I've been dancing around the fat bike market for years. Im to the point im going to do it now. I live in MA where it's basically snow and ice on the ground from Dec - early Mar and I have a shit ton of wilderness around me to ride. What brand do you have?
I got a Giant Yukon 2. I’m on the BOD of a community nonprofit bike shop, and they’re Giant dealers. It’s very well-reviewed but obviously Salsa and Surly are the industry leaders. It’s got a 1x11 Deore group and 4.5” tires. I thought it might be kind of a frivolous purchase but an off-roader is a big hole in my fleet and I don’t regret it one scintilla. Plus I’ve found I need fewer layers while trail riding than when I just do wintertime 10-20 mike loops because of the increased exertion and lessened speed (ie wind). I’ll attach a shot I took today.
Yes. Getting new bikes has been very hard. Shops themselves are having trouble staying stocked. Entry-level fitness or hybrids have been impossible to get.
I bet it’s 35 lbs or so. They definitely look goofy on pavement but a guy feels mighty af riding over snow and on trails. So yeah. Pedal-powered tank. My six year old named it Pretty Boy.
Happy Birthday to me. Wife surprised me with a new bike (total surprise) - Hightower 29er. Will really be the first bike big enough to even fit my height with their XXL model - I'm 6'6". My slightly shorter brother is a hard core rider who rides mostly in Maine (he used to work for WTB), and he has a higher-end Megatower. He recommended this Hightower for me - I still rode a late 1990's Cannondale. Bike is designed by Santa Cruz to be all their best ideas in one bike, and reviews say it's a great bike to own if you're going to own just one bike (applies to me). Wifey had to call every shop in Denver to find one, and then every shop in Boulder, Fort Collins, Loveland, Longmont, etc. Finally found one in Durango. Still in shock.
Does anyone have any recs for an indoor trainer? I'm not sure if I care about Zwift integration unless it's something that I shouldn't go without
Just getting out at all is fun in weather like this. Riding out on the lake and a little singletrack near my house makes for a fun outing. The Strava calorie count does not take into account the exertion on a fatbike in below-zero temps on a few inches of snow, however. Driving to the more extensive singletrack routes in the Twin Cities has proven to be the most fun I’ve ever had on a bicycle. That plus just an hour’s worth of exercise on days like today, and this bike has made it a blast of a winter.
I have a Cycleops mag resistance trainer with no tech whatsoever. It works well for a workout but I hate it.
I've got a Wahoo Kickr and zwift. Both work great...if you use them. I've got a bum knee that I blame for my laziness. But yeah anyways zwift is great but there are other options out there.
Took the studs off my flat bar commuter and had my first ride with only one layer of clothes today! Felt fast as hell and great. Kinda sad fatbiking season is over but I plan to do some dirt singletrack with it when the trails harden up. Gonna get some rain the next couple days, which is nice. Need to wash the salt off the streets before I take out my drop-bar bikes. We’ll surely get more snow in Minneapolis but at least it won’t stick around.
Need some recs/guidance. Looking to get a bike. For now probably just use it to commute to work every now and then (3 miles) with maybe eventually some dirt trail stuff. I had a Trek Hybrid over a decade ago and I liked it so that's all I've really looked at. https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en_US/bikes/hybrid-bikes/fitness-bikes/fx/fx-1/p/32769/?colorCode=grey I literally know nothing. I don't want to spend a ton of money cause knowing me I will use it a few times and maybe never again. Or at least until my kid learns and we can ride together. ~$500 my limit.
I would recommend buying used. You’ll get more bang for your buck. Often used/refurbed bikes will have some of the key components replaced, anyway. New bikes are still going to be hard to come by this year. I understand that many will be the same price or more than last year, often with lesser components. What city are you in by the way?
Anybody care to share their experience with going tubeless? I have a cross/gravel bike that I mostly right in the city, but I'm thinking of going tubeless with some wider all-road tires. Also think I need a new rear wheel or a rebuild which wasn't an expense I was hoping for right now. :/
if you have tubeless ready rims, go for it. You'll need a tubeless pump (or compressor, or you can use CO2) to seat the tire bead. Oh, and a place to store the bike and whatnot in the event sealant leaks out. Always carry a tube with you (and something to boot with) in case you burp all your air out or puncture and need to get home.
You mean in the place where I store it needs to be ready just in case the sealant leaks? I have a friend who showed me his tubeless pump. Daggum it biking is an expensive hobby as we all know.
yeah, idk. My buddy who does a lot more riding than I do these days (does these huge gravel and mountain bike rides, races cross, etc.) runs tubeless almost exclusively (everything but his road bike) stores his bikes in his smallish condo and doesn't seem to have too many problems with sealant leaking all over the place... but I don't run tubeless because I am certain my loving partner would shit if sealant leaked all over her hardwood floors or on one of her rugs or something. Tubeless feels fantastic though and if I had a dedicated storage area (a garage or unfinished basement) I would definitely set a bike up with it.
