Six Mile in the Snow- bike set-up questions/opinions

M

Molasses

Active Member
Hey all!

I hate not being more active outdoors during the winter months so I am thinking about biking in the snow.

I live a stone's throw from Six Mile so I think that would be my "go to" place.

Here is the question- do I buy a fat bike (Ice Cream Truck Ops looks awesome) or do I "winterize" my ride? I can winterize my ride in the following ways: I have 50mm Rabbit Hole Rims (26+) that came with my Instigator frame and run a Krampus Rigid Fork and Knard 3.0 tires (they will clear both the frame and fork).

Now I know I do not "need" a fat bike to ride in the winter but it seems like there are benefits to bigger tires in the snow. Is 3.0 tires "wide enough" or is it a futile exercise? I assume Six Mile gets a ton of traffic and the snow is packed down from other bikes and XC skiers. Additionally, I would love to run SS to minimize mechanical issues and my brain says pushing a set of 3.0 tires in one gear will be much, much easier than pushing a 3.8 or a 4.8 set of tires.

Or do I get spiked tires in a non-fat version and call it a day?
 
Patrick

Patrick

Overthinking the draft from the basement already
Staff member
riding in the quiet of the snow, on a clear evening with the moon.....wait, check that.

nothing goes in deep snow, except cx. ride what you got, you'll be good to go.
Snowboarding is fun too. we should work on a run down the pipeline at sourland
 
jnos

jnos

Well-Known Member
Let's say that this winter is cold and the snow lasts from mid-January to end of February. Is 1.5 months really worth a new bike? Now if you are looking to ride a fat bike the rest of the year, let Jim talk you into one. Except for the past two winters, Central Jersey snow melts a day or two after it falls. Melted snow makes 6MR a swamp that you should not ride. Now, if you are up for night rides or early morning, you may get to ride frozen trails. Studded tires are nice in this case because you will run into a lot of ice and black (brown on dirt) ice. Crashing in winter hurts a lot. As for trail conditions, 6MR gets a lot less traffic in the winter/snow. It does not get as packed out as you may expect. I stay away if there is snow on the ground because my non-fat tires are not much fun in snow.
 
clarkenstein

clarkenstein

JORBA Board Member/Chapter Leader
JORBA.ORG
fidodie said:
riding in the quiet of the snow, on a clear evening with the moon.....wait, check that.

nothing goes in deep snow, except cx. ride what you got, you'll be good to go.
Snowboarding is fun too. we should work on a run down the pipeline at sourland
Click to expand...

with the way they cut the pipeline grass this year its gonna be a good year for sliding if we get snow.
 
Supermoto

Supermoto

Well-Known Member
I would get a fat bike, then ride it year round
Whether you actually need a fat bike is going to depend on how deep the snow gets at 6MR, but there is no downside to getting one


6MR2-M.jpg
 
Juggernaut

Juggernaut

Master of the Metaphor
A 3" tire will do nothing snow wise that the 2.0 won't do. If you want to stay on top of the snow you need 4+. So, if you're going to get a fatbike you want one that can take 4.5+ to take full advantage of the float. Otherwise stay with what you have. If you ride on ice w/out studs you will wreck, hard..... No matter what bike you ride.
image.jpeg


2c.
 
Patrick

Patrick

Overthinking the draft from the basement already
Staff member
pearl said:
remember that one winter when it didn't snow at all? it was crazy
Click to expand...

that was before global warming. now we get snow that doesn't melt, and 10 weeks of sub freezing temps....
hoo wooda thunk it?
 
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