The sun is streaming through gaps in the woodland canopy, and my ears are filled with birdsong as I bounce my bike down an old stream bed, lurching over gnarled tree roots and flying off huge stones. My tyres land in the water below with a satisfying splash that drenches my already mud-spattered calves. Once I get to the bottom and emerge on to a grassy trail flecked with jaunty buttercups, I turn my bike around to do it again.

I’ve come to Deers Leap Park in East Grinstead,  Surrey, to ride some of its 240 acres of mountain bike trails. The experience feels worlds away from slogging up hills on my carbon-fibre road bike, an unforgiving Eastway, upon which I have always felt somewhat precariously balanced, as opposed to intuitively joined. Mountain bikes have a sturdy, bouncy, go-anywhere feel. The wide, grippy tyres take on obstacles from slippery mudbanks to rickety bridges; it’s a whole-body style of riding requiring a level of fitness and endurance beyond relentless powering with the legs.

Plus it’s much more fun. I’m a country girl at heart and I’ll take grassy hills, muddy banks and tunnels through ­willow groves over tarred roads and exhaust fumes any day.

Adam Falshaw, part-owner and manager of Deers Leap, says his clientele is packed with riders like me, who traded the mountain bike for a car as soon as they came of age, then rediscovered bikes 10, 20 or even 30 years later. 

Since Falshaw, 37, took over the park two years ago he has seen the number of riders increase by around one-third each year, and among one group most notably – the middle-aged. The notorious MAMIL (Middle-Aged Man in Lycra) is becoming the MAMIB (Middle-Aged Man in Baggies), trading in the road bike and Rapha kit for a downhill bike and loose Sombrio shorts. Female riders are equally drawn by the thrill of off-road trails, fresh air and not an irate driver in sight.

Falshaw says fears over the safety of road riding and the competitive element, fuelled by Strava, are contributing to the increase in popularity of mountain biking. Parents are rediscovering their love of off-roading through encouraging their children out on bikes, desperate to lure them away from screens and social media.

“Life does tend to get away from us a bit,” he notes. “As we get older we often forget to have fun and then we reach a point when we want to cram it back in.”

And by the time many reach middle age they have the disposable income to indulge their passions.

Jamie Lynch, 50, a British Cycling mountain and road biking coach, has been running South East Mountain Biking for 10 years and says he’s seen a huge increase in demand from middle-aged riders.

“I started off as a guide, but it seemed a lot of people who wanted to ride off-road didn’t have the confidence. You get more confident through knowing how to handle the bike.” 

Tony Power, 46, rediscovered his childhood love of mountain biking eight years ago after picking up a magazine on holiday. “As soon as I got home I blew the dust off my old Halfords special and tagged along with a local MTB group for a ride, which nearly killed me, but I was immediately hooked.” 

Since then, Power has completed several Gravity Enduro races (events incorporating timed downhill sections with untimed uphill sections), “where I found my enthusiasm is far greater than my talent”. He now rides off-road three times a week: “I love the social side, keeping fit and earning that pint.” 

But it’s also the domain of reckless youngsters who air their gravity-defying efforts online. “That’s great for the industry,” Falshaw says, “and more are picking up on it as a consequence.”

How to get involved

• You can ride off-road on public bridleways, but watch out for horses (and walkers). Search online for mountain bike trails in your area, many places also offer bikes and helmets for hire.
• Consider a coaching or skills session if you need a confidence boost. Google British Cycling coaches in your area. 
• Join a Facebook group or online forum for hints and tips, the best places to ride, group rides and clubs

Starter kit

• THE BIKE: The Whyte 603 – find it knocked down from £599 to around £400, if you search online.
• THE GLOVES: Sealskinz are affordable and high quality.
• THE HELMET: Head to your local independent bike shop for a proper fitting rather than buying online.
• THE SHORTS: Sombrio Highline shorts (£71.99, cyclestore.co.uk). 

Win a family of bikes! We’ve teamed up with Ridgeback to give away two adult bikes and two children’s bikes to one lucky winner. To enter, visit