of your bike - but they've had to make decisions and this is one of the calls they've made.

If this 15 day quarantine period is enough to slow the spread of the virus, and therefore the demand on hospital treatment, enough then maybe we can salvage the Easter holidays - but I think that's maybe a big ask given the scale of things.

At least this is to some degree (or at least we all hope so) a finite problem. Within a period of time this little peanut of a virus will have done it's worst and we can start putting our lives back together. I fear though that the cost we're all going to pay, financially and otherwise, is going to be high.

I know there's talk of this virus being too tough to beat, but I can't think along those lines right now. If that turns out to be the case them we're really going to be in trouble!

Keep well everyone.

B.


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## Bonus (21 Mar 2020)

The lockdown in Spain continues. New rules/laws and been added/modified daily as quarantine procedures are fine tuned.

In fact, most of the "updates" are just a case of the authorities tightening up in areas of the law where people are taking advantage. For instance "Yes, you are allowed to walk to the shops to buy food - please go alone and go straight there and back again" has had to be written down because "technically, I can walk to the shops and back three times a day via the scenic route and just buy some chappies when I get there". People hey?

Here are a couple of photo's of the main road in Boltaña which runs past the flat we're renting. Normally on a Saturday afternoon this close to Easter the place would be pumping - pavement cafe's open, cyclists riding, families walking etc etc.

I didn't break any laws taking these photo's btw!


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## Bonus (23 Apr 2020)

Hopefully it won't be too long now before our Lockdown is over.

It's going to take a while for life to return to something we recognise as "normal" and it could well end up being different to what we've been used to.....but in the end the Mountains will still be silently looking down on us and the countryside will still be there for us to enjoy.

Loving and living in the Pyrenees . . . . .


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## Drago (23 Apr 2020)

Were lucky, we managed to dodge having a lockdown so can still ride.


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## Bonus (30 Apr 2020)

Drago said:


> Were lucky, we managed to dodge having a lockdown so can still ride.



We should be allowed out again for a limited time from this weekend onwards. . .


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## Bonus (9 May 2020)

First "Post Lockdown" Ride today and it was amazing! A couple of hours of MTB on my local trails. We've been allowed to go out and exercise for a week now but today was my first chance to get out.

Nothing too serious - was just nice to get out and spin the legs. Saw a few other people out - some jogging and some riding, but Ainsa town itself was deserted apart from a couple of people outside the pharmacy.

Was certainly a lovely day for it!


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## Bonus (13 May 2020)

Remembering last summer!

The long, light, warm evenings are nearly here again and I'm looking forward to it.

Our restaurants have been allowed to open this week. Outside seating only and with a space between tables, but it's a step in the right direction!


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## Bonus (15 May 2020)

The last few days have been wet enough for me not to be able to go to work - but dry enough to shoot out for a couple of hours if I time it right!

Todays ride included a singletrack section through "The Badlands". Normally there's a well worn "line" that you can follow at speed. Currently, due to lots of rain and almost no one riding the trails, the line is gone. Not a major problem until you get to a blind rise with a left or right turn on its peak - where a clue would be nice!!

Anyway I'm happy to be out . . . . .


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## Bonus (17 May 2020)

Beautiful weather today and my ride took me through the Plaza up in the old town. Saw very few other people and none of the bars or restaurants were open. Down in the new town there were a couple of places open and serving drinks to customers seated outside......

Happy we're starting to come out of this now!


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## gavroche (17 May 2020)

Drago said:


> Were lucky, we managed to dodge having a lockdown so can still ride.


And that's because we have a weak government too worried about upsetting people but not about the spread of this deadly virus and its fatal consequences.


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## Bonus (18 May 2020)

Riding up towards the Partara view point above Ainsa, if you stop 5 mins into the climb and look behind you, you see this!

Most people don't think to look back. :-(
Most people miss this. :-(
As an MTB guide, I tell people when to look backwards :-)


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## matticus (18 May 2020)

Bonus said:


> First "Post Lockdown" Ride today and it was amazing! A couple of hours of MTB on my local trails. We've been allowed to go out and exercise for a week now but today was my first chance to get out.


