Getting frustrated mtn biking in my neck of the woods

[roc865]

Let me first start off by saying I love being outdoors, and enjoy mountain biking, when conditions are right. I have some health problems mostly with lung capacity but I can get by with stop and go. What I find most frustrating is lack of trails in my area. I'm living on Long Island where it's mostly a sandy type dirt but I'm not feeling it like I do when I visit family out west. The trails out there are awesome. This has me thinking of turning my mtn bike into a comfy cruiser and maybe getting a cyclocross bike but I'm not sure at this point what I'm going to do. Some guy I was biking and talking with on the trail today said to get a 29er instead of a cyclocross and throw some road tires on there. It would give better braking power.

[FastBanana]

Just get a proper road bike. If the trails suck, then they suck. When I move away from Colorado, my fleet of mountain bikes is getting trimmed.

[KevinGT]

Wait...you live in the most congested, developed region of the country and are complaining about the lack of MTB trails?

[roc865]

Wait...you live in the most congested, developed region of the country and are complaining about the lack of MTB trails?

Yes.

[roc865]

Just get a proper road bike. If the trails suck, then they suck. When I move away from Colorado, my fleet of mountain bikes is getting trimmed.

Any particular reason for moving away from CO?

[FastBanana]

Any particular reason for moving away from CO?

Army

[roc865]

Army

Could you live in CO, and where are you off to next?

[FastBanana]

Could you live in CO, and where are you off to next?

Fort Lee, Va is my next stop. No.trails

[roc865]

Fort Lee, Va is my next stop. No.trails

You wouldn't want to live in CO if had choice?

[FastBanana]

You wouldn't want to live in CO if had choice?

I would, but I dont have a choice. I go where I am told.

[AndrwSwitch]

I lived in Manhattan for a while. The trails on Long Island aren't great, but they're at least a step up from Cunningham. (No disrespect to Cunningham, it's great use of what's available.)

Are you hooked up with NYC MTB and the Long Island advocacy group? Maybe you haven't checked out all the spots yet.

It drives me a little nuts when people suggest buying a 29er and putting road tires on it. Why?? 700C wheels with slicks have a closer diameter to 26" wheels with fat tires. And road bikes come with road tires and are more fun on the road.

A 'cross bike isn't a bad idea, though. I bet you can ride a lot of your trails on it. Mixed-surface riding is popular lately, and while it's not really my thing, it might click for you. And if it doesn't, sticking road slicks on a 'cross bike gets you a road bike that gives up almost nothing to a pure massed start road racer.

[TenSpeed]

Used to live in Colorado, stationed at Ft. Carson. Excellent mountain biking there. Doesn't mean you have to trim your herd down though. Virginia should have plenty of trails there.

OP - a decent Cyclocross bike will have disc brakes, just like the 29er your friend suggested. The frame geometry will be different though. That is where you need to decide on what you want to ride, and how you want to ride it. You don't have many mountain bike trails, but you have a lot of paved roads, bike paths, bike lanes, etc. I had a cyclocross bike, but it just wasn't for me, so I sold it and now ride a fixed gear track bike on the road mainly as a commuter. There are trails here, but it is really hard to drive an hour plus each way to ride 13-15 miles of dirt, so I sold my Titus Racer X 29er. I can hit the paved bike path less than a 1/4 mile from my front door and ride for an hour and get in 17-19 miles easily.

[roc865]

Used to live in Colorado, stationed at Ft. Carson. Excellent mountain biking there. Doesn't mean you have to trim your herd down though. Virginia should have plenty of trails there.

OP - a decent Cyclocross bike will have disc brakes, just like the 29er your friend suggested. The frame geometry will be different though. That is where you need to decide on what you want to ride, and how you want to ride it. You don't have many mountain bike trails, but you have a lot of paved roads, bike paths, bike lanes, etc. I had a cyclocross bike, but it just wasn't for me, so I sold it and now ride a fixed gear track bike on the road mainly as a commuter. There are trails here, but it is really hard to drive an hour plus each way to ride 13-15 miles of dirt, so I sold my Titus Racer X 29er. I can hit the paved bike path less than a 1/4 mile from my front door and ride for an hour and get in 17-19 miles easily.

What was it that made you sell the cyclocross bike? I had a good road bike that I sold because I wasn't putting in the mileage and at the time I was living in Brooklyn and the bike was taking a beating.

[MTBeing]

What about a fatbike?

[TenSpeed]

What was it that made you sell the cyclocross bike? I had a good road bike that I sold because I wasn't putting in the mileage and at the time I was living in Brooklyn and the bike was taking a beating.

For me, the cx bike on the road wasn't that fast. I was expecting it to be more like a road bike, and it was more like a mountain bike with drop bars. I slammed the stem on there, and once I did that, it felt a little faster. I then tried out a single speed with slicks, and I was sold. I no longer have any geared bikes, and I am making the switch to fixed gear for my riding.

[NoVA_JB]

Fort Lee, Va is my next stop. No.trails

There are quite a few trails not too far from Fort Lee not like CO but enough to keep you riding.

[FastBanana]

There are quite a few trails not too far from Fort Lee not like CO but enough to keep you riding.

Good to know. Ill still be on the road bike much more, it takes some crazy trail to entertain me lately.

[Fsrbikr98]

I feel the op's pain, being from Long Island as well. But instead of trying to find "the best trail" I've just been trying to ride the ok ones faster. I really like glacier ridge, it's fast and flowy with some tight trees that make it fun.

I have been wanting to try graham hill in pleasentville, ny. It's just outside the city and the videos I see look pretty good. That may be a nice weekend option for you.

[Fsrbikr98]

Graham Hills New York Trail Reviews

[Semitone]

As a follow up to Graham Hills, here is what you will have to do. Depending where on LI you live, forget about a quick ride for an hour or so. Your biking will need to be day trips. Drive on over to CT/Westchester /Putnam NY, make a day of it, and enjoy some of the trails and lunch over here. As mentioned Graham Hills. Also Huntington State Park, Trout Brook Valley, Cockaponsett State Forest, Mianus River Park, Blue Mountain. There are a lot of trails in the 1-2 hour driving range. Other than that, the suggestion of getting a road bike and taking advantage of what you have close to home sounds good to me.

[roc865]

For me, the cx bike on the road wasn't that fast. I was expecting it to be more like a road bike, and it was more like a mountain bike with drop bars. I slammed the stem on there, and once I did that, it felt a little faster. I then tried out a single speed with slicks, and I was sold. I no longer have any geared bikes, and I am making the switch to fixed gear for my riding.

What kind of frame is the single speed with slicks that you are talking about?

[roc865]

Thanks for the recommendations guys but I'm just not willing to drive far for these trails. I've been up to Sprain Ridge which was ok but I'm not willing to go that far again and the same for some of the trails out in Suffolk County. I need to stick to the road where I live now, and than when I visit family on occasion out in AZ, I'll hit the trails out there.

[TenSpeed]

What kind of frame is the single speed with slicks that you are talking about?

Initially I purchased a singlespeed from Fixed Gear Bikes | Custom Cruiser made easy | Single Speed Bikes For Sale | Fixies and cruiser bicycles from Big Shot Bikes when they were on sale. I don't recommend this though, as overall, it is a piece of crap. I replaced nearly everything on the bike already, and spent twice as much more in upgrades than the cost of the bike. After riding road quite a bit now, I really like it. There is always the option to return to mountain biking if I wanted to.

[rndmrdr]

If I was stuck with urban stuff I'd get a big ripper or something.

Retro Series, BMX Bikes | SEBikes.com

[Ducman]

Have you ridden Stillwell? I used to Live on LI and loved going there

[roc865]

Have you ridden Stillwell? I used to Live on LI and loved going there

I have ridden Stillwell and it is a good trail. Maybe sticking with it a little longer will help and going to Stillwell maybe once a week. I think I remember it having some sandy stretches along the way that was pretty difficult to get through.

[Fsrbikr98]

If you need a riding buddy I'm about 3 minutes from stillwell, having a partner might make the ride more enjoyable.

[AndrwSwitch]

If you don't ride the trails you have access to some, you won't maintain your skills. Or, I find I can get rusty. But like I said earlier - certainly I find I ratchet my MTB up and down depending on access.

[Nubster]

If you have any trails within minutes of your house stop *****ing. Some of us have to drive an hour + to the nearest trails that aren't even very good. At least you have close options and even better options not too far away. Not willing to check them out....well....that's on you. You have the access and options so get out and ride them or quit complaining.

[ou2mame]

I live in northport right by meadowlark. It's only a 5 mile loop but it's a workout. Sometimes I do 3 or 4 laps. Check out the climb website for trail info. Where do you live? Stillwell isn't too far from me. When I lived in huntington I rode my bike there but now I have to drive otherwise I wouldn't have any tire tread left after I got there lol.. There's also trails out east.. A lot less congested. Rocky point is good, I try to go there once or twice a month if my friends are available when I am. There's the website alltrails and they have a pretty decent rundown of the trails here. I just started doing Glacier 8 when I'm bored. We live on an island outside of one of the most populated cities in the world, we are lucky to have trees here.

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[natrat]

I live in a place that requires 50% pavement to get on trails, it is what it is. I run schwalbe supermotos or geax tattoo light tires which are high volume slicks that fly on pavement and do ok on trails and are actually optimum for sand. I thought about a cyclocross bike but i would wreck on one of those not having the dicipline to stay off sketchier trails.

[NoVA_JB]

Good to know. Ill still be on the road bike much more, it takes some crazy trail to entertain me lately.

I hear that, mountain biking in the CO area is as close to heaven as I can imagine. I was a little surprised when I moved down to VA the trails we have here and down towards Richmond it's not as developed as the northern part of the state.
Take a look at the VA-WV-MD forum here they have some good suggestions. I don't want to hijack the thread but if you want PM me and I'll give you some good sites to check out.

[bitflogger]

Are you a member or involved with groups managing trails and advocacy in your area?

The builder and advocacy groups are usually the spot for better riding opportunities. I'm sure such groups know where to ride, know what's proposed, and know what's being worked on. Not everyone has time or interest for the trail building and politics so just joining such a group or IMBA chapter with a small check will do a lot too.

Getting involved with a group could mean find some fun you've been missing or didn't think about. I smile or roll eyes when people around me complain about some aspects of no riding because I learned different riding styles and groups open up more fun. I learned to hang with the urban, jump, trials, gravity and racer types with great benefits from that. Give it a try and good luck.

[Eddie88]

I think a part of why I like mountain biking is the scenery it brings you. Certainly if you're hidden under trees the whole ride, it's not as fun as say some of the pictures I see on here of Colorado, California, Arizona, even overseas. NY's trails are better when you're upstate but you have to be willing to drive there.

[ou2mame]

I do a ton of riding out here and have been pretty surprised at how vast some of the trails are considering where I live

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[Eddie88]

I do a ton of riding out here and have been pretty surprised at how vast some of the trails are considering where I live

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Where do you ride?

[ou2mame]

I do meadowlark a lot cause it's down the street but I also go to Stillwell and cp, rp, g8, gr.. There's actually a decent amount of trails out here but you have to be willing to drive a half hour to 45 min for the bigger ones from me

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[Eddie88]

If the county lets me, I'd like to take a bulldozer and create a few nontechnical dirt rides
along some of the parkways. So much open space along there for some ups and downs.

[ou2mame]

The dec would probably find some reason to hate the idea.. Probably trying to save some endangered species of poison ivy

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[Eddie88]

Sometimes I make my own paths first by walking through it and scoping it out first. I'll clear some branches out of the way that are already down but maybe blocking a possible path creation. Than I just walk along looking like I'm on a nature walk, tossing branches and clearing a way. Than I go back a second time with my bike.
This of course being nowhere near an establishing mountain biking path but I'm thinking about somewhere along a parkway.

[ou2mame]

When I lived in Florida we used to make our own trails but here every piece of land is owned by somebody who cares just enough to make sure its not used for anything ever. I hate it here. I'm looking at moving to co in a few years after my gf sells her apt and we get married

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[ou2mame]

If you make anything worth riding let me know haha I'll probably ride it. I used to go to CT, but lately I've just been lazy. I wish they would make 135 a bridge that would make it so much easier

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[Eddie88]

When I lived in Florida we used to make our own trails but here every piece of land is owned by somebody who cares just enough to make sure its not used for anything ever. I hate it here. I'm looking at moving to co in a few years after my gf sells her apt and we get married

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Won't you miss the beach and waves? The taxes here are brutal and I don't have any kids in school or married. I'm not sure what the future has in store. Hopefully marry someone loving and has money.

[ou2mame]

That's my main problem with li.. The property taxes are insanity. Coming from Florida where they are in the 1000 dollar range paying 10k or 12k a year is a huge deal.. Nevermind house prices. I would love to snowboard and mtb in the same day lol that's my dream

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[JoePAz]

There are pretty much 3 options for you.

1) Ride what you have that is close and that may mean road riding instead of trail work.
2) Take the time to drive to where you do have good trails.
3) Move to a place with good trails closer.

