Spring Backcountry Riding

Beautiful spring days here in north-central Idaho, perfect for testing new stuff and exploring more of my backyard.



I'm still testing the Salsa Woodchipper handlebars on my Lynskey Cooper CX bike. Also I am experimenting with bar-end shifters. So far I really like the handlebars. I am getting quite use to the shifters also, but still have a habit of wanting to reach for the brake lever to shift out of habit.



I am really amazed at the Woodchipper comfort. It provides quite a few hand positions to help avoid hand fatigue on long rides, which has always been an issue for me. Also I really like the power and easy of pedalling up hill while in the drops...the drop position provides a very natural hand position for climbing out of the saddle when you need that extra boost to get up some really steep stuff.



I could use some lower gears on the steep terrrain I've been riding. At this time I am running a 34 tooth small ring with a 28 tooth big ring on the cassette. I can get by, but sometimes on long steep climbs I have a desire for a few lower gears. I am debating with myself about putting on a mountain bike crank with a 26 tooth small ring. I'm sure that in the near future I will try this setup (which is similar to the one I previously had on a Volagi bike I rode in the back country and is worked well except I lost some speed with lower high end gears).



The snow seems to be going for good this time, so I will say it again, fatbike season seems to be done. Every week now I see a new set of spring flowers blooming...I love mountain wild flowers, they are so uplifting for my soul.



Go ride your bike, do some exploring, and enjoy this awesome spring season.

Return of the Fat

Apparently I spoke too soon when I said the fatbike season was done...Snow has been pouring from the sky up on Mt. Idaho which means I "needed" to go and test the quality of such a nice event with the Fatback...Whoohooo!!!



Amazing how much fun it is to ride the fat. The snow is wet and heavy, which means going to extreme in low tire pressure to maintain traction. This kind of snow gives you lessons in tire pressure...too high at 8psi means you spin out and slid around a lot, whereas 3-5psi is pure glory for riding smooth and without issue. Yes, that is really low by most standards, but not for a fatbike in wet snow.

Get out, ride your bike, explore, and seek out new biking adventures - fun you will have!

Woodchipper on the Lynskey Cooper CX Bike

I seem to never be content with a single bike setup, always need to experiment with something. Biking for me is a never ending experiment, a never ending adventure, a way of exploring the world around me. So changing my bikes up is natural for me. Last week I decided to try a Salsa Woodchipper handlebar on my Lynskey Cooper cross bike. I had the parts laying around collecting dust plus I'm all about gaining more comfort on my bikes. I thought that the Woodchipper would provide a few more hand positions to enhance ride comfort.



However, I was not sure the Woodchipper would work well on this bike, but I had to find out since the idea came to me on a ride and it was already stuck in an endless loop in my non-stop brain. So after installing the bar I had to take it out for a spin (of course) to measure the perceived fit and comfort that I was dreaming of versus the reality in true use. Of course along the way I alway stop and enjoy some of the beauty I am riding past.



Dissappointed I am not. I'm not sure this bar looks so stylish (depending on your personal opinion of such things), but let me tell you that the bar is comfy both in and out of the drops. My hands are truly in heavenly comfort with this bar setup. I am amazed at how natural it feels no matter where I put my hands. I opted for barend shifters (a 1st for me) and I'm quickly getting use to them...I should have tried them years ago, but I was resistent because I wanted to be stylish and look like everyone else. I obviously have gotten over that and could care less about being one of "them" anymore.



I also layered extra bar tape in strategic areas to provide additional cushing. Doing this has become a habit of mine for any road-type bars. I'm still in the "experimental" stage here so nothing is completely permanent. When I'm satisfied then I will probably run a full cable housing setup with some higher quality housing. So far though this is a nice setup.



Of course any bike experimentation involves test riding over countless miles with huge elevation gains and every possible road condition...it seems that my new Idaho back yard is the perfect testing ground. Get out and ride your bike, do some exploring!

Spring Seems to be Here

OK, I'm back...It's not that I have not been out on some new adventures riding, but that I simply have not taken the time to put anything here. Also during the past month my online photo depository (picasa web) changed making it much more difficult to publish my photos here. Not sure why they have made it so difficult to make links to my photos, but it's their product. Anyway here I am.

Fatbike riding has essentially ended since the snow has been uncooperatively melting away. I typically have a nice crust to ride on this time of year, but warm weather up high created mush, then slush, then muck. My last ride was last month in the rain on a fairly deep snow bed. It was "fun" and challenging, but it was essentially the end for my snow bike riding this season. Rats!