So very pleased for you - and everyone else in "hard" lockdown countries! A lot of us have been frustrated at sticking to an hour-or-two on our rides, so I have enormous sympathy for your situation!

p.s. can I just confirm you live around 42km into this ride I did: View: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/40973039
?
Completely stunning area! in my 1 week trip I found the Pyrenees much more varied than the Alps. I climbed the Tourmalet 4 days later - which is around 50 miles away? It was like a different world!
I will definitely visit again, safety permitting


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## Bonus (19 May 2020)

matticus said:


> So very pleased for you - and everyone else in "hard" lockdown countries! A lot of us have been frustrated at sticking to an hour-or-two on our rides, so I have enormous sympathy for your situation!
> 
> p.s. can I just confirm you live around 42km into this ride I did: View: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/40973039
> ?
> ...




You rode past our front door. Literally.

We're currently renting a flat on the "high street" in Boltana, which is what the N-260 becomes as it passes through.

Our build project is in the village of Guaso, 3km south of the N-260 just east of Boltana and Ainsa is 5km down the road. 

It is a beautiful area and the N-260 is a erally nice road to ride. Clean, well mintained and rarely hasmre than a few cars on it. Even in summer.

Let me know if you do ever come back this way!


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## Bonus (16 Jun 2020)

After what feels like forever – our State of Emergency is almost over and our borders will be opening next weekend. . . . .


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## matticus (16 Jun 2020)

< not listening! It's looking like Spain don't want any Boris voters to visit for a while yet  >


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## Bonus (23 Jun 2020)

Monte Perdido and the three Marias (Tres Marias) in the Ordesa National Park taken from just outside Ainsa on Sundays ride.

It's getting hot here now!


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## Bonus (6 Jul 2020)

Summer evening ride - 34 degrees at 8pm and a couple of hours of sunlight left yet ....


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## Bonus (25 Jul 2020)

Cookin' tonight! 

A couple of pics from a recent late afternoon ride. "Late afternoon" here in Spain during the summer can be anytime between 5pm and 8pm.....

This is half way up a climb a few km's outside Ainsa . . . . which is in the background.







Into the Badlands . . . . 







I've posted from this spot before - up through the Old Town, out the back of the Castle and over to the "Mirador" - the viewpoint above the Rio Cinca.

So often when you look north you see heavy weather over on the French side of the Pyrenees.


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## matticus (27 Jul 2020)

Bonus said:


> Summer evening ride - 34 degrees at 8pm and a couple of hours of sunlight left yet ....


... which is why I can't seem myself visiting in July ...


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## Bonus (1 Aug 2020)

Ride under the trees in the shade - it's perfect!


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## Bonus (3 Aug 2020)

Summer is here for sure!

The average daytime temps at the moment hover between 30 and 34 degrees but we peaked at 37.5 degrees yesterday afternoon.

Much like when I lived in South Africa, in the summer the mornings up until around 10:30 are perfect for riding. Unlike SA we also get to go out again in the light evenings here - between 7:30 and when it gets dark - currently around 9:30pm. 

I do love my summer evening rides!


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## itboffin (7 Aug 2020)

it was 37.7 today here in Windshire and its still 27 now at 6.30 on my short 40 miles ride today you could have used my second bottle to make tea/coffee

Hot water is defo not refreshing


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## Bonus (8 Aug 2020)

itboffin said:


> it was 37.7 today here in Windshire and its still 27 now at 6.30 on my short 40 miles ride today you could have used my second bottle to make tea/coffee
> 
> Hot water is defo not refreshing



I've had rides in SA like that where the second water bottle gets cooked. Here I ride with one bottle because I know where all the local water points are so there's always cool water available.

A word or warning though - when you get to a water Fuente (a public water source) ALWAYS check that it has running water BEFORE you throw away the warm water left in your bottle....... because warm water is better than nothing and very very occasionally, the fuente isn't running!

I found that out the hard way :-(


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## itboffin (8 Aug 2020)

Only 30c here today but a very hilly and fast club ride I’ve drunk about six pints of water since returning home and three bottles out on the ride, hills speed and heat not a great combo


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## Bonus (13 Aug 2020)

Last year I guided Rodney - an American who's lived down the road in Zaragoza for the last 20 years.

We kept in touch and became friends and he's been keen to come back to Zona Zero since his last trip. Finally, after a Covid enforced delay, we're riding together again, with him on his new bike.

It's always nice when clients had such a good time they look you up again :-)

This was last night on ZZ Route 5 Light - a nice fast XC route!


