A fellow fatbiker by the name of Ray took the day off work to hit as many trails in the area as he could. He conquered Sunderbruch Park this morning and we met up at Sylvan Island this afternoon. The island is a great place to get your bike dialed in for the snowy conditions since you're never very far from the parking lot if you need tools, a tire pump, or a first aid kit.
Since this was my first real snow ride, I had a lot to learn. Here's a few notable characteristics of snow biking I discovered today:
- Off-camber? You will slide or drift.
- Attempt to lean into a corner? You will slide or drift.
- Try to stand on a climb? You will slide or drift.
Ok you get the point. Snow biking seems to be all about sliding and drifting. If you're riding with Ray and I then you can throw giggling and a jolly good time in there too.
Now there is a few things I learned to mitigate some of the slide/drift tendencies of the snow bike. First, put your seat up so you can get a full leg extension. I couldn't climb very well at all because as soon as I tried to stand up just a little bit for some extra power, the weight shift to the handlebars took too much off the back wheel and it would just slide. With the seat up, I could get good power while still keeping my weight on the back wheel. Also, be persistent when climbing. The back wheel grips pretty well with the right tire pressure(4psi for me) and a lot of weight on it. Second, don't even bother leaning unless you're intentionally trying to induce a drift because that's exactly what you'll get into. I keep the bike up, take it easy, ride slow and have fun. If you're an experienced mountain biker, you'll get the hang of it after a couple miles of fresh powder riding.
Where's the pics?! Oh here they are!
