Clancy BriggsBlog

Looking for something active, adventurous and outdoors for your child during the Christmas holidays?

Our Christmas & New Year MTB Coaching Sessions are back, with two fantastic days of mountain biking at Greno Woods, Sheffield and Sherwood Pines Forest Park.

Whether your child is developing their confidence on blue trails, tackling more technical red-grade terrain, progressing their jumping skills or taking their first steps into mountain biking, we've got a group to suit them.

We're kicking off the Christmas holidays at Greno Woods on Monday 21st December 2026, before returning to Sherwood Pines on Saturday 2nd January 2027 to start the new year on the trails.

Our experienced coaches focus on building confidence, developing great technique and, most importantly, making sure riders have a brilliant day on their bikes.

The Christmas holidays are a great opportunity to get outdoors, stay active and enjoy some quality time on the trails.

Winter riding also brings different challenges. Changing trail conditions, slippery surfaces and unpredictable terrain encourage riders to adapt their technique, develop better bike control and become more confident mountain bikers.

Our coaching sessions combine skills, challenges, games and plenty of trail riding to create a fun and supportive environment where young riders can progress.

And after all the Christmas festivities, what better way to start the new year than getting out on your bike?

📍 Greno Woods, Sheffield

Greno Woods offers a fantastic opportunity for young riders looking to develop their mountain biking on more challenging terrain.

Located on the edge of the Peak District, Greno combines maintained MTB trails, natural terrain, steeper descents, berms, rollers, jumps and technical features.

Our Greno coaching days now offer two groups: Greno Fundamentals and Greno Advanced.

This allows more riders to experience this fantastic venue, with coaching and trail features selected to suit each group's ability and experience.

Our Greno Fundamentals group is for riders who already enjoy riding off-road but want to develop stronger MTB technique and confidence on more challenging trails.

It's the perfect progression for riders who are ready to experience Greno Woods but aren't yet at the level required for our Advanced group.

Riders should already be able to confidently ride a mountain bike off-road, control their speed, brake effectively and ride standing up on the pedals.

This isn't a learn-to-ride session. We'll be riding red-graded trails with features including rollers, berms and jumps, but riders don't need to be able to clear gap jumps, ride large drops or manual before attending.

During the day, we'll work on:

• Strong and balanced body position
• Effective braking and speed control
• Moving your body on the bike
• Flat turns and berms
• Riding rough and uneven terrain
• Confident climbing and descending
• Lifting and unweighting the wheels
• Rollers and trail features
• Suitable drops and jumps where appropriate
• Line choice and looking ahead

The aim is to give riders solid off-road techniques they can take onto any MTB trail, while developing the confidence and skills needed to progress towards more technical riding.

Suggested age: 8+

Our Greno Advanced group is designed for experienced young mountain bikers who are already confident riding red-graded trails and want to progress their skills on faster, steeper and more technical terrain.

This is a natural progression from our Sherwood Pines Red group.

For riders who have previously attended our Sherwood sessions, we'd recommend being very confident in Red and comfortable riding the gap jumps there before moving into Greno Advanced.

As a guide, riders should already be able to:

• Confidently clear approximately a 4ft gap jump
• Pop a manual and wheelie for at least 1 metre
• Confidently tackle steep berms and rollers at speed
• Ride red-graded trails comfortably and under control
• Approach technical trail features with good bike control

Throughout the session we'll focus on:

• Strong and dynamic body position
• Flat turns and high-speed berms
• Weight distribution and bike movement
• Lifting and unweighting the wheels
• Jumping with control and consistency
• Drops and technical trail features
• Advanced line choice
• Managing speed on challenging terrain
• Linking trail features together
• Developing overall speed and flow

This session is all about helping confident young mountain bikers improve their technique, ride more challenging features and take their riding to the next level.

Suggested age: 12–16, although ability is much more important than age.

Both Fundamentals and Advanced take place on the same day, with riders grouped according to their experience and current ability.

Our coaches will select suitable trails, features and challenges for each group, ensuring riders can progress at the right level.

If numbers are low, the two groups may be combined. If this happens, our coaches will adapt activities and features to suit the riders attending, allowing everyone to work on appropriate skills and progressions.

Our priority is always to make sure riders are appropriately challenged, safe and enjoying their time on the trails.

Date: Monday 21st December 2026

Time: 10:00am – 4:00pm

Price: £70 per rider

Groups: Greno Fundamentals (8+) and Greno Advanced (12+)

Book Greno Fundamentals: Monday 21st December HERE

Book Greno Advanced: Monday 21st December HERE

Not sure which group is right for your child? Get in touch and we'll be happy to help.

📍 Sherwood Pines Forest Park

Start 2027 with a day of mountain biking at Sherwood Pines!

Our Sherwood Pines holiday coaching sessions offer a clear progression pathway, from younger riders developing their first off-road skills to experienced mountain bikers looking to improve their technique on more demanding terrain.

With three groups available, there's something for a wide range of ages and abilities.

Our Trailblazer sessions are the perfect introduction to mountain biking.