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## Bonus (24 Aug 2020)

Zona Zero has just released maps and details of 21 new XC routes - "For Bikers with the Soul of a Wolf".

I'll be trying them out as soon as I can find some time!


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## Bonus (9 Sep 2020)

We used to get amazing sunsets when we lived in South Africa. Here it's not generally so easy to see them because of the mountains but tonight was an exception . . . . the sun setting over the Zona Zero MTB trails, Ainsa.


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## Bonus (13 Sep 2020)

Ainsa now has it's own Pumptrack! It opened yesterday evening and today the kids were testing it out.


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## Bonus (7 Oct 2020)

I know I've posted this view before - looking north towards France from up at the "Mirador Del Cinca" - but it's a place I pass on my normal "get out for an hour or so" ride and it never fails to impress me....

Also on yesterdays ride, I managed to find a little stretch of "dry river bed" hidden in the trees that I can use to extend one of my XC routes nicely :-)


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## Bonus (14 Oct 2020)

Heavy traffic on the trails on Sunday...

It was like driving on the M25 at rush hour for goodness sake! ........ well maybe not ;-)


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## Bonus (16 Oct 2020)

The village of Sieste with the Pena Montenesa behind it, taken on route ZZ-018 - "Paths Of Mondebueno & Madalena"....

It's a beautiful day - dry, warm & sunny. Long may it continue!

:-)


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## Bonus (22 Oct 2020)

This weekend "La Vuelta a España", which was pushed back by 2 months thanks to Covid19, will be passing right through the area we live in :-)

We currently live in Boltaña and the race will pass through Ainsa, 6km east of here at the 100km mark and again through Fiscal, 20km west of us at the 160km mark. With luck we should be able to see the race both times. Race officials are predicting about an hour and a half of riding between the two points while they take in the "Añisclo Canyon" with its "Alto de Vio" and "Alto de Fanlo" climbs. Plenty of time for us to get from one to the other.....

The weather and temperature differences between mid August and mid October are worlds apart. The weather is currently too changeable to try and predict. Yesterday I was working in shorts and a T shirt - today I'm at home and it's raining and cold. Overall I'd guess that this is going to be a much colder & wetter Vuelta than usual.

Stage 5 is following a different route than that which was originally released last year. It finishes in a different place - I assume because of the snow on the peaks at this time of year.

The Route:

The race will leave the town of Huesca and head east towards Barbastro. They'll be on the "old road" not the new dual-carriageway that we would use. It's an undulating road which, overall, descends very slightly between the two towns.

In Barbastro they will turn left (North) and head towards Ainsa. 20km outside of Barbastro they will start riding alongside the El Grado Dam (Embalse del Grado) followed by the Mediano Dam (Embalse de Mediano) which takes them all the way up to Ainsa. The Mediano Dam has an abondoned village in the middle of it - you can see the top of the church tower, even when the dam is full. Currently the dam is 3/4 empty!

Through Ainsa and 11km up to Escalona where they turn left again (West) and hit the two climbs of the day. This road is not an easy road to get any speed up on - up and down and very wiggly! The riders will have to pay attention here. It does take in some really stunning scenary though. We've driven it several times.

They exit the valley at the small town of Sarvise, about 145km into the stage and turn left (South) to head down to Fiscal. This road is downhill all the way to Fiscal and it's not a bad road. From Fiscal to the finsh in Sabiñanigo they will be on, for the most part, a relatively new nice wide road that includes a 3km long tunnel and a 2nd Cat climb. I would expect an all out sprint for the last 20km of the race!

Incidentally, the road from Sarvise all the way to the finish line in Sabiñanigo is the same road that they rode back on 4th September 2016 at the beginning of Stage 15 of La Vuelta - but in reverse. That was the day Nairo and Alberto dropped everyone in the first 10km of the Stage!


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## Bonus (24 Oct 2020)

I'm happy to say that after a couple of rainy days, we have clear blue skies from horizon to horizon at the moment!

If it lasts all day then later on you will get to see Ainsa and the surrounding areas in all their Autumn beauty :-)

Fingers crossed that it lasts . . . . .


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## Bonus (24 Oct 2020)

Just catching up with the latest news and I see that La Vuelta will not be crossing the border into France tomorrow. . . . . so the Col du Tourmalet is out of the picture.

https://www.lavuelta...-formigal/22477

The new route for Stage 6 has been released and it is almost an exact copy of Stage 15 from 2016 - except that they start in Biescas then head down to Sabiñanigo (last time they started in Sabiñanigo) and do a loop through Fiscal, Broto, Biescas and finish up with the climb to Formigal.

