Rugs & Runners @ Rug Zone UK Rugs Shaggy Traditional Wool Cheap

Rugs & Runners @ Rug Zone UK Rugs Shaggy Traditional Wool Cheap

Petite Piazza Hand Tufted 100% Wool Rugs in beige and brown

Nice shades of green produced in a wool fibre. Petite Piazza Hand Tufted 100% Wool Rugs in beige and brown

Mountain biking: Looking for decent descents around Swaledale?

One of the key factors to a good days mountain biking is to finish with mud on your cycling jacket and a big grin on your face, or in other words, a good bit of downhill. And where better to find flowing steep downhill sections than Swaledale in the Yorkshire Dales? When I say Swaledale I am really referring to the hills to the north and south of the River Swale that give access to Arkengarthdale, Apedale and Wensleydale and to the west Tan Hill and West Stones Dale.

Of course a trip to the Dales will often raise the discussions of trail centres or cross country and where will you get the best ride? The argument usually goes; at a trail centre you generally have steady climbs and the downhill section is usually longer and more sinuous as you traverse into berms and over table tops at a deliberate steady rate, whereas cross country riding your descent is often the most direct way. In other words with cross country cycling you can have a ball ache of a climb for a relatively quick and unpredictable descent.

Because Swaledale is a fairly narrow dale it’s abundant with climbs where even the hardiest of us will have to get off and push the bike. Apart from the unforgiving climbs there are also the hundreds of gates to negotiate and we mustn’t forget the lakes of black peaty bogs. Whist there have been days when I felt I’d spent more time carrying the bike than riding it, I keep on going back for more. Why? On the bright side there are many magnificent views, the length and profile of the cycle ride can be fairly easily varied and when you get the route right they’re really fantastic cycling trails. Oh, and don’t forget, one thing that the Dales have the cycle trail centres don’t, is pubs. Not that I would ever encourage you to drink and ride, but what better way to finish than to sip a lukewarm pint of Black Sheep ale?

When I ride in the Dales I always take a GPS, this firstly keeps me on the right trail, and secondly it logs the actual route I take including the elevation profile and speed of travel. So, when I upload the data onto the laptop I can see where and why I achieved the grin factor. To me a good downhill section means cycling on something that isn’t tarmac. It has to either be a fairly technical descent or faster moving on grass, single track or dirt / stone track (grouse road), something where you’d encounter a few surprises and can feel the bike suspension pounding and recoiling. The adrenaline level has to surpass the point of fear of being hurt. According to my trusty GPS, this is usually reaching speeds over 30 km/h on grassy or dirt track or on technical section anything above 12 km/h. So bearing that in mind this is roughly the criteria for the sections that I will recommend. The video clips are footage that I found on Youtube and in most cases are just short section of the trails, but it gives a visual idea of what to expect. Oh, just on more thing, because the head camera is travelling at the same angle of the bike the descents never look as steep as they actually are!

Fremington Edge to Sorthwaite Hall

Descend from 460mtrs to 255mtrs (205 metres) over 1.9km.
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On a mountain bike you would approach Fremington Edge from the hamlet of Hurst. Climbing up onto the grouse road after a couple of bends you will see a path to the left that leads to a wall and a gate. Take the path to the gate and go through it. The first couple of hundred yards can be quite boogy but you will soon come to sturdier ground and the real downhill will begin. You should have a good view of Arkengathdale but if you are going to admire the view it’s best to stop the bike first. There is a tricky little drop just before a right hairpin turn that takes you to a steep loose rocky section. Just apply the brakes and roll into the drops, it is all ride able. Next you will come to a gate and a steep section grassy section, take more caution if it’s wet with a little S bend to help slow you down just before the wall narrows as you reach the bottom gate.

Video by Beamish Odd Sox Mountain Biking Club

Great Pinseat to Surrender Bridge via Hard Level Gill

Descend from 583m to 352m (231 metres) over 4.8km
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The mine spoils that dominate Great Pinseat are more reminiscent of an alien landscape than the Yorkshire Dales. From the peak you take a rough grouse road with loose stones and rocks just to make things a little more interesting. Starts off as a steepish rocky descent that will really test your MTB suspension, to a gate, once through the gate it’s more gradual descent as the road follows Barney Beck to Surrender Bridge. Best to check you still have the fillings in your teeth.

