Well, indeed I bought a season pass for Bear Mtn./Snow Summit back in April, which was good for the remainder of this past season, ALL SUMMER! and next season. So, since my snowboarding buddy (Evan, who came to a Grub n' Beats at your house a few years back) is also my mtb buddy, and ALSO has a pass for Big Bear, I think we're going to be doing some fairly serious downhill stuff this summer (and going forward, once I have a nice ride ;)
For my around town/burning man/everything else, I am going to keep riding my "regular" bike ... that way, I don't have to worry about it getting stolen or whatever. I do intend to put a clipless pedal system on it, once I get the "nice" bike w/ the pedal system (so I can build my legs up properly on the "regular" bike as well).
I hear you though. I know a good hardtail with decent travel in the fork is miles better than a non-suspended bike. And I also hear you about buying a "cheap" FS ride -- I think I will just take a longview on the purchase, since I need to continue to save up anyways. There are dozens of bike shops in the South Bay, I'll start hitting them up this weekend to look for deals on last year's models and perhaps consignment bikes. If you think that a used, brand-name bike from a LBS would be OK, then I will keep an eye out for those as well.
Thanks again for all your input, Div! You are the best!
A used bike from an LBS may be tough to find, but check out the classifieds on mtbr.com. I haven't tried Ebay, so I can't be any help there. Much like a used car, you can get a bike shop to evaluate a used bike before you buy it. Or bring Ryan along - he used to work at a bike shop in high school.
And not to bust your bubble on the downhilling, but rumor has it that Summit/Bear is closing all of their trails except the fire roads to mtn bikes. There is talk of some downhill stuff opening up around Baldy, too. Of course, there's plenty of fun (and free) cross-country trails in the LA/OC/SB area, but you have to ride uphill, too. ;)
Hmm -- I am curious where you heard those nasty rumors! ;)
Evan says that last year there were some technical single tracks open last season, in addition to the fire roads you refer to. Also, he said that the winter ski runs are NOT open, due to the grade and thus the liability problems associated with this. :) I don't think I'd be game for going down what is normally a ski run anyways!
Yeah, there are some pretty good trails actually in Palos Verdes. We have horse trails and a couple of hiking/bike trails on the backside that lead down into Portuguese Bend (I've hiked these and they are fun!).
I rode up at Snow Summit last July for the Women Only Weekend mtn bike camp. The fireroads were scenic, but the singletracks were definitely the fun part. I'll be keeping tabs on the forums for reports from people who ride there, but it's not sounding good so far...
If you ever wanna ride in OC, you know where to find us. :)
Wow, that is disappointing to hear! Thanks for the link though -- I'll keep an eye on the thread.
Perhaps there are some good x-country trails up there. I want to ride PV but I think it's dangerous going once you are down on the street (specifically, the last part of PV Drive before you get into the part near the fire station, city hall, etc.).
For my around town/burning man/everything else, I am going to keep riding my "regular" bike ... that way, I don't have to worry about it getting stolen or whatever. I do intend to put a clipless pedal system on it, once I get the "nice" bike w/ the pedal system (so I can build my legs up properly on the "regular" bike as well).
I hear you though. I know a good hardtail with decent travel in the fork is miles better than a non-suspended bike. And I also hear you about buying a "cheap" FS ride -- I think I will just take a longview on the purchase, since I need to continue to save up anyways. There are dozens of bike shops in the South Bay, I'll start hitting them up this weekend to look for deals on last year's models and perhaps consignment bikes. If you think that a used, brand-name bike from a LBS would be OK, then I will keep an eye out for those as well.
Thanks again for all your input, Div! You are the best!
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A used bike from an LBS may be tough to find, but check out the classifieds on mtbr.com. I haven't tried Ebay, so I can't be any help there. Much like a used car, you can get a bike shop to evaluate a used bike before you buy it. Or bring Ryan along - he used to work at a bike shop in high school.
And not to bust your bubble on the downhilling, but rumor has it that Summit/Bear is closing all of their trails except the fire roads to mtn bikes. There is talk of some downhill stuff opening up around Baldy, too. Of course, there's plenty of fun (and free) cross-country trails in the LA/OC/SB area, but you have to ride uphill, too. ;)
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Evan says that last year there were some technical single tracks open last season, in addition to the fire roads you refer to. Also, he said that the winter ski runs are NOT open, due to the grade and thus the liability problems associated with this. :) I don't think I'd be game for going down what is normally a ski run anyways!
Yeah, there are some pretty good trails actually in Palos Verdes. We have horse trails and a couple of hiking/bike trails on the backside that lead down into Portuguese Bend (I've hiked these and they are fun!).
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http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=192188
I rode up at Snow Summit last July for the Women Only Weekend mtn bike camp. The fireroads were scenic, but the singletracks were definitely the fun part. I'll be keeping tabs on the forums for reports from people who ride there, but it's not sounding good so far...
If you ever wanna ride in OC, you know where to find us. :)
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Perhaps there are some good x-country trails up there. I want to ride PV but I think it's dangerous going once you are down on the street (specifically, the last part of PV Drive before you get into the part near the fire station, city hall, etc.).
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