Very first trail ride...

[Catrin]

...was awesome! It was just a little double-track fire road with some grade to it - certainly far from a groomed mountain bike trail. There were fallen logs we had to move out of the way, and a couple we had to stop for and lift our bikes over. This was also the ride when my Jamis started having issues with "new bike cable stretch", and I learned real fast that I need to get a better feel for my disk brakes and shifting.

The shifting, outside of needing some adjusting, is fine. The problem is that now I have three bikes with three different types of shifters, and my two sets of triggers (Shimano and SRAM) shift opposite each other....couldn't figure out why I kept shifting the back the wrong direction, the solution dawned on me while driving home.

After that I hiked one of the easy groomed trails for the future - and glad I didn't try it today. I think I need to wait for the clinic before I try that - and that will give me time to work with brakes and shifters before then as well.

[indysteel]

Catrin, I'm so glad you had fun. I feel for you on the shifter issue. My road, touring and mountain bikes each have different shifters, too. It's confusing!

[emily_in_nc]

Sounds like fun! I also understand re. shifters! At one point, I had STI, Campy, mtb trigger shifters as well; then sold the bike with STI and bought one with barcons, so still had 3 types of shifters!

I now only have the bike with barcons (and a single speed beach cruiser). Much easier on my brain!

[OakLeaf]

Glad you had fun!

I'd love to see how Campy brifters would feel on my smaller hands, but I just don't. want. to try to learn to switch.

I'm fine with grip shifters on the hybrid and brifters on the roadie. But when I first got the new road bike, it took me at least 1,000 miles before I stopped reaching to the down tube, where my head kept telling me the shifters live on a road bike.

[Crankin]

I never had any trouble adjusting to my brifters from the trigger shifters on my mtb when I got my first road bike. Kind of unusual for me . I now have one of each. Once in awhile I find I shift the wrong way on the cogs on my Jamis (triggers), but I think it's more a function of the fact that I just don't ride that bike very often.
I looked at some touring bikes a couple of months ago and I have determined I could not do the barcons... you have to let go of the bar and I still am not so great with that. I feel like it would be added stress. I am happy with my combo of short reach Ultegra brifters and my short/shallow bar. A friend just got the SRAM brifters and she said it's easy, but she was coming from triggers and not having to unlearn Shimano. I'm with Oak. I would like to try different things, but I think it would be too much for my brain because they are different, but similar.

[Aggie_Ama]

Glad you had a fun ride! Even better no dog gnawing on you.

I find I can go between my road and mountain bike effortlessly with shifting but I cannot go between SRAM and Shimano without being confused! So you are not alone, I didn't want Shimano shifters on a mountain bike because I had really learned to ride with SRAM (although my first bike had Shimano) and I didn't want to be confused.

[spokewench]

...was awesome! It was just a little double-track fire road with some grade to it - certainly far from a groomed mountain bike trail. There were fallen logs we had to move out of the way, and a couple we had to stop for and lift our bikes over. This was also the ride when my Jamis started having issues with "new bike cable stretch", and I learned real fast that I need to get a better feel for my disk brakes and shifting.

The shifting, outside of needing some adjusting, is fine. The problem is that now I have three bikes with three different types of shifters, and my two sets of triggers (Shimano and SRAM) shift opposite each other....couldn't figure out why I kept shifting the back the wrong direction, the solution dawned on me while driving home.

After that I hiked one of the easy groomed trails for the future - and glad I didn't try it today. I think I need to wait for the clinic before I try that - and that will give me time to work with brakes and shifters before then as well.

Wow, I'm glad you had a good time. Too bad about the stretched cables, but as you know, that is an easy fix.

Now, I have a question. What is a groomed mountain bike trail? I've ridden hundreds of miles of trails all over the west and I have never heard of a groomed mountain bike trail. What is that???

[Catrin]

Wow, I'm glad you had a good time. Too bad about the stretched cables, but as you know, that is an easy fix.

Now, I have a question. What is a groomed mountain bike trail? I've ridden hundreds of miles of trails all over the west and I have never heard of a groomed mountain bike trail. What is that???

I just meant the difference between the built trails with the nice cleared track, rocks placed for stream crossings and so forth and the overgrown doubletrack fire road I was on Saturday where there was a good amount of eroded channels that had cut into the track and fallen logs that had obviously been there for for some time. Of course the fire trail isn't an official mountain bike trail, but it was still fun to ride! We knew how far we were allowed to ride it before it connected to a horse trail and of course that isn't allowed. Sorry for any confusion, was just trying to distinguish the two kinds of trail.

[spokewench]

I just meant the difference between the built trails with the nice cleared track, rocks placed for stream crossings and so forth and the overgrown doubletrack fire road I was on Saturday where there was a good amount of eroded channels that had cut into the track and fallen logs that had obviously been there for for some time. Of course the fire trail isn't an official mountain bike trail, but it was still fun to ride! We knew how far we were allowed to ride it before it connected to a horse trail and of course that isn't allowed. Sorry for any confusion, was just trying to distinguish the two kinds of trail.

Oh, I think I got you. I just thought they might groom trails in the midwest where you are, kind of like they do snow ski trails. We don't have a lot of easy, well maintained trails here; as it is always rocky and always eroded - even if you work on a trail, it can be a mess just a few weeks later.

[Catrin]

We have a great mountain bike association where volunteers work to build and maintain trails of all difficulty levels. I am a newbie but already know how lucky we are to have such an organization as HMBA. So much work is done at the volunteer level to support regional mountain biking, if it weren't for the efforts of HMBA members we wouldn't have the wonderful trails that we have at Brown County State Park and the others. As soon as I get over these unexpected dog-induced medical bills I will certainly become a member and help as I can.

[Irulan]

Oh, I think I got you. I just thought they might groom trails in the midwest where you are, kind of like they do snow ski trails. We don't have a lot of easy, well maintained trails here; as it is always rocky and always eroded - even if you work on a trail, it can be a mess just a few weeks later.

Thanks for inquiring, Spokewench, I was wondering about "groomed" trails to. I think Catrin just needs to learn the lingo. Groomed mtb trails might scare me as in "why would you do that?" Now, you can have buff trails and manicured trails, but never groomed.

Buff : really smooth and fast, no technical features to speak of.
Manicured: leaves and sticks and loose rocks cleaned off, bushes trimmed back

[Catrin]

Thanks for inquiring, Spokewench, I was wondering about "groomed" trails to. I think Catrin just needs to learn the lingo. Groomed mtb trails might scare me as in "why would you do that?" Now, you can have buff trails and manicured trails, but never groomed.

Buff : really smooth and fast, no technical features to speak of.
Manicured: leaves and sticks and loose rocks cleaned off, bushes trimmed back

I figured I had the lingo wrong, but was trying to come up with something that distinguished the two - thanks for the terminology