Bitten by the Freeride Bug

[pirate]

I just spent this past weekend at Snowshoe Mountain, and now I've bitten by the Freeride bug. I didn't have CLOSE to the right bike for that kind of that riding, but I still had a freaking blast. There was so much fun stuff to do on the trails and in the freeride park, that I can't even think about riding places like Schaeffer right now. I even did the 6 foot drop in the drop park once! ( on my Trek Fuel Ex8 even!!! )

Does anyone know of anything even remotely similar to that kind of riding around here? The Shed, maybe?

Brian

[DaveG]

I just spent this past weekend at Snowshoe Mountain, and now I've bitten by the Freeride bug. I didn't have CLOSE to the right bike for that kind of that riding, but I still had a freaking blast. There was so much fun stuff to do on the trails and in the freeride park, that I can't even think about riding places like Schaeffer right now. I even did the 6 foot drop in the drop park once! ( on my Trek Fuel Ex8 even!!! )

Does anyone know of anything even remotely similar to that kind of riding around here? The Shed, maybe?

Brian


Geez, if you're hitting 6 foot drops you need a new bike fast. I'm surprised the Fuel didn't crack in half when you landed the drop.

There are definitely freeride trails in the 'shed. You'll have to hook up with someone who knows them.

Dave

[urbaindk]

I can't even think about riding places like Schaeffer right now.

Does anyone know of anything even remotely similar to that kind of riding around here? The Shed, maybe?

Brian

Ha Ha. Sounds awesome. Now you understand why we sometimes get frustrated with the lack of stuff to ride in the immediate area. Addicting isn't it? :D

The Shed is probably the best place to go that's nearby. You won't find everything you found in Snowshoe of course but it's pretty good considering. There are usually plenty of people up there running shuttles on the weekends. PM me for details.

Wintergreen Resort has lift assisted riding and is a bit closer than Snowshoe.

and think about getting a different bike before you hurt it or yourself. It won't last long if you are doing 6' drops. :eek:

[CountZero]

6 ft in the Snowshoe freeride park and 6 ft in the Shed is that Snowshoe builds transitions below their drops.

6 ft to flat is a lot harder than even 10 ft to tranny.

[pirate]

Ha Ha. Sounds awesome. Now you understand why we sometimes get frustrated with the lack of stuff to ride in the immediate area. Addicting isn't it? :D

and think about getting a different bike before you hurt it or yourself. It won't last long if you are doing 6' drops. :eek:

Yes, I DO understand the frustration now, considering some of that stuff, like the skinnies, teeter-totters, small drops, etc., seem like they could be built on flat ground! I'm picturing in my head, a badass little freeride practice area by the pavillions at Patapsco... How fun would that be?!

About the new bike... I would definitely like to get a freeride bike, but I have no clue what to look for, and would like to NOT spend a million bucks on it. Got any suggestions?

BTW, I knew that 6' drop was risky on my bike, especially with me weighing 225 lbs, but it just looked way too fun to pass up!

[walsh]

About the new bike... I would definitely like to get a freeride bike, but I have no clue what to look for, and would like to NOT spend a million bucks on it. Got any suggestions?


If you're mean enough to swing a hardtail, Allroy was doing his best to sell a 19" Cove Stiffee frame with a lot of neato parts for a song and a dance a late this winter. Don't know its current status . . .

[pirate]

Do sizes run differently on freeride bikes? All the ones I see, seem to be on the smaller side.

[urbaindk]

Do sizes run differently on freeride bikes? All the ones I see, seem to be on the smaller side.


Generally yes they are smaller. All little easier to throw around in the air and a little more nimble on the ground. Standover height is typically much lower in case you want or need to get a leg over the top-tube real quick. Head tube angle may be much slacker too. Makes going down hill a little easier.

I'll second walsh's post. A good stout hardtail, if you think your knees can take it, can be had far cheaper than a comparable fully. Teaches you to be smooth too.

[pirate]

I don't think my knees could handle soaking up 225 lbs at my age... So, I've been reading up on the Kona Stinky and a few other freeride bikes. I might even go test ride a Kona in the next few days. My LBS carries them. Anyone got any opinions on this bike or others?

[Jason Reckner]

There are so many manufacturers that make freeride bike just take your pick. You can get some great deals on FR bike with like 6" of travel that still pedal like, Iron horse 7 point, SC nomad or heckler, Intense 6.6, or a trek session. Or you can go for more of a big hit bike like a Yeti AS-X, Rocky Mountain RMX or a SC vp-free all built up with a dual crown fork. All would suit what you are looking for. I had a chance to test out a 7 point and a Sinister mx and both felt great for shed riding.

hope i helped
J

[pirate]

So here's a crappy pic of me finishing one of the smaller drops... Notice my 150mm fork fully compressed! :eek:

[BikerMiker]

I LOVE my new enduro sx trail from Spec'd. Trail and drop worthy. Certainly more of a trail bike than a true freeride bike but with almost 7" of travel, it's worthy.

We are working on FR stuff at Patapsco and should have some sort of timeline in the coming months. The drops will remain open for the near future.

AND don't forget that if we can get enough people to show up for the long weekend at Whitetail June 23-25, there is a GOOD chance that it will be open for us all summer long! Check out multiple posts around here or check www.racersedgeonline.com. City Bikes is a major sponsor. We've secured Jamis, Cannondale, Yeti and Specialized bikes for the event for giveaways and test ride bikes.

mike
don't forget your plastic courage

[Jack Sparrow]

The Cannondale Gemini is a great freeride bike. I'll have an '04 Gemini 900 for sale (used) by mid-summer.

Bike Stop @ Mtns. Edge in Virginia sold me mine...

[pirate]

I realize this thread is a little old, but I just thought I'd follow up... I ended up buying Allroy's Cove Stiffee, and it has turned out to be the perfect addition to my collection of bikes. So far, I've taken it downhilling at the Shed, jumping and dropping at certain areas of Patapsco, ;-) and even on some pretty fun little urban assaults around town. It hasn't let me down yet! It's pretty darn light, considering, and it seems to be tough as nails.

I'll post details and pictures when I get a chance.

[pirate]

As promised... Here is a photo of the Stiffee.

[redneckp3ngu1n]

NICEEEEE. Looks like your kid might be gettin into the freeride thing.

[Brizn]

Heyyy I recognize thaaat spottt!! Is that atop the drop trail?

[pirate]

Heyyy I recognize thaaat spottt!! Is that atop the drop trail?

Yep, that's it! That rock I'm standing on is a nice little roller, but I still haven't had the balls to do it yet. I'm still afraid of endos after that incident where I did "the superman" coming off of that ladder the time I was with you... I told my wife, "I'll do it once I get my upper body armor." She thought that was a good idea. :D

[Brizn]

Did you take the trail that breaks left just behind you in that pic?

[pirate]

Here's another one that is kinda the same, but MUCH bigger. I'm guessing that rock is about 8 or 9 feet high, and really steep. (for a rookie like me, at least)

I actually did this one twice without incident. It scared the shite out of me both times though.

EDIT: If this picture shouldn't be here, someone let me know.

[pirate]

Did you take the trail that breaks left just behind you in that pic?

No, I went down straight in front of me, and made an immediate left. Fun trail, but LOTS of drops that I didn't feel comfortable with. I did do one good four footer that had me yelling out like a goofball, though. :D

Here's one more little picture of a little drop...

[redneckp3ngu1n]

Nice pictures! Makes me wanna go up and ride at the shed. Brian that rides a gt or Brian that rides a stiffie could one of you pm me directions on how to get to the drop trail if i was driving up gambrill park road from the south?

[sevenforty]

Hey everyone, who/what/where is The Shed? Sorry to ask, but I just moved to the area from the Midwest a week ago and am looking for any good DH/Freeride trails. From the pics, it looks like this trail is right up my alley. Nice pics/bike by the way! I personally am partial to Kona's though! :) Currently I am living in Manassas (temporarily)...is it worth driving to wherever this is from there?

[Brizn]

740, welcome to the board:
Definitely worth the drive for XC, FR, and DH riding. Check 'where to ride' under 'Quick Links' above for direx, enjoy!

[middle-ring]

Hey 740,
Snow Shoe still has the lifts running.....next weekend is race weekend too.....you wanna talk about some serious riding? Check out Snow Shoe - it's worth the 4 hr drive from Manassas. Check out ride.snowshoemtn.com

[pirate]

I've got a trip planned to the Outer Banks, NC this weekend... If the hurricane screws it up, I just might end up at Snowshoe! :D

[middle-ring]

See ya there Pirate! I'm there burning the trail Sat- Mon.

Mike

[pirate]

See ya there Pirate! I'm there burning the trail Sat- Mon.

Mike

Haha... I'm not writing off my OBX trip just yet. :eek:

[middle-ring]

It's all about priorities man, biking beats beach anyday in my book. However, looking at the projected path of Ernesto, we might both be screwed.

[BoarderJSS]

looks like some people with snowshoe experience on this thread... im heading over this weekend (weather permitting) for the first time... will a 6"+6" trail bike be enough to handle some of the beginner to intermediate stuff there? or should i rent a freeride bike (ex$pen$ive)? thanks for the input.

[middle-ring]

You'll be fine. Just make sure you can lower your seat waaayyyy down. Oh, put the knarliest tires you own on. Oh, and get ready to squeeze your brakes harder than you ever thought you would.

They have trails for every level of rider - but you will want to do the knarly stuff. I'm taking a Bullit with 7 + 7 and it does fine.

[BoarderJSS]

cool... yeah i can drop the seat all the way to the frame... and im running Kenda Nevegal 2.35"s already... any suggestions on tire pressures?

[Pie]

I have friends who ride everything at Snowshoe on a hardtail.
I have friends who ride everything on a 6/6 freeride "lite" type bike such as the SXTrail.
I however ride Snowshoe on a 8/7 single ring freeride and downhill bike.


The amount of fun you have will increase with the saize of the bike but only until a point, and point is usually when you realize a huge bike won't handle northshore stuff quite as nicely. So if you like open blasting downhills (west side of mountain) then you might get hammered. If you like drops and steeps (east side) you might REALLY get hammered.

I've heard from many that a bike like a Heckler isn't really suited to Snowshoe. Heard several stories of people with Hecklers who were shocked and ran to the rental area. So that may or may not be you.

If I were you (and I was at one point) I would take your bike up, ride some of the trails and if it's too much for the bike hit the Mountain Adventure Center (MAC) and rent a Stinky or Stab. It won't be in the best nick but if you put your own lock-on grips and pedals on it it will ALMOST feel like yours....provided you're not too heavy for the springrate on the rear shock, which they won't adjust for you other than air pressure.

Good luck!

[redneckp3ngu1n]

any suggestions on tire pressures?

Hmmmm If you run tubless and have strong rims than i suggest something along the lines of 2psi :rolleyes: Seriously though, ive heard this place is crazy and has some real gnarly trails that get muddy fast and stay muddy for a while. The lowest you can run them without pinching or damaging your rim would be the best. There is suppose to be lots of fast sections with rockgardens and roots so pinchflats are a big possibility. I say start someware around 35/38 and if you can work down to around 32/35

[pirate]

looks like some people with snowshoe experience on this thread... im heading over this weekend (weather permitting) for the first time... will a 6"+6" trail bike be enough to handle some of the beginner to intermediate stuff there? or should i rent a freeride bike (ex$pen$ive)? thanks for the input.

I've only been there once, and unknowingly, I took my XC bike. Granted, my XC bike has been built up a tiny bit, with a 150mm fork, burlier wheels, bigger tires, bash guard, etc...
But, I didn't think it was all THAT bad. The only thing that really killed me was the mud. It was insane. It did dry out a little later in the weekend, and then it got REALLY fun.
What bike do you have? If I go this weekend, I'll be on my Cove Stiffee hardtail. :cool:

[BoarderJSS]

i'll be riding my giant reign 2 ('05) and my buddy rides a rocky mountain slayer 50 ('06). thanks to all for the advice so far... im pretty stoked!

[middle-ring]

My son and I are riding Santa Cruz Bullit's, a red one and a light blue. We'll be keeping an eye out for you guys. We were there for the Shaums March Racing camp a few weeks back and it was very dry - but fast and fun. I can't wait! They also have dirt jumping if have a jumping bike. My son will have his jumper for goofing around at the dirt jumps.

[vt mtbkr]

Also I would highly recommend some DH tubes if you plan on going down any of the faster rocky more open DH runs. The first time I was there with a friend who had a Kona Coiler freeride bike with XC tires and after three flats on one run on the Western Side he went and bought DH tires and tubes to use the rest of the weekend.

Next weekend will be my 4th trip to Snowshoe this year!

[pirate]

i'll be riding my giant reign 2 ('05) and my buddy rides a rocky mountain slayer 50 ('06). thanks to all for the advice so far... im pretty stoked!

Yeah, I think you both will be fine on those bikes.

[redneckp3ngu1n]

i'll be riding my giant reign 2 ('05) and my buddy rides a rocky mountain slayer 50 ('06). thanks to all for the advice so far... im pretty stoked!

Beware if you have your fork set up plush with little compression on your reign. I have one with a sherman and if i go too slow in a gnar section my front wheel sometimes wants to get stuck in holes. I reccomend bumping up your compression damping if you can. The head angle on that bike likes to use all the front travel when you get stuck in a rut/hole and kills all your bikes momentum even though your bodys stays the same.

[redneckp3ngu1n]

i'll be riding my giant reign 2 ('05) and my buddy rides a rocky mountain slayer 50 ('06). thanks to all for the advice so far... im pretty stoked!

Edit: Crap sorry :embarrased:

[Pie]

A Reign and a Slayer should be ok. Both will handle the trails without disintegrating.

One thing I sort of neglect, at least on this board, is that when someone like myself says a bike of a certain caliber will fall apart or not handle the terrain it's because I'm thinking in terms of what will handle a "downhill pace" not a "survive this trail pace". So I guess I should keep my advice here a bit more aimed at the newer downhiller.