I live in the far northern edge of Phoenix and I am bless with really good trails all around. However all the good stuff means at least a 15 min drive to the trailhead. No big deal on weekends, but a drag when I limited time mid week. So I also have a road bike and since I live on the edge of the city I have some good ares to road bike with limited traffic and limited stops. I can also ride all year around here, but the summers are hot. So in summer I have 3 choices. Crack of dawn (5am) starts, 7:30pm dusk/night rides, or drive 1.5 hrs to 2 hrs north to higher elevations to get rides in the 80's. Still I do what I can and enjoy. Road bike is actually good for those 6:30pm starts at 103F since I get nice 20 mph wind the entire way and as sun sets I get some shade on the route starting about 7pm. I finish at 95F. Hot, but manageable.

Point is no place is perfect and unless you plan to move you need to learn to make the best of what you have around you.

[Eddie88]

There are pretty much 3 options for you.

1) Ride what you have that is close and that may mean road riding instead of trail work.
2) Take the time to drive to where you do have good trails.
3) Move to a place with good trails closer.

I live in the far northern edge of Phoenix and I am bless with really good trails all around. However all the good stuff means at least a 15 min drive to the trailhead. No big deal on weekends, but a drag when I limited time mid week. So I also have a road bike and since I live on the edge of the city I have some good ares to road bike with limited traffic and limited stops. I can also ride all year around here, but the summers are hot. So in summer I have 3 choices. Crack of dawn (5am) starts, 7:30pm dusk/night rides, or drive 1.5 hrs to 2 hrs north to higher elevations to get rides in the 80's. Still I do what I can and enjoy. Road bike is actually good for those 6:30pm starts at 103F since I get nice 20 mph wind the entire way and as sun sets I get some shade on the route starting about 7pm. I finish at 95F. Hot, but manageable.

Point is no place is perfect and unless you plan to move you need to learn to make the best of what you have around you.

Sure rub it in.

[Eddie88]

That's my main problem with li.. The property taxes are insanity. Coming from Florida where they are in the 1000 dollar range paying 10k or 12k a year is a huge deal.. Nevermind house prices. I would love to snowboard and mtb in the same day lol that's my dream

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I pay 10K/year in taxes. Texas on the other hand has low taxes, affordable housing, and great schools. Go figure..

[ou2mame]

Its comical how much money is wasted here. I would love Texas if they had snow and mountains. I snowboard a few times a week so I want to be by some mountains. Northern cali would be cool but they have the same wasteful spending as here. Hopefully she gets rid of her apt. Want a coop in forest hills?

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[JoePAz]

I pay 10K/year in taxes. Texas on the other hand has low taxes, affordable housing, and great schools. Go figure..

I pay 2300 a year in property taxes on a 3000 sqft home. I don't live in NYC or even NY state for number of reasons. Lack of Mtn bike trails are NOT a primary (or even secondary) reason, but a just one more thing to add to the list.

Of course there are reasons people like to live in NYC are pretty much forced to for various reasons. The only thing you can do is to make the best of it.

[JoePAz]

I snowboard a few times a week so I want to be by some mountains. ..

You always have to live with compromise. I live near mountains, but not the kind with snow. I don't snowboard and have skied a few times, but if I do I have best case a 2hr drive one way (limited area) and most probable drive of 9hrs (Utah or Colorado) to get any good ski or snowboard in.

[ou2mame]

I was going to move out of state but my dad had a heart attack when I was 22 and my mother died when I was 17. He's from cyprus and all his family is there so I had to stay to help him.. He had a transplant a few years ago and is going great so nows my chance to get out!

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[Eddie88]

Its comical how much money is wasted here. I would love Texas if they had snow and mountains. I snowboard a few times a week so I want to be by some mountains. Northern cali would be cool but they have the same wasteful spending as here. Hopefully she gets rid of her apt. Want a coop in forest hills?

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I don't ski but used to play ice hockey but my body is too beat up to play anymore. I can live without snow especially as I get older. No thanks on the coop but thanks for the offer. I lived in the city for 15 years but don't like it anymore, in fact I despise it but wish all who live there the best of luck, good health, and happiness.

[ou2mame]

Haha.. Nobody wants her coop. Anyways, back to the topic. Mtbing in li is alive and well, you just have to travel to the trails

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[Semitone]

Certainly if you're hidden under trees the whole ride, it's not as fun as say some of the pictures I see on here of Colorado, California, Arizona...

That tree canopy keeps you from baking your brains for a few months of the year in CT/NY. I, for one, am really thankful for it. Arizona, New Mexico, Texas...might as well just fire up the grill and sit on that for most of the year in those other places.