My girlfriend and I live in Silverado(Cleveland National Forest) and ride a Fatback(mine) and a Salsa Mukluk(hers).
We mainly have them for trips to Alaska but we ride them in the local mountains whenever there's enough snow to warrant them.
A good ride for early in the winter season is to climb Mt. Baldy via the fireroad. The snow on the road is usually well packed/traveled. From the Notch head up towards the Backbone. Stash the bikes in the woods once the going gets too tough. Hike to the top. It's a fun day outdoors/on a bike.
I am planning on parking at the PCH / Orange St. Area, near the mouth of the Santa Ana River, pedals up at 9am. I plan to stop at the bike fest on main st during the ride.
Originally Posted by Area45
Still planning to do this? I think I can make it down there. Where should we meet? What time?
dirtdad; 33.42 -117.62
Disclaimer: I own ComCycle USA, ride & enjoy participating in forums as a cyclist.
I ran into a guy on a half fat conversion this morning in Mission Trails. Lost track of the number of times he said "fun". He seemed very pleased with the results on the local ride which has several sandy spots and loose rocks in all the drainage areas at the bottom of the finger canyons. He also appreciated the small bump compliance on trails where there are lots of river rock half buried in the dirt. Good sales pitch on a beautiful morning. Getting closer to pulling the trigger.
That was me out there. I thought I'd give half fat a try - after the first ride I wanted full fat. All the fun of riding rigid without the drawbacks. All of the washed out cobbles and baby heads, which are my nemesis even on my full suspension 29er, seemed to disappear under the flabby Endomorph...
Well I certainly debated this long enough and finally got it done. Only one ride so far, and I'm hooked. Was an interesting experience trying to build a 3x9 in the days of 2x10 drivetrains, as well as trying to get the blue Salsa hubs, 45Nrth tires and Marge Lites. Inaugural ride was at low tide, on a 75 deg day, so I suspect it's a little different experience than the guys up north who go this whole thing started. Looking to connect with some other SoCal riders as we head into spring!
Many, many, thanks to Justin and Spot at Mucho Mountain Bikes in San Diego for helping me get this pulled together. They are the local Salsa dealer and even have Mukluks in stock!
Wheelset was built by the folks at Milltown Cycles (thanks Ben!)
Last edited by Devine Intervention; 02-04-2012 at 06:36 PM.
My second post. I am not a big poster, more of a lurker, but I have gotten lots of information from this site so I thought I'd pass this pic along.
Wheels by Mike C from Grand Junction: UMA2 70's with Hadley front and rear. I wanted the 130mm front spaced hubs but the Faith fork was welded for rear spacing. No problem. I took a Magura Boxxer adapter which fit a 170mm NOS XT rotor. I can take pics if anyone interested.
I also have a fatlefty, modded by MCS in New York - but the Faith fork is so pretty that I don't want to take it off just yet.
So how does your bike ride coming down from the ridge to the north? I usually bomb that on a fully suspended bike, and have yet to try my fat bike out there. Should prove to be interesting. Would hate to lose it to the Marines who have been patrolling out there lately though.
Aww yeah, I ride my pugs out there at least 1 or 2 days a week, we are getting a nice sized bunch of Fatties in SoCal. Hey Divine intervention you didn't happen to test my pugs out at Adams Ave. before picking up that Muk did you? its been getting quite a few test rides lately.
I was into symmetry of the design (as you can see from some of my other posts), so I did not look at a Pugsley (with the offset wheel) when it came time to buy.
Dave's Pugsley at Over-The-Edge Sports in Hurricane, UT was the first Fat Bike I ever saw, and it got me started down this whole Fat Bike trail. You never forget your first Pugsley.
Obviously a bit slower than a full susp rig on the descents - basically 2 inches of the plushest suspension imaginable. Worlds cusher than my rigid 29er. Floats over cobbles with no problem.
Regarding marines, just ride teote, toads, then end of oak but don't top out. They can't see you in oak so you're safe. Teote, toads, bracelet and barrels are all legal, I think. Let's do a mission trails fat ride soon!
I'm good for any weekend, except 25-Feb (work related). I ride somewhere every Saturday and Sunday between Idyllwild, Big Bear, and the Mexican border. I'm fine with a road trip to Huntington Beach or Ocotillo Wells. This weekend I'll be sorting out the final adjustments on the bike; but next weekend . . .
If any of you are SDMBA members and thinking of doing the 40 mile Archipelago ride on a Fat Bike, I might be up for that as well. I'm doing the ride, whether it's on a 32# Fat bike or a 24# Superlight, is what I'm debating.
Agreed. I would love to ride Titus Canyon. I do not know Striped Butte, and Google maps does not help. Do you have a pointer? Panamint Springs campground also makes a good base of operations.
Originally Posted by Area45
Good to see more fatties in this thread. We have to organize a trip out to Death Valley. Camp at Striped Butte maybe?
dirtdad; 33.42 -117.62
Disclaimer: I own ComCycle USA, ride & enjoy participating in forums as a cyclist.
Got out to the Lagunas, the Beach, and Mission Trails last weekend. I'm noticing the extra weight on the hill climbs, but the slow speed handling and traction bombing downhill make up for that. The handling aspects of the undamped suspension kept me on my toes, but the rubber side stayed down, at least until I got on some black ice. My tailbone still smarts from that one. Some photos below from the rides. (Sorry, no bikini shots from the beach, yet.)
Great to see noish catching some air out in Oak Canyon in his post! I'm not quite there yet.
love the classic barrels shot! Plenty of snow up in the lagunas to keep you afloat? I was wondering if Noble would be fatbike territory this weekend, but I couldn't get any of my skinny tire friends to join me.
love the classic barrels shot! Plenty of snow up in the lagunas to keep you afloat? I was wondering if Noble would be fatbike territory this weekend, but I couldn't get any of my skinny tire friends to join me.
The snow in Laguna Meadow was about 4" deep. It had a crust on the surface that I broke through and it was tough to maintain momentum, even when I dropped down to about 6 psi (started at about 15 psi). Didn't make much difference if I was over the trail or on the snow covered grass. The route down from Morris Ranch road, was packed somewhat by skiers and foot traffic, but there were lots of animal tracks all over down there, so I didn't stay too long. The bike has no problem on the icy roads that had seen lots of vehicle traffic or in areas where there was only about 2 - 3 inches of snow.
I'm guessing that Noble would not be a good idea as everything is probably pretty muddy with the melting snow at the higher elevations. Riding it now will probably only screw it up when it does dry out.
A buddy and myself bought fatties just for desert riding. Here's a couple of cell phone shots from this past Sat. 30 mile loop. Windy day but still a fun ride.
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Originally Posted by DirtDad
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