Today's Ride

[tirolski]

First night ride in almost 2 months. 9.5 miles, 23% battery. Beautiful night.

Do they make heated seats?

 

[gorgonzola]

First night ride in almost 2 months. 9.5 miles, 23% battery. Beautiful night.

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new tires?

 

[raisingarizona]

It was 24F last evening during the ride so not too cold. A casual 2hr ride with a few stop and chats. Snow was fairly dry and grippy and thankfully the trails were packed from previous riders.

That’s wild! I only ride in that happy medium zone between 55 to 80. Yes, I’m a softie

 

[Andy_ROC]

That’s wild! I only ride in that happy medium zone between 55 to 80. Yes, I’m a softie

Ha-- I'm doing things now at 63 that if you asked me 4 years ago I'd think you were crazy. It was only about 3 years ago when an experience rider asked me if I "trail ride at night"--- I looked at him like he had a 3rd eye on his forehead

new tires?

Not yet. I'm looking at tire options from 45Nrth. I'm gonna call Specialized if I have time today to see if they have any recommendations. I'm open to other opinions if you have any. I'd like at least 2.6" width which is same as the bike has now but with user replaceable studs if possible. My Turbo Levo is a mullet w/ 29" front and 27.5" rear. Last night we had to ride about 1000 yards of clear ice on the canal path and it was terrifying.

 

[jasonwx]

That’s wild! I only ride in that happy medium zone between 55 to 80. Yes, I’m a softie

you beat me to this answer

 

[Andy_ROC]

new tires?

Yesterday I had a good discussion with a very helpful rep at Specialized about winter tires for my Turbo Levo eMTB. He said I should be able to go a little wider but need to make sure I keep 6mm per side clearance. That means I might be able to get up to 3" which is up from my stock 2.6" But he also said it's not really a meaningful increase to get enough float. He also said softer rubber compound with an aggressive tread can help for winter riding. He specifically mentioned Schwalbe has some good options.

We also talked about studs and they'd certainly help on ice and climbing over frozen roots etc. Not that I aspire to ride ice but sometimes I don't have much choice. But when I mentioned that I put my bike in the back of my car to protect it from the slush, he said that I'd have to be really careful because the studs are quite sharp and can really ding up the inside of the car and tear clothing during load and unload. A side note I just replaced my 11 yo CRV with a Honda Passport to allow me to load my bike into the car and protect the bike from slush. I'm not eager to ding up the inside of my new Passport.

So bottom line I can't really go wide enough to get a meaningful increase in float. But in reality I just ride behind a bunch of fatbike guys that break trail so I don't think float is my priority. I'd like a bit more traction but studs are out for me. I might make an investment in some soft, aggressive tread Schwalbe for winter riding. But at around $215 for 2 tires it's kind of an expensive "test", so for now I'll stick with what I have unless someone has any other ideas.

 

[tirolski]

But at around $215 for 2 tires it's kind of an expensive "test", so for now I'll stick with what I have unless someone has any other ideas.

Have ya diddled with air pressure in yer tires?

Temperature makes a big difference.
The old PV=nRT thingy .

 

[Tjf1967]

Yesterday I had a good discussion with a very helpful rep at Specialized about winter tires for my Turbo Levo eMTB. He said I should be able to go a little wider but need to make sure I keep 6mm per side clearance. That means I might be able to get up to 3" which is up from my stock 2.6" But he also said it's not really a meaningful increase to get enough float. He also said softer rubber compound with an aggressive tread can help for winter riding. He specifically mentioned Schwalbe has some good options.

We also talked about studs and they'd certainly help on ice and climbing over frozen roots etc. Not that I aspire to ride ice but sometimes I don't have much choice. But when I mentioned that I put my bike in the back of my car to protect it from the slush, he said that I'd have to be really careful because the studs are quite sharp and can really ding up the inside of the car and tear clothing during load and unload. A side note I just replaced my 11 yo CRV with a Honda Passport to allow me to load my bike into the car and protect the bike from slush. I'm not eager to ding up the inside of my new Passport.

So bottom line I can't really go wide enough to get a meaningful increase in float. But in reality I just ride behind a bunch of fatbike guys that break trail so I don't think float is my priority. I'd like a bit more traction but studs are out for me. I might make an investment in some soft, aggressive tread Schwalbe for winter riding. But at around $215 for 2 tires it's kind of an expensive "test", so for now I'll stick with what I have unless someone has any other ideas.

It's not a test. They will be your winter tires. Sendt pretty easy to me.

 

[Andy_ROC]

Have ya diddled with air pressure in yer tires?

Temperature makes a big difference.
The old PV=nRT thingy .

Yup I remember the ideal gas law. But I actually lower the pressure for the snow. My thought is more tread on the ground = more traction. We're not hitting berms or rolling fast over roots so it's not like I'm gonna roll off the rim. I'm tubeless so no risk of pinch flats.

It's not a test. They will be your winter tires. Sendt pretty easy to me.

Yeah that's a good way to look at it. Thanks for the thought adjustment

 

[gorgonzola]

I used to winter ride alot more before I had any XCD ski setups, a few peeps rode some DIY studs if you're so motivated lol