When can I hit the trails?

[Biking Chick]

Is there some unwritten rules about too early in the spring? We are hitting the 50's for the first time this year but it is going to get cold again. Does this rut up the trails?

The trails in our area (central & northern Wisconsin) are, for the most part, free of snow all though there are patchy areas in the shaded areas where you will come across snow, it is not 'written' but clearly understood by those of us who regularly use the trails that riders should stay off the trails until after the frost has come out of the ground. This keeps the ruts to a minimum.

Who maintains your trails? A call to someone from your local cycling club or a LBS to find out what the protocol is would probably be appreciated.

Cindy in WI

[SadieKate]

Yes, talk to your local shops. It's the amount of water on the trails. It will damage both the trail and your bike. The local shops will know which trails drain the fastest.

[Barb]

Thanks. I need to stop in and check out a sale today. I will ask about the trails.

[Irulan]

Is the a local mountain biking club? Most mountain bike clubs have that sort of information on their web sites. Some use a red light/green light system.
you can look up your local imba affiliate by state here
http://www.imba.com

It really depends on what kind of soil you have and how fast it drains. Riding in mud is really destructive. People either go around holes and widen the trails, or it just tears up the soil. Your local club can guide you.

irulan

[Irulan]

Yes, talk to your local shops. It's the amount of water on the trails. It will damage both the trail and your bike. The local shops will know which trails drain the fastest.

Mud itself will not damage a bike.. it's the not cleaning it off, letting things rust and the lubrication drying out that will mess things up.


Irulan

[SadieKate]

Irulan, probably depends on the quality of your mud. Some of our mud is like clay and you get huge gobs that can cause your chain to come off, wear your rims if you don't have disks, etc. I've seen paint jobs destroyed from mud causing a chain to derail. You end up having to replace cables and components more often because it just gradually works it way into the casings and other nooks and crannies no matter how good you are about cleaning. I've seen bikes inoperational on the trail because of the mud build-up.

Maybe your mud is friendly! Ours is not!

[Irulan]

When I do pick up mud, the bike always gets a thorough cleaning and lubeing as soon as we get home. Most mountain bikers I know don't worry too much about the paint: it IS a mountain bike after all. You are right of course in that mud is abrasive and that it can immobilize components. Around here, If the mud is of that nature mostly I'll chose not to ride as if it's that bad, most likely it's no good for the trails to be out when it's that gooey.

I just thought the comment about mud damaging a bike was odd...dirt riding is hard on a bike and we do our best to get the most miles out of them. Potentail mud damage is not something I'd ever considered, I just keep my bike clean and hope for the best. Then again, I'm not just getting over a very wet Norcal El Nino winter, either.

irulan

[Adventure Girl]

Most mountain bikers I know don't worry too much about the paint: it IS a mountain bike after all.

That's how I feel about my mountain bikes. They get dirty; there are scratches here and there (and corresponding scratches and scars on my legs). I don't get too excited about them. But I HATE when my road bike gets icky.

I keep my road bike pretty clean all the time. I keep my mountain bikes clean to the point of running clean, but maybe not looking clean.

[Irulan]

yeah, that's it AG! You can say it so much better than I can. The paint on the Svelte Hawiaiin may have seen better days, but you can eat off the drive train...

;-)

I.

[Susan126]

That's how I feel about my mountain bikes. They get dirty; there are scratches here and there (and corresponding scratches and scars on my legs). I don't get too excited about them. But I HATE when my road bike gets icky.

I keep my road bike pretty clean all the time. I keep my mountain bikes clean to the point of running clean, but maybe not looking clean.

I am the same way! Mountain bikes were meant to get dirty and muddy. But heaven forbid my road bike gets dirty! Plus I hate riding on the road in the rain. The spray from passing vehicles is blinding plus the roads get so slick. Sunny hot weather for the road bike. Mountain bike . . . ANY kind of weather!

My road bike looks shiny new (it's three years old) my old hardtail looks pretty good after 6 years of hard riding. My hubby is fanatical about maintenance and cleaning the bikes. Twice a year he completely tears down both bikes. I mean to their little ball bearings and cleans every part! He cleans and soaks all the greasy parts then he regreases the parts that need to be regreased finally he puts the bikes back together. Friends we ride with often kid Joe about how clean our mountain bikes are. He loves working on the bikes. He said almost as much as he enjoys riding them. This year (February) hubby and I finally got full suspension bikes. We hung up our hardtails. The first time I took it out I was really sad to see it get dirty. The feeling was fleeting though! The trails were just great!

Sue