All Things Bikes and Tacos! (...and every vehicle imaginable)

i should have posted a pic of a shrader valve, lol

 

First of all, you have to admit and accept that riding a fat bike on snow is not like mountain biking on dirt. It's a different sport altogether and requires different bike handling skills...Snow riding is counter-intuitive to normal bike riding. It's weird and a lot of folks are turned off the first time they try it because you fall off your bike a few times and you feel like you're learning to ride a bike all over again. I was one of these people, too. I tried it a few more times and found that I really enjoyed it.

I think everyone will agree that riding in powder or slush totally sucks. You will wander all over the place and the grip is essentially nonexistent. However, get on a well-groomed or packed trail with the right tire pressure and you can climb anything. Tire pressure is THE KEY for winter riding. One psi can make a huge difference in your ride. I played around with psi a lot in the beginning and feel like I've got things dialed for what I ride. (FYI - I'm 190lbs and I ride with 4psi front and 5.5psi rear on 26x4.8 tires.)

I see quite a few people out on the trails in winter on a 2.8 or 3.0 tire. The majority of them are struggling and look to me like they are not having a good time...not to mention they are putting large ruts in the trail. I say get a real fat bike if you're going to ride in the snow. I picked up a Surly Ice Cream Truck and put 122 miles on it between January-April. I'm also lucky in that there are 3 groomed winter riding areas close-ish to me.

That's my two cents... It's not for everyone. But try it more than once before discarding the idea. I gave up snowboarding a few years ago and I really love this "alternative winter sport." It's also really great to spend 3 hours in the snow and not see another soul. This is at the new Bonanza Flat fat bike trails last February...

 

Here’s my rep sheet.

It’s all sold finally.

Everything here was profit or breakeven. I’m enjoying the ride. Trying all the different bikes and products.

 

Hmmm…are you referring to the rattlesnake…..or the two bike and one hiker encounters I had. Several equestrians seen from a distance, I used the plentiful horse manure balls strewn about the trail before me to hone my bunny hopping skills and maneuverability avoidance at speed. Many complain about horse dropping on the trail, I encourage it. It’s only vegetation recycled and turns to fertilizer for surrounding plants rather quickly down the road. The bonus for us in our sport is added surprises in the technical department.

 

lol. mostly the snake.

 

I've never ridden a fat bike but I've ridden a + bike with 29x3.0 tires. It is solid but honestly...I'd rock the XC skis if I lived in the northeast. In a perfect world I'd have both but XC skis have a solid fun to money ratio.

 

man for some reason I didn't see the tag, my bad! Lake Fairfax has some fun trails and Schaeffer farms in Maryland has some pretty awesome trails. I haven't ridden them yet but they are MORE built trails (local chapter of IMBA) and I did a trail run at them and I was eyeing all the MTB lines the whole time. I second what @paleh0rse said, Wakefield also has some solid trails.

By Lorton I'm assuming either Meadowood or Laurel Hills, if not then I'd try those.

Just note that Freeze thaw hits hard around here, you might be okay around Christmas but just a heads up. Let me know when you're around. I will probably be up at my parents in Massachusetts around Christmas but if I'm around let's ride!

 

I ride fairly often outside all winter (in Manitoba) but am also pretty happy to be on the trainer.

The one bike I don't like riding is a fat bike. I'll ride gravel if it's not -30 but have very little interest in fat bikes even though everyone I ride with loves them. They're a fun enough novelty with some friends but I'd never take one out by myself. I don't find them that much fun to a heavy bike at 5mph by myself. Ha. If my buddies and I are mucking around in the woods and challenging each other to jump whatever or beef it down a hill that's ok.

I'd rather take the gravel bike, xc skis, or the trainer.

When it comes to snow I'd rather just ski.

So... In short. I have one and I ride it once or twice a year.

 

Nice work!

Buying Low, Selling High is fun! I'm a big side-hustle guy and last year was an excellent year for the secondhand bike market considering the initial shortage and panic buying. Now the market has caught up and everyone thinks their bikes are worth more than retail. Anyways here's a list of my transactions from last year. Digging into the data I had an average 34% margin and roughly 50/50 shipping vs local. I bought primarily on Facebook but sold marginally more on Pinkbike.

This year has looked much different - only 12 transactions but 49% margin. I attribute this to uninformed sellers and overpaying buyers considering the current environment.

 

If I was still working from home I'd for sure dive deeper, however I could never compete with those numbers.
B'ham isn't as big on MTB unfortunately, Oak Mtn has grown a good bit in the past year.

 

True. It really was the ideal circumstances between our local MTB scene and working from home.

I forced myself to download a timer app to reduce my TW/Pinkbike/Facebook classifieds time lol

 

I'm the exact opposite, I'm active when at work.
WFH was a blessing for me and I need these jackasses to go back to it.

 

Are riding pants worth it?

Thinking about getting some of these Fox Pants and even on sale it's a lot of money.

I think for Park Days I'd rather wear old MX gear since it's more padded, but for trail riding are riding pants worth it?

 

I think they are when it's colder or wetter. They keep the wind from freezing your legs off. BUT, I don't have really expensive pants like fox or leatts. I just ride the handup gloves pants and they've been really good for me. I've worn them on occasion and they've saved me from freezing my ass off. AND they look good enough to wear either casually or at a semi-formal event.

 

Trail riding pants are definitely worth it if you plan on riding all year long. I shopped religiously for a pair of trail pants last year and ended up settling on some NF DP3 pants. They are expensive but they are made in Canada and are priced within reason of other companies that use child slaves in Asia(joking). Just put your info in the email and they will get back to you when a batch is complete. They are true to sizing. https://www.ridenf.com/

 

x2 on pants you can wear on and off the bike. Those handups looks nice, but their sizing doesn't look like it would work for me. I've always wanted to try the 686 everywhere pants but they have the same wonky sizing where you can get the right waist/inseam specs.

I really like the Prana Zion. Need the straight fit though to keep them away from the chain. Also recently got a pair of Ketl tomfoolerly pants and they've been awesome.

 

I live, and ride mostly in the winter in Ohio. While we don't get as much snow as you guys do , we do get a decent amount of adverse riding conditions. I purposefully bought a 29+ (OG Surly Krampus) and I love riding it in the winter. As many have mentioned, powdery stuff will kick it's/my butt, but it rides well in other stuff, and it is my year 'round bike as well. Granted, I don't ride for speed. I ride to be in the outdoors, and to gain miles, so I was not looking for a race bike. It is more of a bikepacking, mile grinder for me.

in the winter, if it is too powdery, or slushy on single track, I will ride gravel with it. Around here very few people ride past October, so most of the time, I am trailblazing on singletrack trails in the snow. We don't have any grooming other than other riders or people snow shoeing. That can make for some frustrating rides.

My issue is finding the right tires...I tend to just stick with the Knards that it came with, but they are not as grippy as I probably should have for winter riding.

 

what's your thoughts on the used one's, I guess if repaired other than maybe some fading they should be in just as good of condition as new.

Almost like a new/blemish type thing

 

I would do it if the discount was right.