right on, thanks. My brother is a huge grav racer and I was doing a casual ride with him over the weekend and I got a flat. It's the first I've had in ages even though I'm mostly a city rider, but he had me thinking tubeless is the way to go. Plus, the tube I was carrying as a spare also had a hole in it But I do a lot of riding at night when my wife is home with sleeping child and so it would be a pain to need to be bailed out by her at those hours. Just lucky I've never had an unfixable mechanical at those hours. Most embarrassing time I've needed to call her to bail me out was when I got a flat on my belt-drive bike. Fixed the flat OK but couldn't remount the wheel. I practiced on the stand in my garage but getting it done in the rain and 40 degrees was a different story. Looking back now, it's so easy to mount it but it's quite different from mounting a chain wheel and it was cold and dark and I was frustrated as all get-out
I think every time I've ever punctured the weather was shitty. 35 degrees with driving rain, 97 degrees, next to a mosquito infested drainage ditch, etc.
Walking home with my fat bike after busting a chain on a trail. About 4 1/2 miles to go. I had a chain tool along, but I fucked up two links. And decided to just give up the ghost and start walking. Too proud to have my wife come bail me out with the kid in bed. At least it is a gorgeous night.
Realized my errors with the chain breaker tool. Must get my chain repair game better in case this repeats itself in the winter climes.
Last Friday, I hit my mileage goal of 3,650 in 2021. My coldest ride was -7. My hottest ride was 100. Longest ride was 75. Still haven't hit a century yet. 2022 I'll do it. I'll have fewer miles next year because I'm going to be doing more off-road riding I reckon. The fat bike has been great for that and I'm saving up to get a hard tail in the spring. /brag post
The reason I quit running tubeless on my road bike is because it was damn near impossible to mount a tire by hand. The bead is so much stiffer (since it has to be) that it was always a giant struggle to get the tire over the rim. It’s been several years now though so I’m wondering if things have gotten better in that area.
I'm not a great person to ask. I'm 6'6", so there are very few options in my frame size, and my brother recommended this one to my wife. He's worked in the MTB business, and this bike was one of the few even available mid-Pandemic. It's my first 29'er, and the reviews about it allowing you to just cruise over really rough trail is true. I've left riding partners in the dust on downhills, but most were on 27'ers and hardtails. I just don't get bounced around like they do. Problem is this is the only 29'er I've owned, first full suspension, first seat post dropper, etc. I've owned. I have nothing to compare it against. We both know it's a really strong brand, and it's done nothing to let me down. Brake bleed after one year, but I'm 210 lbs riding downhill in Colorado, so that just feels like predictable wear and tear and nothing to complain about. It feels like a huge bike, like I'm driving a Mercedes S Class down a trail. Sometimes that's great, sometimes it's hard to get any ragged feel of adventure b/c it's so well-mannered.
I got a full-suspension this spring. Nothing like a Santa Cruz in quality. It’s a Giant. But it has a dropper and decent upgradable components. I’m enjoying trails and there is a new pump track a few miles from my house to hone some skills. I want to learn to jump but am taking it incrementally so I don’t sustain injury, though I know I’ll take some spills (I already took one negotiating a gravelly berm). But I’m a solo rider so it’s hard to learn technique without watching anybody else. I’m just trying to absorb what I can from YouTube.
Did my first century on Friday. Went extremely well. Hit my goal of a 15 mph avg. Picked an easy flat route. Want to do it again using some of our beautiful and hillier river trails along the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers.
Also I fear I killed this thread by posting on it a couple years ago. Sorry to the regular thread users
After a year clipped in during spin class, I finally sprung for clipless pedals/shoes for my hybrid I cruise around town
Be especially mindful of going uphill towards stop lights. You’re probably going to fall but eventually you won’t even have to think about it.
Good to know. Fortunately in Houston, most all the hills are along the bayous away from stop lights and stop signs.
It’ll be second nature before you know it, TAS Cycling in TX sounds rugged. Keep yer head on a swivel
Alright clipping in is the shit and I hate I waited this long to start Also my wife fell over in the driveway immediately after claiming to have mastered it
The 5-10% of time I'm on city streets is treacherous, but Houston has quietly turned into an amazing city to bike in. I'm lucky to be in part of town where 3 different 10-30 mile trails/loops come together, so I can spend an hour or two on my bike in the middle of the city with absolutely no cars and minimal walkers/runners. If we ever figure out this humidity thing, watch out
22 days til my 2nd RAGBRAI, should be a little better this year considering I went from a $350 road bike last year to a full carbon Giant Defy advanced 2 this year. Anyone who is into bike riding at all should definitely add it to your bucket list.
I have 3 rides I want to do when/if I get back into cycling. 1. Belgian Waffle Ride (San Diego) 2. Whatever they Dirty Kanza is called now. 3. RAGBRAI With a toddler, wife wanting another, and being self employed, those all seem like pipe dreams at this time. Now I am crying.
I get it, I have a 7 year old and a 4 year old. My training rides typically are under a little headlight on the bike. Even if you can just make it up for a day or two its definatly worth it. Rumor is next year is going through Des Moines which would make an easy travel in/out.