Can't have been easy wanting to close down towns at short notice - some of these roads/towns will now be closed two days running - but at least the road condition will be good because they are re-riding some of todays route.

It's perfect for us because we can now see tomorrows Stage 6 really easily. I am as happy as a sandboy!

:-)


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## Bonus (25 Oct 2020)

Yesterdays Diary . . . . 

We had a coffee in Ainsa and you really wouldn't know that a Grand Tour is about to pass through there other than there being more police than normal..... 






We walked to a spot just outside Ainsa to watch the race. With the Peloton 10km away we could hear the helicopters in the distance and the first team cars and official cars started passing us . . . .






Mrs Bonus (Andrea) had her SA flag with her. She's actually British but she lived there so long . . . . and she's been supporting Team NTT.







We were at a point about 100km into a 184km race.

The break went past, then the bunch - looked like Froome was near the back of the bunch - then a little while later the back group passed.







After everyone had passed we walked back into Ainsa to jump in the car and drive a cut-through road to the second spot where we could see the race. In Ainsa lots of support vehicals were also taking the cut through road to jump ahead of the riders who were going to take about an hour and a half to do what we could do in 30 mins.
















We parked in Fiscal and walked out to the Intermediate Sprint Point where we could wait for the race to catch us up. First came a breakaway of three riders - they held out to the end - then the Peloton nearly 5 mins later, followed little groups and riders for 20 minutes aftrewards!

I didn't get pics of the riders passing - I was too busy shouting and cheering! So lots of pics of cars instead :-)


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## Bonus (25 Oct 2020)

Finally . . . my souvenirs! :-)


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## Bonus (25 Oct 2020)

Summary:

We had a really nice day yesterday.

Last night we watched the "highlights" on TV and it was amazing to see the area we live in from the air.

It's easy to get used to the mountains around here and to forget just how cool this countryside is. So much that we still haven't properly discovered!

:-)


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## Bonus (27 Oct 2020)

Sunday I was able to drive 30km west of where we live to see Stage 6 of La Vuelta. 

I was going to go to Sabiñanigo so that I could watch them pass twice there (they looped the town) and then up to Biescas, where the stage started, to see them pass on their way to Formigal. I could see that the weather was closing in so when I saw several team cars parked at the side of the road on a long steady climb about a third of the way around the route I realised that I was passing the feed-point and I decided to stop there and watch. 






After a while more team cars arrived and I was able to get some nice pics.


























20 minutes before the first riders arrived, the rain came in from the west and one of the team drivers I was talking to told me that the riders were already soacked!






When the break passed us, not one of them took a bottle or a musset. When the bunch arrived it was a different story. Aside from me, there were only two other people watching the race at the feed point, so I managed to pick up a few goodies for myself . . . .

18 Bottles and 6 Mussets, a dozen gels and assorted bits of food!






I came away happy . . . .


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## Eziemnaik (28 Oct 2020)

It seems to be successful in this sport you need a German team car


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## Bonus (2 Nov 2020)

Having lived in the UK for so long, between stints in SA, I still can't get over how good the "Northern Hemisphere" weather is here right through November and usually up until Christmas.

From yesterday mornings ride and then yesterday afternoons walk....... the Pena Monenesa and the Rio Ara :-)


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## Bonus (3 Nov 2020)

Yesterday I did part of Zona Zero Route 15 (ZZ-015) which is five minutes down the road from Boltaña town.

A 40 minute climb on a really nice gravel track followed by a 12 minute descent on a combination of farm trail / jeep track / goodness knows what. 

The trail goes up to the village of Silves, which actually consists of two parts - the upper and the lower villages (Silves Alto and Silves Bajo). The village is semi-inhabited. The houses will all have been "in the family" for ever and I'm not certain but I believe that the houses that are occupied are actually holiday places and the families actually live elsewhere. The village sits at about 900m and the views are, as usual, stunning. 

It's surprising how quickly you find youself way up above the road you were just on!











Getting some altitude now . . . . . 







Sometimes at the top of a climb I just stop and yell "HELL YEEEEEEAH" 






Plenty signs . . . . 
















And some abandoned houses . . . . .


