Wow have you lost your mind??8-[ I just don't see how that can be fun, I'm freezing just looking at the photo! Travel safe!
This bike was built for one very specific use(long distance winter races).....which means it'll never see dirt or high speeds. May as well save weight/simplify.
Just think how sweet it would be to show up at the trail head in one of these things and then pull out your fat tired bike.
I likely won't get around to putting together a proper trip report/photo collection......but here are a few of the better shots from this winter. The above photo was taken in the Farewell Burn between Rohn and Nikolai. We had started riding that morning at 5am just below Rainy Pass. We rode until midnight in order to make it to Bear Creek. It was a huge day of incredible scenery and miles covered. This photo was taken the night before we crossed through Rainy Pass. The conditions were unbelievable. It seemed like we were being given a gift.....and to stop for the night would be to turn it down. Descending from Rainy Pass into the Dalzell Gorge. This photo really speaks to me because it seems to capture the immensity of the landscape and our insignificance within it. All of the above photos were taken by my friend Mike Curiak. I owe him a debt of gratitude for being a fantastic friend, guide, source of history and constant photographer.
The mountain is getting fatter.... http://www.expeditionportal.com/exp...alling-in-love-with-bikes-all-over-again.html http://www.expeditionportal.com/adv...tuesdays-with-dirty-borderland-education.html Everyone should go buy one, like Brian.
My fist ride today was amazing. I rode out in chino hills with two friends; it was my first time there, and my first ride on a fat bike. I Ended up with 21 miles and 2800 feet of climbing. I'll type up a proper rr tomorrow, and slap a pic up of my new beast, a salsa mukluk3. For sure one of the best times I've had in the dirt. I can't wait to ride it everywhere. The tejeras creek crossings are going to be fun tomorrow. I'll take pics.
So stoked for you Brian! Ray, my husband, asked me last night if I wanted to go demo a Fatbike. I said, "No...I don't want to get hooked and buy another bike. We'll have more bikes than we know what to do with!!
So, that was you we saw out there in Chino yesterday! How did you guys like raptor ridge? we met you guys at the top of northridge and sycamore and again at 4 corners.
Yep, that was me! We had a blast on Raptor! I enjoyed that whole ride, and I'm glad we did it when it was still green. I did another 27 yesterday through Oneil; I'm officially hooked. I stopped for several pics to get you all stoked; I'll do a proper RR in the next day or two. Until then, here's my bike in the creek yesterday. Rox- you know how much you love ss'ing right? I do too, and I'm telling you, this is even MORE fun! and what a workout! Heck, you can always go fat SS!
and since I finally figured out how to post full sized pics, here's the new pump that was waiting for me post ride when I got home yesterday.
^^^ Winning! Here's a few shots from the Circus ride at Tijeras Creek a couple weekends ago. In this photo, I'm telling Dave how awesome fatbikes are. He keeps telling me how awesome his Kona is. On patrol... lol Thanks for the photos Indy and Ray
Well, the time has come for me to profess my love for all things fatbike. Holy smokes these bikes are fun! A little background on me; I'm a 44 year old that rides 5-6k per year, more than half on the road as I commute a couple days a week, and I've been riding mountain bikes since the mid 80's. (first MTB was a Schwinn High Sierra) My primary mountain bike is a 1999 Merlin XLM with the original XTR M952. In addition, I've got 2 other MTB's; a 98 Merlin Mountain converted to SS, and a rigid 2007 Salsa El Mariachi 29er SS. You'll notice a lack of full suspension.......I tried. I built a full custom titanium wonder bike that proved to be more of a pain in the ass than it was worth. I swore I'd never spend another penny on a f/s rig, until a few months ago when I started thinking about how nice some squish might be. I also thought about upgrading my XLM to the new Sram 1x11. I spent a lot of time researching f/s rigs, test road a couple, and researched upgrading the drive train on my Merlin. Then it happened........I read THIS thread about fat bikes. Steve's excitement about his bike got me excited. I started reading more about them, and I knew it was for me. Fast forward to last Thursday; the Path called me to tell me my bike was in. What a beast!! (2013 Salsa Mukluk3) So, here are my impressions. My first ride was Saturday at Chino Hills; plenty of fun single track, some fire roads, and plenty of climbing. Ended up with 21 miles and 2800 feet of climbing. I had no issues keeping up with the guys I was riding with, and never got dropped going downhill as is often the case when I'm on my hardtail. (both of them ride f/s) It bombs downhill, and man when it gets up to speed, it friggen hums. I need to get the steering down, and the braking as well; those huge tires are mighty grippy. My confidence going through corners at speed increased 10 fold. By the end of the ride, I couldn't wipe the grin off my face. I had never had that much fun on a mountain bike. For you single speeders out there; I LOVE pushing one gear. I get it. I live it. And this fatbike thing? Holy crap, it's even better IMO! No kidding. So, Sunday was behind me, and Monday (yesterday) was all about learning how to actually control the bike at slow speeds, and have some fun rolling over rocks, roots, and whatever else I could find at Oneill. That was the plan anyway, until I mounted up, and took the first pedal stroke. Simply going to Oneill to play around wasn't enough, so I decided to go to what I call the "Shake Shack" out in Ladera, via the Arroyo Trabuco trail. Ended up with 27 miles and 2000 feet climbing. Here are some pics to get your stoke going on Fatbikes! And while A/T is in no way technical, there are plenty of goofy creek crossings, off camber areas, and stupid obstacles that can require you to unclip and tap a foot. Not on this ride; first time ever that I've done this entire ride without ever having to put a foot down. (with the exception of taking pics) Gotta love the fatties! Here's the beast. Not nearly as heavy to push as it looks. This is at the beginning of my ride in Oneill where there's a large gravel section. When I'm on my commuter, I have to jump off the trail onto the road to swing around this patch. Not so on a fatbike. this little obstacle is on the IMBA trail in Oneill; if you've ridden it a few times it's a non-issue, but it requires some skill. On the fatbike, you just roll right over it. I think this is under Alicia; all I could think about was having the first annual STR fatbike olympics; this would be the hill climb. seriously, felt like I was riding on concrete. this last creek crossing, while it looks easy, is a bitch because there is no traction when you come out of the water. Not an issue on fatties. I have no idea what this is really called; I call it the shake shack because it would appear that you would smoke some shake there. After the ride, I gave her a quick shower, installed some new bars and a pump, and lubed her up for next time. (that would be bright and early tomorrow morning!) Seriously, if you've ever even considered it; go demo a fatbike. yes, it's a work out; but it's even more fun.