Designed for younger or less experienced riders who can already ride their bikes independently, these sessions use games, challenges and simple trails to develop essential bike-handling skills.

We'll work on:

• Braking and speed control
• Slow-speed balance
• Cornering
• Standing up on the pedals
• Basic off-road riding
• Trail awareness
• Confidence on the bike

The emphasis is on having fun, building confidence and developing the fundamental skills riders need before progressing onto our Blue sessions.

Suggested age: 3+

Time: 10:00am – 11:30am

Price: £25 per rider

Our Blue sessions are for riders who are already confident riding their bikes and want to develop their off-road and trail-riding skills.

These sessions are designed to help young mountain bikers become smoother, more controlled and more confident on flowing blue-grade trails.

During the session we'll work on:

• Body position and balance
• Effective braking
• Cornering techniques
• Climbing and descending
• Pumping rollers and generating speed
• Riding berms
• Line choice and trail awareness
• Building confidence on blue-grade trails

Riders will have the opportunity to put their skills into practice on real trails, while continuing to develop strong fundamental MTB technique.

Our Blue coaching is available as a morning or afternoon session, or riders can combine both for a full day on the trails.

Suggested age: 6+

Morning: 10:00am – 12:30pm

Afternoon: 1:30pm – 4:00pm

Price: £32.50 half day / £65 full day

To attend for the full day, please book both the morning and afternoon sessions.

Our Red sessions are for confident young mountain bikers who are comfortable riding off-road and ready to progress onto more challenging terrain and features.

These full-day sessions focus on developing more advanced trail skills, with opportunities to improve jumping technique, bike control and confidence on technical sections of trail.

We'll work on:

• Technical trail riding
• Berms and rollers
• Small drops
• Advanced cornering
• Steeper descents
• Pumping and generating speed
• Bike park and dirt jump skills
• Jumping technique
• Trail management and decision making

Red riders spend more time on technical sections of trail, refining their bike handling and learning techniques that will help them become smoother, faster and more confident.

For many riders, Sherwood Red is also the stepping stone towards our coaching days at Greno Woods.

Suggested age: 10+

Time: 10:00am – 4:00pm

Price: £65 per rider

Date: Saturday 2nd January 2027

Location: Sherwood Pines Forest Park

Book your session:

• Trailblazers | 10:00 – 11:30: HERE
• Blue AM | 10:00 – 12:30: HERE
• Blue PM | 13:30 – 16:00: HERE
• Red Full Day | 10:00 – 16:00: HERE

For a full day in Blue, please book both the AM and PM sessions.

To make sure everyone has a safe, enjoyable and comfortable day, please arrive with the following equipment.

Essential Equipment

• A working mountain bike suitable for off-road riding
• Correctly fitting cycle helmet
• Spare inner tube in the correct size
• Water bottle or hydration pack
• Packed lunch for full-day sessions
• Plenty of snacks

Clothing

• Gloves
• Warm, weather-appropriate clothing
• Waterproof jacket
• Spare layers
• Suitable cycling footwear

December and January conditions can be cold, wet and muddy, so we strongly recommend bringing plenty of warm layers and spare clothing.

Additional Equipment Requirements For Greno Woods

For all Greno Woods sessions, riders must wear:

• Gloves
• Knee pads
• Elbow pads
• Full face Recommended

Gloves, knee pads and elbow pads are mandatory at Greno Woods.

Riders must also have a suitable mountain bike with good-quality MTB tyres and correctly working brakes.

Hardtail mountain bikes are absolutely fine, but fixed seatposts will need to be dropped low, and flat pedals with pins are necessary.

If you're unsure whether your child's bike or equipment is suitable, please contact us before booking.

To ensure everyone gets the most out of their coaching session, we ask that parents and guardians do not accompany us out onto the trails. This is important for group management and safeguarding, allowing our coaches to maintain a safe, focused and well-managed environment. We also find that young riders often gain much more from the experience when they're away from their parents. They become more independent, build resilience, make their own decisions and are often more willing to challenge themselves and try new things. It's a fantastic opportunity for youngsters to develop confidence, not just in their riding but in themselves too. Parents are, of course, welcome to enjoy the facilities at Sherwood Pines while the session takes place, and we'll make sure everyone knows where and when to meet for collection.

Our holiday coaching sessions are about much more than simply riding trails.

We want young riders to develop confidence, learn new skills, challenge themselves and enjoy spending time outdoors with other enthusiastic mountain bikers.

All our groups are delivered by experienced, qualified and insured coaches who are First Aid trained and Enhanced DBS checked.

Whether your child is discovering mountain biking for the first time or developing more advanced technical skills, we'll help them progress in a fun and supportive environment.

From technical trail riding at Greno Woods on 21st December to starting 2027 with a fantastic day at Sherwood Pines on 2nd January, our Christmas holiday coaching sessions offer something for young riders at every stage of their mountain biking journey.

Places are limited, so early booking is strongly recommended.

Get outside. Build confidence. Learn new skills. Ride bikes.

We can't think of a better way to spend the Christmas holidays!