Great Pinseat to road via Barras Edge

Descend from 583m to 393m (190 metres) over 3.08km.
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It’s basically grouse road that takes you from mine spoils of Great Pinseat down to the spine road between Low Row to Langthwaite. It’s a gradual descent with no nasty surprises but your MTB can pick up some serious speed. You may need to lift your bum off the saddle for relief from the constant vibration. This is also nice road to climb up to Great Pinseat

Fore Gill Gate to Healaugh

Descend from 424m to 260m (194 metres) over 2.5km
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From Fore Gill Gate take the single track path that veers to the right there is a slight climb, then a descent, nothing too technical but it can get a little awkward in places. You will come to a wall on your left a couple of hundred yards past the end of the wall there is a path veers right. Take the right path you will cross a grouse road and follow the grassy bridle path there should now be a wall to /continue downhill hugging the wall to your right. Cycle through two sets of gates and bare left down the Theirnswood Hall Road, at the bottom of the road turn left to Healaugh.

Slade Head to Gunnerside via Barf End Gate

Descend from 550m to 242m (208 metres) over 2.8km
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The descent starts on the grouse road just above Slade Head, after about half a mile down the grouse road on the left there is a grassy track with tyre grooves used for farm vehicles. Take this track to a ford then continue to Barf End Gate. Go through the gate and bare left across the field until you come to another wall and a gate. Do not go through the gate, look to the left and behind you will see a track down a grassy embankment. Follow the track downhill to Gunnerside. The terrain varies from grass to rocky single track. Look out for walkers!

Please Note: The video takes a slightly different bike route to the one I recommend, it comes to Barf End via Gunnerside Gill which is a more undulating route.

Tan Hill to East Stonesdale, near Keld

Descend from 541 to 300mtrs (241 metres) over 5.6 km
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OK, this one is really two downhill sections with undulating in parts in the middle but it is damn good ride particularly after a spell of dryer weather. Start at the Tan Hill Pub and cycle up the Pennine Bridle way to Tan Hill, the bridleway forks right and continues onto a track and the start of the descent. This is bleak peaty moorland and can be quite soft particularly after a spell of rain. For the first mile and a quarter you will encounter some pretty turbulent single track, as you reach the end of this section you will see a Lad Gill, just before it there is a small drop off that can take you by surprise.
Once over the beck you cross a piece of soft grassy moorland to the wall and gate next to a farm building. Cross Mould Gill and go through the gates and follow the track through a narrow walled section that opens up, you will see the track ahead bare to the left into Firth Lodge, at this point you need to keep looking right for the wooden bridleway sign. Bare right onto the path and you will come to How Gill and yet another gate. After the gate there is a gentle climb along the side of the dale with some tricky path to negotiate, stop and take in the views now as the next section you will have your eyes on your line of travel as the path takes you down to, you guessed it, another gate, the gate at Shot Lathe to be precise. Through the gate as a walled section that is reminiscent of a stone walled bob sleigh run that takes you to the next set of gates at East Stonesdale, then it’s down the steep stoney road to the River Swale at Keld.

Hooker Mill Scar Gate to B6270

Descend from 479m to 311m (168metres) over 1.6km
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To reach Hooker Mill Scar, you would need to take the bridle path from Muker, the downhill section is basically a dirt track with a couple of gates that converts to a suspension punishing steeper stony track. The descent finishes at the ford just before the B6270.

Apedale Head to Dents Houses along Apedale Rd.

Descend 522m to 386m (136 metres) over 3.2km

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I assume that Apedale Road must have been constructed to be the main artery to service the many mines in the area, these mines are now disused but the dirt road still survives, mainly to service the grouse shooters. The descent starts from Apedale Head and finishes before the crossroads at Dent Houses. Whist it is mainly fast flowing dirt track there is a steep rocky section that requires a little extra concentration to stay on the bike. Oh, and at the end of the rocky section there is a small drainage ditch that can take you by surprise. The nice thing about Apedale is it’s a fun descent that will lead you to another, at the Dent Houses turning left takes you to Greets Hill or right takes to Wensleydale and Castle Bolton.

