North Downs

The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent.Westerham Heights, at the northern edge of the North Downs, near Bromley, South London, is the highest point in London at an elevation of 245 metres. The North Downs lie within two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs), the Surrey Hills and the Kent Downs. The North Downs Way National Trail runs along the North Downs from Farnham to Dover.

Etymology

'Downs' is from Old English dun meaning, amongst other things, 'hill'. The word acquired the sense of 'elevated rolling grassland' around the fourteenth century. These hills are prefixed 'north' to distinguish them from the morphologically similar range of hills - the South Downs - which run roughly parallel to them but some 50 km (31 mi) to the south.

Geography

The narrow spine of the Hog's Back between Farnham and Guildford forms the western extremity of the North Downs, whilst the cliffs between Folkestone and Deal terminate the ridge in the east. There are two distinct aspects, the steep south-facing escarpment and the gentle north-facing dip slope. The southern boundary is defined by the foot of the escarpment which gives way to the flat, broad clay lands between the Downs and Greensand Ridge known as the Vale of Holmesdale. The northern boundary is less apparent but occurs where the chalk submerges below the more recent Paleocene deposits.

Mountain biking

Mountain biking is the sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain.

Mountain biking can generally be broken down into multiple categories: cross country, trail riding, all mountain (also referred to as "Enduro"), downhill, freeride and dirt jumping. Although the majority of mountain biking falls into the categories of Trail and Cross Country riding styles.

This individual sport requires endurance, core strength and balance, bike handling skills, and self-reliance. Advanced riders pursue both steep technical descents and high incline climbs. In the case of freeriding, downhilling, and dirt jumping, aerial manoeuvres are performed off both natural features and specially constructed jumps and ramps.

Mountain biking can be performed almost anywhere from a back yard to a gravel road, but the majority of mountain bikers ride off-road trails, whether country back roads, fire roads, or singletrack (narrow trails that wind through forests, mountains, deserts, or fields). There are aspects of mountain biking that are more similar to trail running than regular bicycling. Because riders are often far from civilization, there is a strong ethic of self-reliance in the sport. Riders learn to repair their broken bikes or flat tires to avoid being stranded miles from help. Many riders will carry a backpack, including a water bladder, containing all the essential tools and equipment for trailside repairs, and many riders also carry emergency supplies in the case of injury miles from outside help. Club rides and other forms of group rides are common, especially on longer treks. A combination sport named mountain bike orienteering adds the skill of map navigation to mountain biking.

Boxley

Coordinates: 51°18′09″N 0°32′34″E / 51.302424°N 0.542887°E / 51.302424; 0.542887

The village of Boxley in the Maidstone District of Kent, England lies below the slope of the North Downs approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) north-east of the centre of Maidstone town. The larger civil parish of Boxley has a population of 7,144 (2001 census), and extends to the north and east of the town including the settlements of Boxley itself, Grove Green, most of Weavering Street, Sandling and the southern extremities of Walderslade and Lordswood at the top of Blue Bell Hill.

The M2 and M20 motorways cross the parish to the north and south of the village and the High Speed 1 railway line passes to the south of the village in cuttings and tunnel. Despite being so close to Maidstone and two motorways, the village is surrounded by woodland, and still retains a village feel. The ruins of Boxley Abbey are located here. The parish church is dedicated to St Mary and All Saints. The church and the Abbey Barn are both Grade I listed buildings and the site of the abbey is a scheduled monument. Boxley Abbey House, Parsonage Farm and St Andrew's Chapel in Boxley and Weavering Manor in Weavering Street are all Grade II* listed. The Pilgrims' Way trackway and the North Downs Way pass through the parish. The village was the filming location for the film version of Porridge.

Boxely

Boxely is a discontinued XML/CSS rendering engine, adapted for rendering themes (like Gecko does with XUL for chrome). It is developed by AOL and is used in AOL Instant Messenger, ICQ and AOL Explorer.

See also

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