1. Tubeless are nice on smooth trails but on rocky nasty stuff you can find them burping air as you plow through rockgardens. Most suggest air no less than 30psi which I think is rather high since I run DH tubes and my pressure at about 24psi (and I weigh 230lbs). Also, a dinged tubeless rim won't hold air. My buddy did this to his $800 set of wheels last weekend at Snowshoe and cried, a lot.

2. Tires you'll want are 2.5 or at least 2.35, 2 ply, wire bead. I prefer 2.7 Maxxis tires for lift access riding where you don't have to worry about the fact that they roll slow as hell. On local shuttle days I go with 2.5 if I can by comparison.

3. Chain guide. If you absolutely must run a double ring get a e13 DRS. If you can survive without a granny ring, get a e13 SRS. Set it and forget it. If you are in a pinch you'll get best results sans-guide if you shift into the largest cog in the rear which will keep the most tension on your chain.

4. If you're riding the west side I suggest moving your car from the main lot or wherever you parked higher up the mountain, and parking it near the western lift along the road. Assuming you can of course (saw people doing it last weekend) you'll have access to all your tools and drinks and stuff that you should have packed in your car for easy access.

5. Bring sunscreen. You spend a lot fo time with your helmet off (if it's a full face) while on the lift. Avoid getting a bad case of "lobster head".

6. If you're at Snowshoe on a race weekend, sign up for the race which will get you two days pass to ride the WHOLE mountain and cost about $10-15 less than if you bought the lift passes alone. Also, you'll be able to ride the DH course during practice which may not seem like a big plus, but if it's like it was during Monster Park, if they won't let you onto the DH course you'll have a real hassle accessing certain trails further down the mountain (i.e. Powerline, etc). You don't HAVE to race even if you sign up for it.

Your mileage may vary on all of this. These are simply my suggestions for doing things in as much of a "set it and forget it" kind of way. You can ride a smaller bike, run smaller tires, without a guide, etc etc and be ok but I like to drop into a run and know I simply have to focus on riding not my gear.

I'll post more as I think of my brilliant nuggets. ;)

[middle-ring]

Dang Pie - you covered some really good points. I wish someone would have told me all of that before my first time at Snowshoe. That said, I am running triple rings up front and I regularly loose my chain through the gnarlies, and I am running tubeless with high pressure. (True on the burping too, but I kinda like that my bike farts at will.) I keep enough pressure in to keep the pinch flats away. Always keep tubes in your pack and tire removal stuff with you. Some guys do flat alot.

Looks like rain Saturday - boo. But I'm there till Monday afternoon - so I will hopefully get some good dry time in too.

Whoever is going...See ya at the Junction.

[pirate]

Dang Pie - you covered some really good points. I wish someone would have told me all of that before my first time at Snowshoe.

Ha! I agree. I tried to give ya some green dots, but it wouldn't let me. Anyway, good post. :)

[BoarderJSS]

yeah - Pie and everyone else... thanks a ton for the advice suggestions. It all helps a lot. One last question for now... if it rains through saturday, is the Shoe going to be a big mudhole, or does it dry well/quickly? Enough rain may push this excusion back a couple weekends...

[pirate]

if it rains through saturday, is the Shoe going to be a big mudhole, or does it dry well/quickly? Enough rain may push this excusion back a couple weekends...

The time I was up there, it had rained all day the day before... And, yes... It was a terrible mudhole. The stunts were a bit scary, because you couldn't get any traction on them. It was my first time riding like that, though, so maybe there are tricks in dealing with that.

[middle-ring]

It will be my first time up there in the mud. Gerally, I hate when it's muddy, so we'll see how it turns out. I know the locals are so used to it that they ride in the mud anyway.

[Pie]

Mudshoe can be a hassle. I've only heard horror stories so I hope it doesn't pour it down in the days before Mayhem (next weekend) when I'm planning to be up there.

Tricks for mud: Get loaded and stay in the bar hitting on someone's mom, or daughter, or both.

More tricks for mud: Run a set of mud tires using high-ish pressure, not "soft condition" tires using almost no pressure as I found out at the Whitetail race this year. Maxxis Swampthings or Wet Screams, the latter being a deep mud only tire since it's studded.

[pirate]

Tricks for mud: Get loaded and stay in the bar hitting on someone's mom, or daughter, or both.



Hahaha... Best tip I've ever seen on the MORE site! :D

[urbaindk]

"How much for the little girl? How much for your women and children?"

[sevenforty]

Great comments and advice everyone. You guys have given me a ton to think about for hitting up Snowshoe. I am stoked!

[middle-ring]

740, I put 2 pictures on the SnowShoe thread for ya. Did you go? Maybe we rode the shuttle together and didn't even know it.