I took my Fatback to Grangeville in hopes that I would find more snow up on Mt Idaho (my new backyard), but I simply have not had the opportunity to expore that option. I did ride up to the top of Mt Idaho on my Lynskey cross bike a few weeks ago and found some nice snow that would have been perfect for the fatbike, but before I could get up there again the weather turned quite warm making it mushy. I've been having a blast exporing my new back yard and the gravel roads around Grangeville when I'm up there and have the time (I stay up there when I work and come back to Asotin with my family when I'm off).



Spring is definitely here, gravel grinders on the cross bike are it for me now (one of my favorite kinds of riding beyond the fat bike). Get out and ride your bike, do some exploring!

Fat Chatter

Last week I went out and played in more fresh snow, it seems that once it started there was no end to it. The snow level went from essentially zero to several feet. WhooHooo!!! The only issue is that fresh snow is kind of difficult to travel in; especially uphill (which is typically the start of my ride here).

 
I let some days pass (actually I had to work) so that the snowmobilers would pack down a nice trail for me, and they did. So today being a free day for me I was ready to go play on the USS Titan (my Fatback titanium battle cruiser).  Everything started great. The snow was packed, but still fairly soft which made me spin uphill rather easily. The internal, insistent, nonstop self chatter was going as I climbed up in the soft snow: "I wonder how much better I’d do with a fatter tire on the rear, like a Surly Lou 4.8? Would this larger tire fit my frame?"  The Surly Nate 3.8 on the rear now has super traction, but I am finding that it has many limitations in the snow I ride most of the time.  Bottom line is that I need more float on the rear which means a wider tire. My Surly Bud 4.8 up front holds its own well.

Before I started, from my house I could see some dark snow clouds drifting over the mountain top. The day started sunny, but darkened as I trekked uphill on the Fatback. Once up on the ridge line, where there is a very scenic overlook into a 3000 foot river canyon, the weather was instantly not good. There existed 20-30mph winds blowing snow mixed with ice pellets stinging my face, plus a thick fog was part of the mix. The blowing snow and fog made visibility a few feet at best. There's a forest out there somewhere...

Having just climbed a difficult 1000 feet in the last 2-miles my thin layers of wool were damp with sweat and I was instantly freezing up. I quickly pulled a fleece vest and jacket from my pack and put them on. My internal chatter was now going at mega speed, taking mental inventory of additional clothing and survival equipment I had on the bike or in my pack…another wind proof fleece, a down puffy coat and vest, a wind proof winter parka (that is in the seat pack I strapped on for no known reason at the last minute before I left home), plenty of extra gloves, hats, facial covers, wind proof and water proof matches, a mini butane flame thrower (starts fires quickly), extra food, mini stove, knife….OK, I had enough stuff to NOT die up here any time soon. In fact I could quite easily spend a few nights.  I have much confidence in winter and wilderness survival, payment from all my past winter trials in winter wilderness trips and Antarctica. Bottom line - I love winter and snow.

My chatter continued...hmmm, I’m only 5-miles into a 30-mile round trip and the going suddenly looks very, very hard…I had a fleeting thought of turning around and calling it a day. "Wait a minute, that would be wimping out and totally no fun." I tried to come up with other options...Hmmm, none! "Alright then, forward I go, buck up Eric you live for this kind of adventure and you will finish,  ONWARD!!!"

The forward momentum from this point on was definitely a trial for one’s mental toughness, lots of slow going and blind riding. There were many times I’d be riding slowly along, at a best possible speed, when I’d suddenly stop because my front wheel was axle deep in an snow drift across my intended path...time to get off and trudge through. I spent plenty of time hike-a-biking (which is always part of fatbiking anyway). A "normal" person would probably get lost up there, but normal I am not and I know that place well, even in blowing, whiteout conditions I always knew where I was at. There were times when I did get some reprieve in tree canyons in which there was no wind and it was like another world with soft fluffy snow coming down.

Forward progress became more difficult with drifts forming at an amazing rate with the strong winds building giant roller drifts (which on a good day I would have fun on, but today these drifts were soft and difficult to get past. In the end I made it to my turnaround point.  I wasted no time starting back since it was getting late.

My tracks were totally non-existent where I’d just been. The way back was a tad easier since it is mostly downhill and some of the fog had let up, but the wind and blowing snow was still in full force keeping this adventure real.  

By the time I got back to my trusty Subaru the legs were rather tired and I felt hunger. I’m sure my previous day’s activities, working out on "nature’s elliptical trainer" (snowshoeing in deep snow), did not help the tired feeling in my legs. It feels good!

Freshies!

I asked for more snow and it seems I got it...I was starting to worry that my entire fatbike season was going to turn into nothing except winter gravel grinders. The progression of snow fall this week has left me with plenty of snow to play in and struggle through.



However, at this time the snow is super soft making forward momentum difficult and any riding up hill is a butt kicking workout. Who needs interval training on the road when you have soft snow, a fatbike, and a 1000-feet of hill climb to start your ride?



The mental toughness this kind of riding develops is amazing. I typically set a landmark goal to attain before I start leave home (without knowing the snow/trail conditions on the mountain). I have yet to not make a daily ride goal on the fatbike. But I must say that there have been days when I heard a wimper come from within and many days of self doubt about my crazy idea for the day of riding.

Need More Snow!

Where's the SNOW???



My fatbike year started off with some huge dumps, but since then there has been nothing except warm temps and lots of melting. There was a small dump on the mountain a few weeks ago covering most of the unrideable ice, however the snow is still quite skimpy around here. I wish the midwest and east would quit hogging it all.



OK, I'll stop whining now since I do have some snow to ride on and one awesome fatbike! The snow depth is about 25% of normal though.



The route up to the snow in my backyard riding area is icy and treacherous during the first few miles and it only gets better with elevations. The snowmobilers (love those people) have done a nice job of making my riding experience much less strenuous by packing a sweet, easy riding path up the mountain.



I have not been riding as much fatbike just because of the skimpy snow plus I'm doing a slow move to Grangeville, ID. Yes, I'm leaving my little farm house in SE Washington. I have a love-hate relationship with this place since I've so love living here, but have not so loved the work I've had to put into the place. Now I get to start all over again in Grangeville. The bonus will be huge though since my backyard playground in Grangeville will be a mountain at the edge of town...yep, it's going to be some serious playtime!

Without much snow here this winter I've been trying to fight off chunking on too much weight by riding the local gravel, which in the winter is much more boring due to the deadness at the lower elevations. I do not know how I made it though the winter without a fatbike in the past. Up in the snow at least there is some life in the green trees that sparks some serious happiness.

50-Miles on the Fatback

I did a little 50+ mile ride earlier this week. The snow conditions were superb and snomobiles had layed down some nice tracks making my riding much easier.



We're in a warming trend right now and I plan on finding out just bad the ice will be tomorrow. I'm starting to think I need a set of tires with studs, but I have no faith in the 45NRTH tires for where I ride. Maybe some GripStuds will make my life easier on the ice.



Anyone have experience with the GripStuds? I would like to know how well they work before I make the investment.

Storm Chasing - In Search of More Snow

Yesterday a nice looking "snow" cloud seemed to be dumping some white stuff in my local backyard playground. So I wasted no time chasing this storm to the foot of the mountain in search of fresh snow.



I was not dissappointed...I arrived in the middle of a nice solid dump. I had my "old" Fatback with me since it seemed to need some exercise and it was ready to go. This bike is one I have for sale and I only call it my "old" Fatback since it was recently replaced by a titanium model. This Fatback was new earlier this year (like March). I would not mind keeping it, but I really do not need a 2nd fatbike at this time. I also rode it today just to justify in my mind that the titanium Fatback was better riding (I still feel guilty selling this one since it's so new). This Fatback rides perfect and is a nice bike.



I also took this opportunity to try out another new product, an insulated Kleen Kanteen. This is not something for weight weenies since it is not a light product. But it has a specific purpose for me and that is to provided me with some hot beverages on the snow bike. I've had plenty of issues with insulated water bottles freezing on my rides. On this ride I put some warm tap water in 2 of these for my 1st test. The result was that I had warm water from start to finish on my ride. Today I rode again and put hot tea in one bottle which was still burning hot after 4-hours in the cold. So these things work and work well! Hmmm...maybe I can have some sweet iced tea next summer.



Today the snow was quite a bit deeper and the titanium Fatback was ready to go with my best traction tires, Surly Bud up front and a Surly Nate in the rear. On my Fatback 70mm rims the Bud measures 4.5 inches and the Nate is 4-inches. This is the best combo I have found for deep snow conditions. This tire combo actually works fine in any snow conditions, but it seems a litte slower on groomed surfaces (something I rarely ever get to ride on).



Today the snow was very soft and plenty deep, plus it was windy and still snowing some. I rode most if it without any difficulty. But some of the steep hills were easier to walk than to ride. In my mind, walking your bike now and then is just part of riding a fatbike in the backcountry. I resisted the hike-a-bike when I first started fatbiking due to my stubborn mindset, but now I rather enjoy getting off and walking some. Snomobiles will be through here soon and I look forward to their arrival since on their tracks I can go as far as I want without getting too tired. I put in 20-miles today and I'm exausted.

The mighty Titan (my titanium Fatback) today put to rest any guilt or buyer remorse I may have been feeling. I love riding that bike...it's a keeper. It "rides" better for me, it "feels" faster, I "feel" I can go farther on it in the deep snow and it "makes" me smile more...true or not does not matter since there is something about this bike that elevates everthing about my rides.