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## Bonus (8 Nov 2020)

A sunny afternoon riding through the Castle grounds up in Ainsa Old Town.

Normally there would have been loads of people enjoying the day :-(

#Covid19 #2020


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## Bonus (23 Nov 2020)

Thursday we were out in an area called "La Fueva" - which is a 20 minute drive from us - for a nice XC ride.

I had found some tracks & trails that I thought would suit Mrs Bonus who's not into the Technical XC stuff I generally do. 

At one point I was convinced we were back on the South Downs Way!


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## Bonus (23 Nov 2020)

She said "I want to take your photo - pretend you're guiding someone!"


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## Bonus (23 Nov 2020)

She loves her "Thursday Selfies"


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## Bonus (17 Dec 2020)

Alongside the Rio Ara, Zona Zero, Spain . . . . . 5 mins from home.


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## fossyant (17 Dec 2020)

Ohh where is the mud fest. I'm moving out there !


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## Bonus (22 Dec 2020)

The philosophy here is "If you're riding a trail and you see a stone in the way, just move it". If everyone does that then the Zona Zero trails remain well maintained with the minimum of work. 

The Zona Zero team have provided a broom at the Pump Track so that if anyone turns up to ride and the track is a bit dirty, they can give it a sweep.....

:-)


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## Bonus (27 Dec 2020)

There's always somewhere to get a drink of water here!


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## Bonus (29 Dec 2020)

Pump track isn't going to get much use today!


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## Bonus (31 Dec 2020)

Last ride of the year - a spin in the snow. :-)

It's cold here now, need to dig out my winter kit. Summer kit plus "arm warmers and a Buff" are just not enough!


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## Bonus (26 Jan 2021)

Sometimes it's funny how you meet fellow riders and make new friends . . . .

After last weeks snowfall, followed by 36 odd hrs of steady rain, the middle of the normally grassy public carpark behind our rented flat had turned into a bit of a quagmire. From our lounge window we could look down and see a little white Peugot 306 halfway across the carpark - spinning its wheels in the mud.

After a couple of minutes the driver got out, gave the mud "a good looking at" and then got back in a tried again, to no avail. I put on my wellies and went down to help him. Between him driving and me pushing we managed to get the car onto firmer ground and then over to the entrance of the carpark, which is tarred.

He got out and thanked me and wanted to buy me a coffee - there's a coffee shop next door to us - but my dinner was on the table so I declined. Then I noticed a bike roof-rack on his car and said in Spanish "you ride?". His face lit up and we chatted for 10 minutes about cycling. He rides road & MTB, same as me.

We friended each other on FB, swapped phone numbers and "promised to ride together soon". Then he thanked me again, looked up at the sky and said "You're an Angel". I laughed then he said "I should know, I'm the Priest of Boltaña church!"


Tomorrow we're doing a road ride together....


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## Bonus (28 Jan 2021)

Some pics from yesterdays Road Ride.

Jose (the Priest from Boltaña church) and I started together in Boltaña, rode through to Ainsa, where we were joined by his friend Rafael (the Priest from Ainsa church!), carried on out to the "Collado de Foradada" which sits at 1020m, then back again. 55km in all.

Climbed around 700m, almost all of it during the "there" part of the ride, making the "and back" part easy!

It was a great ride. Sunny, but we still needed to wrap up. It is January after all....

I've never been on a ride before where I was out-numbered by Priests!


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## Bonus (21 Feb 2021)

From last year - starting the descent from the "Muro de Roda" (The Wall of Roda) castle in La Fueva, 20 mins outside Ainsa, on Route ZL-04 - on a sunny day with the Mediano Dam in the background.....


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## Bonus (24 Feb 2021)

Another Road Ride today with Jose.

From home in Boltaña to Graus Plaza - 53km with 900m of climbing. Open roads, sunshine, no traffic, some climbing..... and some descending. We saw Vultures and a pet Jabalíe (Wild Boar), we met friends and had lunch. It was a great day out :-)

Some amazing views today . . .






Our route and profile:












We stopped en-route see Jose's friends pet Wild Boar . . .







Finished up in the beautiful Graus plaza.....


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## Bonus (28 Feb 2021)

Yesterdays blast on the MTB . . . . stopped up in the Old Town to grab some water from the "Fuente" and a couple of pics.....

My bike with the Peña Montañesa behind it and the Rio Cinca looking south towards the Mediano Dam.