Black Hill to Bolton Castle

Descend from 420m to 236m (184 metres) over 1.95 km
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The logical way to get to Black Hill is from the crossroads at Dent Houses, there is a short climb on the Grouse Road to a wall and a gate. Go through the gate and you will find a fenced path, stay on the path and you will soon start to travel downhill. It’s a clearly defined path with a right then a left bend then brings you onto a less defined open field, pick your line as there are a few, watch out for the rabbit burrows and enjoy the ride. Try not to stray too far from the wall on your right as you need to be at the gate at end of the path. Once through the gate the path changes from open grass to a stone walled passage where the surface is much like riding a dry river bed. At the end you would normally take a right to Castle Bolton.

Buying rugs to sell at competitive prices

The vast majority of Internet rug dealers build their business on the back of stocks held by wholesalers and importers. That is to say, they do not invest in stock; instead they simply lift photos from the rugs supplier catalogue and offer them on their web site. When the customer orders rugs from the website the retailer must then order the rugs from the wholesaler or importer, wait for the rugs to be delivered to their premises, then make arrangements to deliver to the end user, the customer. Not only is this method of selling costly to the end user it can take at best ten days to two weeks to process and deliver an order.

Any importer of rugs will tell you that transportation of goods is a major expense which inevitably has to be paid for by the end user. Because there is no mass production of rugs in the United Kingdom most machine made Wilton rugs are imported from Belgium, the Middle East or Turkey while handmade rugs are imported from India, Pakistan and China where labour is considerably cheaper. As rugs are generally bulky the burden of delivery charges can be a relatively high proportion of the end product price. A typical internet rug retailer who is operating using wholesale or importers stocks must additionally carry the weight of the operating costs and profit margins of his suppler plus the delivery costs to his door and also to the end user.

As a sole internet trader Rug Zone follows the principals of giving the consumer a combination of low prices rugs and fast delivery. Stock is stored and controlled in the main warehouse in Sunderland for same working day dispatch on orders processed before 2pm. Bulk purchasing it the key to the success of Rug Zone operation as buying rugs direct from manufactured by the container means lower prices can be negotiated with suppliers. Delivery and transportation costs are kept to an absolute minimum as the rugs are delivered direct from the factory to warehouse cutting out any middle men.

Ordering rugs in larger quantities also means Rug Zone has more control over the finished product. At Rug Zone the research and development team strive to bring rugs that are a little more unique, by creating rugs with new and diverse designs, rugs in larger size, shape and colour variation and with different textures to their competitors.

When a customer orders rugs on the Rug Zone website they usually get next working day delivery, exclusive designs and lower prices for superior qualities. Rug Zone do not sell rugs as an add-on to carpets or other products, they are dedicated to the business of providing rugs at a competitive price. Genuine savings of 30% or more can usually be achieved on like for like rugs with rugzone.co.uk

How to get the most out of your summer cycle rides

So, you’ve bought your new bike! With your suspension forks and a gazillion gears you are ready to put on your shorts and tee-shirt to cycle the bridleways, disused train lines and forests of the United Kingdom, maybe stopping off for quick refresher at the local pub or cafe on route. Just imagine those hot sunny days and Idyllic long warm evenings cycling into the sunset with your bike and a few friends. Ah perfect!

Unfortunately your dream of the perfect cycle ride can be easily quashed by some very simple factors. The changeable British weather or simple case saddle soreness for example can ruin a potentially great ride out. Fortunately wearing the correct cycling clothing is the simplest way of preventing major discomfort.

No matter where you ride the British weather at sometime is going to catch you out, whether it’s a typical summer shower or a chill settling in on a warm evening the correct cycling attire will always keep fairly comfortable. Good quality cycling clothes are produced using fibres that are designed to retain body heat while allowing perspiration to wick out and disperse quickly on the surface, keeping you dryer and therefore cooler. Whilst there is no way to avoid getting wet the odd summer shower wearing this style of clothing means you will dry many times quicker than the equivalent produced in say a cotton fibre.

