Hello all

Diamond29er

Diamond29er

New Member
I signed up for the forum months ago but never introduced myself, so here goes...

Hi.

I'm new to mtb-ing (and cycling altogether) and trying to learn the ropes...and the local trails. I got a NAV for my bike and am wondering if anyone can point me in the right direction for free map downloads. If it matters, I am particularly interested in the following parks:

6 Mile
Allaire
Hartshorne
Chimney Rock
Mercer Park

Otherwise, general advice is welcome. Especially if it has anything to do with how to keep up with ANYONE I ride with. Apparently I'm way more out of shape than I thought. Thanks and hope to see you all on the trails.
 
Welcome! We need more specifics about your device to be able to help you with maps.
The best way to learn the trails is to ride them. :) Also helping with trail maintenance can be a great way to learn the trails.
Shoot me a pm if you want a tour of Mercer, Allaire or 6 Mile some time.
 
welcome !

you'll generate bicycle muscles and skills quickly if you keep at it! Keeping up won't be a problem!

Enjoy -

PS - if you call mike.su.....nevermind :D
 
Ride a lot and you'll get faster. Simple as that. The nice part is that mountain biking is really fun so its not a drag to get in shape.

If you get out and ride 3 times a week at a pace that challenges you, you'll notice yourself being faster after as little as a month I'd assume. Riding with people that are faster than you is a good way to get faster quicker.
 
michael.su said:
Welcome! We need more specifics about your device to be able to help you with maps.
The best way to learn the trails is to ride them. :) Also helping with trail maintenance can be a great way to learn the trails.
Shoot me a pm if you want a tour of Mercer, Allaire or 6 Mile some time.
Click to expand...

I have the Garmin Edge Touring.

To be honest, I have ridden Chimney Rock about a dozen times and I still can't find my way around. I am learning that I am just terrible at remembering the turns. Maybe it is that I am still terrified about my riding skills (or lack thereof) and of falling...which I have done my share of. Last summer was painful. :cry:

I know this NAV has a tracking feature so, from this point forward, I will just track all of my rides. My goal is to be able to go alone so I can go at my own pace and not worry about holding everyone up all the time. I know most of you more experienced riders don't mind, but sometimes I want to just take it slow and roll through.
 
I'm pretty slow right now so I'm down to ride! Closest to me is Jungle Habitat, Ringwood, and Stewart. Haven't ridden Ringwood yet.:hmmm:
 
Welcome aboard if you look in the parks section there are some pretty good printable maps for a lot of the parks. I ride allaire a lot and do not mind giving a tour on the weekends just post up or if you get down to the park and see a black TJ in the lot with jorba stickers thats me... I had heard a rumor that some people were going to meet in the lot on Tuesday evenings for a beginner paced ride soon keep your eyes on the boards...
 
Diamond29er said:
I have the Garmin Edge Touring.

To be honest, I have ridden Chimney Rock about a dozen times and I still can't find my way around. I am learning that I am just terrible at remembering the turns. Maybe it is that I am still terrified about my riding skills (or lack thereof) and of falling...which I have done my share of. Last summer was painful. :cry:

I know this NAV has a tracking feature so, from this point forward, I will just track all of my rides. My goal is to be able to go alone so I can go at my own pace and not worry about holding everyone up all the time. I know most of you more experienced riders don't mind, but sometimes I want to just take it slow and roll through.
Click to expand...

Ha! you'll figure it out. ;)

Chimney Rock isn't the easiest place to ride so take that into consideration. The other parks you listed are better for beginners (but CR is a lot of fun!)

It looks like your GPS comes with Open street maps. This means you should already have a decent amount of trails on your map. (they are constantly added by users since it is an open source map) If you can't see them, you may need to switch which map is displayed. I'm not familiar with the device so I can't tell you exactly how to do it but it is fairly easy on my Dakota.

Alternatively, If you want better park maps, You should be able to load Luke's Park map overlay. See here:
http://www.mtbnj.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25620&highlight=park+maps

That should keep you out of trouble for a while. :D

-Mike
 
Diamond29er said:
I know this NAV has a tracking feature so, from this point forward, I will just track all of my rides. My goal is to be able to go alone so I can go at my own pace and not worry about holding everyone up all the time. I know most of you more experienced riders don't mind, but sometimes I want to just take it slow and roll through.
Click to expand...

If you want, I'm gonna be riding this weekend in north jersey/southern NY. Probably Ringwood or Stewart. I'd be happy to show you around and give you some tips on riding and I certainly don't mind going slow. Anyone's welcome to join.

Sometimes little things like not looking far enough down trail will hold you back more than you'd think.
 
greeek32 said:
If you want, I'm gonna be riding this weekend in north jersey/southern NY. Probably Ringwood or Stewart. I'd be happy to show you around and give you some tips on riding and I certainly don't mind going slow. Anyone's welcome to join.

Sometimes little things like not looking far enough down trail will hold you back more than you'd think.
Click to expand...

What days do you usually ride? I've been off Monday and Tuesday lately so any time then is good or after noon on Sunday. I'm 15m from Greenwood Lake so you could make for a good ride buddy, lol.
 
I usually ride in the mornings on the weekends (like 730-8am usually) but if there's a ride or something going on I can get away at other times once in a while.
 
Supplemental

I also download the maps to my phone using the free Maprika app, because the screen is larger and easier to read than the Garmin.

Allaire is a great place to ride in the winter when the Polar Vortex has Jersey in its grasp.


Have a great ride.
 
Welcome aboard! You've come to the right place to connect with people on your level and learn about the sport. Like anything else your riding skills will improve with practice. You should also check out instructional videos or take a skills class/clinic. I have a few videos on my site you might find useful. http://videotrailreviews.com/trails/riding_tips

You should also consider checking out one of the H2H races if you want to take the fun factor to a 10. http://www.h2hrace.com/schedule Lewis Morris is a good one.
 
Thanks to all for the warm welcome.

Greeek32, Saturday is the only day I have to ride and I'm already committed to joining a friend in LI but I would love the guidance maybe on another weekend.

1sh0t, I could ride on some Mondays or Tuesdays. I live in Pequannock, NJ. I'm about 45 minutes south of Greenwood Lake. (Near Wayne, nj)
 
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