Lets keep Hartley rideable this winter!

[rudy]

We should form a weekly ride out at Hartley this winter to keep it broke open. Even if there is too much snow to ride effectively we should walk or struggle to ride to try to keep it ridable as much as possible.

Anybody want to participate in these weekly rides? When would work for you?

[bigwheel]

We should form a weekly ride out at Hartley this winter to keep it broke open. Even if there is too much snow to ride effectively we should walk or struggle to ride to try to keep it ridable as much as possible.

Anybody want to participate in these weekly rides? When would work for you?

I think that Kurt and Cousin Jay ride there all winter. Jay has a cool Pseudo-Pugsley bike.

[rudy]

I know it is rideable from time to time. This is an effort to get a group of people together weekly, besides the normal riding that goes on to keep the trails in prime condition. And to make more people aware of the awsome winter riding that hartley has, hence keeping the trail in better condition.

[TrailSquirell]

ah.. rudy... been a long time... id think sundays would be best

[c'dale600dsc]

Rudy,
The idea of winter ride is great, I've missed a lot of rides last winter. Hope not to do it again...Let us know!

[At the Gates 2121]

We should form a weekly ride out at Hartley this winter to keep it broke open. Even if there is too much snow to ride effectively we should walk or struggle to ride to try to keep it ridable as much as possible.

Anybody want to participate in these weekly rides? When would work for you?

speaking of hartly is there snow on the ground up there thinking about bring the bike up on turkey day

[mtnbykr]

speaking of hartly is there snow on the ground up there....

not much. if temps get into the 40's, none. make sure it's not too muddy if you ride. it's freeze/thaw time.

[ryno lite]

I'm up in Duluth for work this week and there are tiny patches of snow, but I'd guess the trail should be clear. If it's frozen, it should be fine. Any Duluth citizens have the up to date info?

[ryno lite]

Looks like Kurt beat me to the punch. Damn slow typing skills!

[mtnbykr]

We should form a weekly ride out at Hartley this winter to keep it broke open. Even if there is too much snow to ride effectively we should walk or struggle to ride to try to keep it ridable as much as possible.

Anybody want to participate in these weekly rides? When would work for you?

some of us will snowshoe the loops after a storm to keep it open.

set up a ride and post up here or http://cycling.upnorthmn.net/index.php or
http://forums.delphiforums.com/duluthmtb/messages.

kl

[toasthaiku]

52 tomorrow, 48 Turkey day. Maybe some rain on Friday.

[At the Gates 2121]

52 tomorrow, 48 Turkey day. Maybe some rain on Friday.

now i wish i could ride rim need some spokes stupid branch in wheel cant ride turkey day at one of my fav trails that freaking sux

[mtnbykr]

i've tracked the blu pott loop aka the inner loop in hartley today. follow my tracks to keep it nice. the riding is good. for now.

[c'dale600dsc]

Any concern for the Bowhunters?

[mtnbykr]

Any concern for the Bowhunters?

i haven't seen any but that doesn't mean they're not out there. the park is still open for use.

here's the guidelines--http://www.bowhuntersalliance.org/readarticle.php?article_id=52

check #4-- 200' from a trail doesn't give them many places to hunt in hartley around the singletrack.

[P2freerider]

Anyone seen the Mtn Lions?

[toasthaiku]

Rode yesterday morning. No bowhunters, mountain lions or bowhunting mountain lions. The only danger was an unleashed Great Pyrenees. When a dog as big as your frame stops in front of you, you stop, too.

[mike myers]

I'd love to join in on this, I need to get a new back tire because the tread on it is gone. But once I do that, I'd really like to come along.
rudy give me a call.
m~

[mtnbykr]

hartley is 50% ice and 50% mudd today.

if you're riding, don't make big tracks thru the mudd. don't fall down on the ice. watch your p's and q's....

[TrailSquirell]

myers, what kind of tire are you lookin for? i have a wide selection and id give you a few.

[c'dale600dsc]

The single track is just ice, the last week rain made the track icy. Studded tires could be put to use. Too bad I don't have one.:hit: Still managed to bike 12/16 and 12/17. We need snow to cover the icy trail for better traction I hope.

[TrailSquirell]

or just run studded tires haha! i have 3 studded tires, willing to get rid of one for nothin

[gus man]

Right on man

[col200]

Gonna be up this weekend. Any luck at getting a snow ride in or is it too thick/wet?