When the sun starts to set and the chill sets in you will again find that the fibres used in quality cycling wear will retain your body heat, particularly when you are on the move. Because the clothes are light and compact it is fairly easy to pack and extra base layer, jersey or gilet (type of sleeveless jersey).

When it comes to leg wear the preferred summer attire for the cyclist is shorts. Cycling shorts come in two main categories, tight Spandex shorts and Baggy Shorts. While tight shorts are defiantly more comfortable to cycle in they don’t look too good in the country pub, as a little too much embarrassing bulge can show. So, the Baggy type short is often first choice for the social cyclist.

The leg length is also down to preference; above the knee or below the knee, wear the cycling shorts you feel more comfortable in. Quality Cycling Shorts fibres have the same heat retaining and perspiration wicking properties mentioned earlier, but more importantly should also come with a chamois to protect your sit bones. Coolmax chamois are the preferred protection for all Terrain cycling shorts as they are designed to wick away the perspiration that causes chafing while protecting the sit bone. To gain the maximum comfort you should not wear underwear between the Coolmax chamois and your skin, as this will prevent the chamois from wicking away perspiration, thus causing you discomfort and chafing.


Don’t let discomfort spoil your cycle ride, visit us at http://www.encove.co.uk for the best deals on our exclusive Terrain Cycle Wear

Why do rugs creep and ruck on carpet or wood flooring?

Over the years a question that has been asked on many an occasion is, "why does my rug creep, and how can I stop it from creeping"? To answer the question we first need to establish what type of floor your rug is on, carpet or hard flooring such as hard wood flooring, stone or ceramics.

Rugs creeping on CarpetRugs laid on top of fitted carpets are the most common of rug creeping problems and is caused by the carpet under the rug or more specifically the pile on the carpet that the rug is seated upon. The reason for this that all carpets have a pile direction, that is to say the pile does not stand up straight, it leans in one direction. When a carpet layer installs a new carpet he will whenever possible lay the pile towards the main doorway, because when to looking into the pile the colours appear richer, similarly when laying a carpet on stairs he will lay the carpet so that the pile flows down the stairs, this is to increase the wear ability and appearance of the carpet.

When vacuuming a you may also notice that it is easier to push in one direction or the colour looks more consistent when vacuumed in one direction, this is simply because the carpet pile has a set direction.When you come to lay a rug, runner or doormat on top of a carpet, be it large or small, heavy or light there is an extremely high possibility that once in situation it will move. Once a rug is subject to even the lightest of traffic it will start to creep in the direction of the carpet pile beneath.When stepping on a rug your weight is transferred though the rug and the carpet it is seated on plus any underlay (padding), causing an indentation that slightly distorts the rug. Once you release the weight the rug, carpet and underlay and return to their original shape, but because the rug is not fixed it will reposition it's self following the natural flow of the pile on the carpet beneath. Depending upon the location and situation of furniture prolonged activity upon the rug will cause it to creep or ruck.Rugs Creeping or skidding on hard

Flooring.On hard flooring surfaces rugs likely to skid rather than creep. This is simply because the floor is slippy and the rug will move with direction of the foot traffic upon it. Heavier rugs and mats are less likely to skid.How to stop your rugs and mats creeping.There are many products on the market, from rug underlays to sprays that can be applied to the backing of the rug. Some manufactures will produce anti slip rugs with a rubberised or latex backing, please note that these rugs are anti-slip, not anti-creep, they may still move on a carpet.Rug underlays will prevent the rug moving and also give a little more cushioning on hard floors, but they can work our expensive. Rug sprays such as Cybergold Rug Contol Spray will cover up to 8 square metres, working out at fraction of the cost of underlays. Both anti creep underlay and anti creep sprays work like a Velcro holding the rug in place on both carpets and hard flooring. Whatever product that you decide upon to stop your rugs and mats creeping, make sure that you buy enough to cover the entire under surface of the rug.