I currently have about 5 miles of trail on my farm which is a great thing but unfornately the wooded parts is loaded with multiflora rose, gooseberry and raspberry bushes and worse of all, thorny locust trees. In past years, I have raked all dirt exposed trails late summer and it has greatly reduced my flat tire frustration. It is a big job! I was talking to a friend after a ride last night and he mentioned they use leaf blowers on some local trails. I had not thought of this and wondered if anyone has done this. It would be so much easier! If I do nothing I will get a flat about every other lap.
Both of my local trails are maintained with leaf blowers. With one of those backpack mounted ones you could even ride slowly, one handed, and clear the trail. Makes it simple but not exactly cheap.
Yep, I have a couple of Stihl BR550 backpack blowers and have ridden along blowing the trails. Blowing the backsides of rollers and drops can be tricky, but this only matters if one is picky about it. I used to have a blower mounted on a bike and tried it to move with the steering and to be fixed with the frame. It was awkward to use.
We use a Stihl backpack blower (don't remember which size) and it can do the work of 10 men with rakes in probably 1/10th of the time. You can clear trails at a brisk walking pace.
Thanks for the info. I have arthritis in both my shoulders and raking trails is not my idea of a good time. I had never thought of using a blower before and it sounds like it would be easier.
backpack blowers have been used at my local spots, I'd recommend goggles and a mask if you're sensitive to dust/pollen or have asthma. Off topic slightly, we have these "spike balls" at one of our local spots and I used to flat 4-6 a month, switvhed to tubeless and not flats in 2 years plus tubeless.......and not worry about jinxing myself....tubeless is the bomb.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Mountain Bike Reviews Forum
15.4M posts
515.2K members
Since 1990
A forum community dedicated to Mountain Bike owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about bike parts, components, deals, performance, modifications, classifieds, trails, troubleshooting, maintenance, and more!