[mtnbykr]

Gonna be up this weekend. Any luck at getting a snow ride in or is it too thick/wet?

http://www.morcmtb.org/forums/showthread.php?t=19747

w/ less than 2" on the ground, it's ok.

[rudy]

I was out there last night and it was wonderful. A little slick in spots but all in all - Wondefull. I was running studdless with little problem.

[col200]

think studs would be better than no studs? Just wondering if I should swap out.

[mtnbykr]

think studs would be better than no studs? Just wondering if I should swap out.

we've been riding w/o studds so it's doable. the main singletrack is/was the best conditions. the connector trails are icyest.

there is some sort of crud on the ground at my house this am, can't tell if it's snow or ??.

[c'dale600dsc]

I almost wiped out coming down from the Nature Center at the Old Hartley Road. The tires on my bike are even 26 x 2.35, I have reduced the tire pressure hoping for better traction, no luck. Studded tires really would be useful. Unless more snow will cover the ice.

[rudy]

Here's the way I see studs. They are great for commuters or racers who need to keep up the speed. But for the guy just looking to go out and have a good time, who needs them. We only get icy trails up here a few days or so a year, I would rather ride without the studs and GET to learn a new riding style than put on studs and waste the ice by making it back to the same old trail it always is.

[col200]

I ended up riding it without studs and regret it. Fun at first, but a faceplant and bruised hips later, I want my studs on :D

[mtnbykr]

i'm w/ you. at a certain point [in lfe or whatever...], more broken bones don't thrill me. saturday's ride was fun, but studds will be going back on, until snow is good.

[c'dale600dsc]

Biked today (1/14/2007). The bears vs seahawks game got boring. My car thermometer registered 24F, it was reasonable temp. The coating of snow made the trail bikable. I started the swamp trail, I saw a wide tire track possibly from a pugsley. There was less hike a bike today.

[rudy]

Come on guys Hartly needs us. If we don't get out there and pack it down we won't beable to ride it untall after it dries up in the spring.

[rudy]

Just spent 2 hours making one loop around the guardrail on snow shoes. The girlfriend and I made baby steps all the way around to get it packed down. Now we need walkers/runners to pack it further. That or the forcasted warm weather and then freezing temps.

[xterrabuzz]

With fall approaching fast I'm starting to think about the winter riding season. This will be my first winter of mtb'in:banana:.

Currently riding a Specialized S-Works hardtail with tubeless tires. Any thoughts set up? I've read on a few other threads about running low tire pressures. Guess I'm just curious. Any info will be greatly appreciated.

[gopherhockey]

With fall approaching fast I'm starting to think about the winter riding season. This will be my first winter of mtb'in:banana:.



A man after my own heart... winter riding rules! What better time to think about snow than early September! :D

If you are thinking studding, there is a good wiki on the subject... haven't ridden up nort' in the winter but I assume it could help.

[RiverRat]

I've already been thinking about it as well. Anybody know where to get some really wide knobby 29'er tires and some wider rims? WTB has some 2.5's with tiny knobs that don't look any bigger than the 2.35's they have. Salsa has some rims that are a bit wider than normal, but not quite as wide as I would like. I'm looking to cram as much tire into a karate monkey as possible, and use a wider rim to flatten out the tread as much as possible.

[Lezgo Cycling]

Did someone say PUGSLEY :D I know 26 but how much wider do you need ... I want to try a Pugsley, anyone anyone ?

[tedsti]

The Nevegal is probably your best bet for a big 29er tire with good knobs. For rims, there are Sun Rynolites, Kris Holm and some WTBs that are pretty wide.

I've already been thinking about it as well. Anybody know where to get some really wide knobby 29'er tires and some wider rims? WTB has some 2.5's with tiny knobs that don't look any bigger than the 2.35's they have. Salsa has some rims that are a bit wider than normal, but not quite as wide as I would like. I'm looking to cram as much tire into a karate monkey as possible, and use a wider rim to flatten out the tread as much as possible.

[bigwheel]

(This probably belongs in a winter tires thread.)

Based on the funny look of the Endomorphs (read: little/no knobs) I'm guessing that the 2.55 WTB's would be best 29ers for snow riding. If you are planning to stud your tires, the Nevegals are the best 29ers that I know of.

I know this sounds weird, but I'm questioning the usefulness of big knobs on snow. Wondering if they just pack up with snow and don't really get a bite anyway.

For giggles, I might try super long studs on the Endomorphs this year.


Think heat! Only 9 more months until June.