It was a beautiful day and good to be out :-)


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## Bonus (8 Mar 2021)

There's always a line to follow......


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## Bonus (21 Mar 2021)

A bit of XC last weekend . . . .


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## Bonus (23 Mar 2021)

Out in the middle of nowhere, me and my bike putting the world right! :-)


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## Bonus (17 Apr 2021)

With the Alto-Pyrenees to the North and the Lakes to the south, there are enough big landmarks around here that although you might take a little wrong turn occasionally, no one should ever really get lost.......

Zona Zero have taken care of the sign posting and done a great job.....

Happy trails . . . . . 

:-)


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## Bonus (20 Apr 2021)

Did a road ride with “Jose the Priest” and “Fermin the Sculptor” on Saturday afternoon. Beautiful day for it and the views are always worth the climb!

Fermin is 76 years old and climbed the first 7km – which rises 500 odd meters – without any problems. If I can ride like that at 76 I’ll be a happy man!

From FB:

A “Colombiano”, an “Ingles” and an “Español” riding together on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.
At one point Fermin (he’s a Sculptor who also sings Opera) and I were singing “El Mondo”……….


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## Bonus (26 Apr 2021)

Did another road ride with "Jose the Priest" and "Fermin the Sculptor" on Saturday afternoon.

Boltaña to Campo and back. 70km, with over 1000m of climbing. Worked the legs, caught some sun and Fermin, who sings Opera, sang to us a little on the climbs!

A great day out.


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## Bonus (28 Apr 2021)

Taking a breather on the way to the abandoned village of Muro de Bellos.....


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## Bonus (23 May 2021)

Remembering the "Jose "Pepe" Perez Memorial Race" held annually in October in Barbastro, a town about 50km south of where we live.

Jose was a policeman who was sadly killed on duty. 

I raced this in 2018 and loved it. Hoping it will be on again this year. The race was well organized and had a great atmosphere.


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## Bonus (20 Jun 2021)

Living in the middle of "Zona Zero" isn't just about riding MTB!

Last week Mrs Bonus helped our friends Els VH and Pedro Montaner from "Aventura Entremontes" - a local adventure company - who were making a promotional video about Kayaking here on the Mediano Dam (Embalse de Mediano). She enjoyed it so much that the following weekend we asked Els & Pedro if we could all do it again, so that I could try it!

I have to say, it was totally amazing!!

The dam is currently almost full. Maybe a meter and a half lower than when it's at its highest level. Els drove us all down to the start point with the 2-man Kayaks. We had them in the water within minutes and off we went. The water was beautiful and calm. Paddling the Kayaks was so easy it was a pleasure. We headed over to the tower of the old Mediano church - the only bit of the submerged village of Mediano that can be seen when the dam is full. From there we headed over to the East side of the dam and into one of the dams many "barrancos". This one is where the Rio Usia that comes from the village of "El Humo de Muro" enters the dam. You can't get up as far as the village but we found a lovely little shaded spot halfway up to stop and have a picnic.

There is a knack to paddling a 2-man Kayak - you both have to work smoothly and in unison . . . . we struggled a bit with that!! but we did have a great and relaxing time on the beautiful blue water in the sunshine. I look forward to doing it again sometime soon. Happy Days 



Many thanks to Els VH https://trailhunters.es/

Our Kayaks - and Els & Pedro setting off . . . .
















The Tower - which you can row through . . . . as demonstrated by our friends












Pics of us on a beautifully smooth dam, then heading up a Barranco . . . . 

















What it looks like when the water is low at the end of Summer. . . . .


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## Bonus (18 Aug 2021)

Every year we get a week or so of crazy hot weather in August. I mean August is always nice and hot, but a week or so of temps exceeding 40 degrees.

This year has been no exception and over the last few days we’ve topped out at 41 and 42 degrees several times. When it’s that hot you struggle to do anything, even thinking straight is hard! Like everyone, we do the best we can under the circumstances. Drop the outside blinds to keep the sun out of the flat during the day, drink plenty and swim in the river in the evening to try and cool our body cores down! Sleeping is hard, just sitting still is hard. I’m glad I finish work at 2:30 every day, because the afternoons are just too hot to work in unless you’re in somewhere with aircon!

Yesterday the temps dropped a few degrees and today they should drop a few more. We’ll have 30 as a max instead of 40 – which will be lovely. I’m looking forward to getting on the bike again after a week off.

Thankfully we did have a cracking thunderstorm in the middle of the very hot spell and that settled the dust for a day or so.

Let’s see how the next week goes . . . .


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## Bonus (5 Oct 2021)

"We all have that one friend who becomes a stuntman on a ride . . . "

Just found this "video still" on my hard drive whilst having a tidy up. I can confirm that no Americans were harmed during the making of this video....


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## Bonus (8 Oct 2021)

I've been road riding with Mrs Bonus every afternoon this week. 

The weather is warm & sunny and the roads of Zona Zero are quiet..... a perfect time to get some miles in!


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## mustang1 (8 Oct 2021)

Bonus said:


> The "Pyrenees - Road Riding, Mountain Biking & Enduro Riding" thread is aimed at covering everything to do with Road Riding, MTB Riding, Enduro Riding, Social Riding & Local Races here where we live in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains.
> 
> I'll also try and post details of local Iconic Grand Tour Climbs, Nearby Attractions and Points of Interest....
> 
> ...


That's a lovely backdrop but (strangley) i like the bike even better!


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## Bonus (8 Oct 2021)

mustang1 said:


> That's a lovely backdrop but (strangley) i like the bike even better!



Specialized Epic. It's an awesome bike. I love it. 

Still riding the same bike, but that white frame, which was a carbon frame with an ally rear triangle, has been replaced with a black frame which is all carbon. It was a "manufacturer replacement" after the original frame developed a crack....


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## mustang1 (8 Oct 2021)

Bonus said:


> Specialized Epic. It's an awesome bike. I love it.
> 
> Still riding the same bike, but that white frame, which was a carbon frame with an ally rear triangle, has been replaced with a black frame which is all carbon. It was a "manufacturer replacement" after the original frame developed a crack....
> 
> View attachment 612550


Cool. Yeah is aw that you had replaced it further down in the thread. You must have used it well which is great to hear!


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## Bonus (10 Oct 2021)

Yesterday we swapped our Road Riding lycra for Baggies & T-Shirts to go exploring on the nearly empty Mediano Dam.

A beautiful sunny day for a great ride with Mrs Bonus.... and now we know how to reach the dam wall by bike!

Hard to imagine we Kayaked through the windows at the top of the church tower back in the Spring when the dam was full! :-)


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## Bonus (15 Oct 2021)

Next Saturday (23rd October) the "Real Federacion Espanola Ciclismo" will be holding a round of the "Copa de Espana - Pump Track 2021" at the Ainsa Pump Track. 

Our track hasn't been open long so this is a first for us here at Zona Zero and the Zona Zero team will be there to help out - much like we did for the Endure World Series back in 2018.

I'm looking forward to it and to seeing how the Pro's handle the course!


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## Bonus (18 Oct 2021)

Riding Zona Zero Route ZZ-019 with my friends Mark & Adele from the Isle of Skye on Saturday.

It was a beautiful day and the route itself, whilst still tricky in places, has matured nicely with use over the last few years. Lots of nice fast singletrack and some amazing views! A really good technical XC route.


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## Bonus (22 Oct 2021)

Todays Road Ride with my friends Fermin and Alejo in the foothills of the Pyrenees.

A great ride, hard work but lots of laughs too - as always.

Beautiful weather, well maintained roads with little traffic and Zona Zero information signs en-route to measure our progress!
A great day out


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## Bonus (10 Apr 2022)

Rivers & Singletrack - Zona Zero

:-)


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## Bonus (17 Apr 2022)

Enjoying life . . . . 

Yesterdays ride on Zona Zero Route ZZ-07. Clear skies & warm weather - perfect.






The village of El Pueyo de Araguas with the Pena Montenesa mountain behind it.....


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## Bonus (7 May 2022)

Yesterday we drove up into the Pyrenees and did a little hike from the village of Revilla along to the "Miradors of Revilla" and back.

Miradors are what we'd call Viewing Points. It was an easy hike and the views were amazing. Afterwards we had a picnic lunch on the grass back at the car and sat and enjoyed the view while we ate.

This is definitely a place we'd recommend people to come and see for a morning out. Only 20 mins drive from Ainsa, good access and a really nice camino/path to walk along.

As always, the camera doesn't do the place justice, but here's a few pics anyway!


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