[rudy]

In my experiences studs only help 10% of the time at best up here. Normall it is just packed snow and studs are just more rotational weight. I run a conti vertical pro on the back. Not really wide but it bites like a mother thanks to the tall sparsly spaced knobs.

[ryno lite]

Think heat! Only 9 more months until June.

Yep, winter already is about 2 months too long for me, we shouldn't be thinking about it already! We have the rest of September and October to enjoy! I'm with Bob, think Heat! Winter is fine, but wayyyyyyy tooooooooooooo looooooooong!

[mtnbykr]

For giggles, I might try super long studs on the Endomorphs this year.



dunno why you guys think studding the endo is a good idea. wide tires are made to float on snow.

when you were having all the trouble last winter riding, you hadn't packed/compressed the snow down enough to get the air out. long studds won't help in these conditions...

but to each their own. i just laugh when i read about your snowriding fiascos...

[bigwheel]

dunno why you guys think studding the endo is a good idea. wide tires are made to float on snow.

when you were having all the trouble last winter riding, you hadn't packed/compressed the snow down enough to get the air out. long studds won't help in these conditions...

but to each their own. i just laugh when i read about your snowriding fiascos...

In a deep, fresh snowfall, nothing worked. Not studded 2.35's, not endomorphs (studded or not). Nothing other than a snowshoe or boot stomp. Based on the topic of this thread, I assume that the Duluth crew also hits the point of giving up when the snow gets deep enough.

The short-studded endomorphs worked well in some (but not many) conditions. It is worth a try to replace the short studs with longer ones. I'm hoping that they will be long enough to find some ground/ice below the tire. I'm not expecting a perfect bite. Just enough to keep the tire from sliding sideways in the snow. Besides, the endomorphs are easy to stud up, and the holes are already there from the shorter studs.

These will be tires for certain, but not all conditions. I also have a pair of un-studded endomorphs, plus the single-speed for use once the trail is packed down.

[gopherhockey]

i just laugh when i read about your snowriding fiascos...

haha.. so do we! fiasco is a great word for it sometimes :laugh:

dunno why you guys think studding the endo is a good idea. wide tires are made to float on snow.



As Bob says, there are definitely conditions for everything out there.. and perhaps other trails are best ridden with different style or type of tires.

From what we are learning at Leb, the bigger and fatter the tire the better. We've had people with thinner tires follow us, but definitely at a penalty. Leb's a lot of trail to keep packed completely and various trail sections can be different.

I didn't pull out the studs or the 1x1 once last winter. The trail never got packed down and/or iced up enough to make it worth the time. The Pugs did a fine job when we could ride.

One big complaint I have about the endomorph tires are that they slip sideways way too easily. I wonder if the designers ever rode on an IMBA built trail in the winter, where you have that 5-10% outslope that suddenly feels like 25% when it gets slippery. We need to find a way to pack the trail in that is heavier on the uphill side to try even that out. I think Bob's on to something with the studden endo's and I'm going to see how it works out this next year before I build my own pair up.

Other than pugsley riding I think the most fun I've had yet was the season before last when Leb got packed down real hard and studs allowed for faster speeds than summer riding. Man did they hook up around corners, and it sure helped on slippery obstacles.

Anyway... We're not pretending we have all the answers... but I think any serious winter rider should have a set of studded tires in the arsenal - if for no other reason than they are dang fun to ride.

[RiverRat]

I like to use three words when describing a good set of studded tires on ice. Cat on carpet. Still not decided on packed snow trails though, since we never really had any good packed trails last year.

[mtnbykr]

In a deep, fresh snowfall, nothing worked. I assume that the Duluth crew also hits the point of giving up when the snow gets deep enough.


we never give up.

we have enough foot travel on our trails to pack them down nicely. we also get out and snowshoe them in to pack down the snow.

we've had good snow riding the past 10+ winters [when we get snow...]
the trick is to foot pack it first.

imo, you can put a wide enough tire on a bicycle to pack down any appreciable amount of snow. once the fresh snowfall is over 6", the only way to pack it down is by foot travel.

[mtnbykr]

One big complaint I have about the endomorph tires are that they slip sideways way too easily. I wonder if the designers ever rode on an IMBA built trail in the winter...

give the surly guys a call and ask them. i'm sure they rode the proto's all over place down there....

[Crash]

imo, you can .


I think you meant can't

[mtnbykr]

I think you meant can't

:banghead: thanks

[c'dale600dsc]

There's season to bike...there's season to ski
Ecclesiastes: