What Every Fatbiker Needs

Saturday morning I decided to get up early and take the fatbike up on the BST.  I started at Rainbow Gardens and headed south toward Malans.  As I was pedaling up the trail, I started thinking about all the awesome gear I had that made fatbiking not only possible, but actually enjoyable. 
I think snow conditions are best when it's really cold...anything under 10 degrees seems just right.  When you're out exploring in sub-zero temps, it's pretty important to be prepared.  I didn't start out with everything...I used what I had, and I had fun.  But I've gradually begun adding to my cold-weather collection, and with each addition, I've really been able to appreciate the differences between regular snow gear and cycling-specific gear. 
Each week I'm going to highlight a different piece of equipment that I think is a must-have for fatbikers.  This week:  pogies
It took me two seasons of miserable glove swapping to finally bite the bullet and buy some pogies.  I decided to go with Bar Mitts brand Extreme Mountain, and so far, I'm super happy I did.  I used to always pack two pairs of gloves on every ride:  one for the way up, and one for the way down.  Going up my hands get sweaty, the gloves get wet, then they'll freeze solid on descent.  My hands get cold easily, so putting on a cold pair of gloves mid-ride right before a big descent always left my hands cold and numb on the way down. 
The Bar Mitts are honestly the perfect solution.  I can wear a lighter winter glove that still allows a comfortable amount of dexterity without my hands ever getting sweaty or cold. They're a simple, install-in-minutes design made out of tough neoprene.  The Extreme Mountain version installs with handlebar plugs that tighten with a 4mm allen key.  I'm a big fan of the plugs as they keep the mitts more securely anchored to the bar. The mitts have vents on the side and a removable top skirt that hugs your wrists to control the temperature.  If you start getting sweaty, open them up and allow some air flow.  When you're cold, close them off and they warm up quick. 
Another unexpected benefit is the improved braking and shifting performance when I'm using pogies.  If you're like me and like to get out when it's really frigid, you'll know that brakes and shifters stop functioning properly once they get too cold.  Pogies completely cover your hands, shifters, and brake levers keeping everything at a higher temperature.  It may seem like a stretch, but I've not had a single issue since I made the switch. 
If you're out there suffering along without pogies, please stop by and grab pair.  I promise, you'll be happy you did. 

My New Unexpected Passion

To state the obvious, I love biking.  I've never branched out too much to other types of sports.  I'll go hiking occasionally, and usually I'll get out on a few back-packing trips each year, but I'm always looking for spare time to get out on my bike.
Winter used to put a huge damper on my lifestyle because it was so hard to get out on the bike.  I used to swap to studded snow tires and get out every once in a while, but I really couldn't get up into the mountains much unless the trails were packed down to almost icy.  Then came the amazing fatbike.  This opened up so many amazing opportunities to get out and ride.  Last season (lots of snow and really cold), I rode up at Snowbasin 2-3 times each week.  It was the first winter I had really put some regular hours on a fatbike...and I loved it!

But even with the super-versatile fatbike, I find that the quality of my ride is hopelessly tied to snow conditions.  For example, yesterday snowed 8"+.  Tomorrow we're expecting another dumping.  You can't ride in that much new snow, and it's not enough time to get trails packed down, so biking-wise, I'm out of luck.  Enter new passion: SNOWSHOING!  In the past, I never put much thought into snowshoing.  it seemed to slow and laborious to ever really call it fun.  But boy, was I wrong.  Not only is it an amazing workout, but it's dang fun!  I've yet to get out on the mountain with a pair of snowshoes and not have a  great adventure.  I can climb up above the inversion, see amazing views that make the same trail I've explored hundreds of times beautifully different, jump off cornices, and blaze my own path wherever I want to go.  So when I can't ride, I strap on a pair of trusty snowshoes, and I get to making trails to eventually ride on.  Give it a try!  It's guaranteed to make Winter fly by and get rid of the blues.  If you don't have a pair, we rent out awesome snowshoes and poles.  So reserve a pair and start planning your next adventure now!

Break out the FATBIKES!

Have you ever read up on fatbike history?  It's pretty dang interesting.  It's fun to see what creative people can accomplish with a little time on their hands!
When I finally became aware of fatbikes, they'd already been around in one way or another for over 20 years.  What I saw was pretty high-tech compared to some of the original creations;  but I still thought it looked ridiculous...completely opposite of everything I assumed a bike should be.  They were heavy and slow; they used cheap friction shifters; the frames were all skewompus to make room for the fat rear rim on a traditional hub; the handlebars had a funky rake to them that just didn't feel right; there was only one legit crankset available, and parts were very hard to come by...and the list goes on...
But despite all their shortcomings, fatbikes seem to be magnetic toward those of us who live for adventure.  They steer away from speed and efficiency and focus more on an experience.  That's what it took to convert me: an experience.  Since my first snowy ride up Malan's Basin, I've been hooked.  But you don't need to hear about me falling in love with fatbikes.  You just need to get out there and experience one for yourself...and I'd be happy to help with that.  The Bike Shoppe is having a FAT adventure this Saturday morning!  We're heading up Wheeler canyon at 8:00am.  Give me a call, and I'll get a bike set up for you.  It's going to be cold, so we'll have some hot cocoa waiting for us.  See you there!

OCTOBER NIGHT RIDES ARE BACK!

Have you ever experience the thrill of a mountain bike night ride?  Now is your chance!  We have a night ride planned every Friday night in the month of October.  We have a limited number of headlights available for demo, so please call ahead to reserve one.  If your looking to upgrade your ride, our demo bikes are also available to be reserved.  Join us for one or come to all of them, but don't miss out!  See the schedule below:

• Friday, October 7 - 7:00pm
•  North Ogden Divide north trailhead:  This is a short eight mile round-trip connecting the divide to the Pleasant View trailhead. (1-2 hrs)
• Friday, October 14 - 7:00pm
• Green Pond trailhead:  This trail starts mid-way up Snow Basin road and follows the popular Green Pond trail.  We'll then branch off to Last Chance until we finally climb Needles to the lookout deck.   (2-3 hrs)
• Friday, October 21 - 7:00pm
• Louis Peak:  The trailhead is at Windsurfer beach.  This is a moderate nine mile climb to the Peak.  It's a long grind getting there, but once on the peak, the view is breathtaking. (3-4 hrs)
• Friday, October 28 - 7:00pm (Donut Ride!)
• Wheelers trailhead: We'll start climbing Wheelers then branch off up Ice Box.  Following Ice Box, we continue Maples to Sardine and climb to the Ogden overlook.   On the way back down, we'll stop at the base of Sardine for donuts and hot cocoa around a campfire!  (2-3 hrs)

YETI DEMO

Have you ever walked into a shop to take a look at some of the uber high-end beauties and wonder how in the world they could be so expensive?  Have you ever wondered what the ride is like?  What would entice someone to drop $$$ like that on a bike?  How about experiencing one for yourself?  Your window of opportunity is coming Wednesday, July 13 from 3pm to 8pm at Rainbow Gardens!  We'll be there with several incredibly awesome, finely-tuned, and ready-to-ride Yeti models including the lightning-fast ASRc, the trail-eating SB4.5c, the do-it-all SB5c, the NEW quiver-killing SB5.5c, and even the gravity-defying SB6c!  Ride one or ride them all...just show up with a valid ID, helmet, and pedals, then we'll take care of the rest.  We promise you'll never have as much fun on two wheels!

Don't miss out on this year's 'Peak A Week' adventures!  We'll climb to the top of the tallest peaks in the Ogden area to soak in the best views accessible by bike.  Check out the schedule below:

DATE	TIME	PEAK	TRAILHEAD
Saturday, July 2	6:30 am	Lewis	Windsurfer Beach
Saturday, July 9	6:30 am	Grizzly	Geneva Rock - Perry
Friday, July 15-16	7:00 pm	Ben Lomond	N.O. Divide - OVERNIGHTER
Saturday, July 23	6:00 am	Mt Ogden	Wheeler
Friday, July 29-30	7:00 pm	Malan's	Rainbow Gardens - OVERNIGHTER

Notice that we're bike-packing in and staying overnight for Ben Lomond and Malan's.  If you can't commit to overnight, come anyway and head down early, but you'd be missing out...the mini-campouts are a ton of fun!  If you have any questions about locations, times, distances, difficulty, etc., don't hesitate to call us at (801) 476-1600.  It's going to be an awesome July full of a lot of elevation!  See you at the trailhead!

Still The New Kid...

If someone asked me to describe The Bike Shoppe in one word, I would easily answer with "thorough". Everything done here is done completely...there are NO untied ends. A quick Google search shows that this shop is the highest ranked bike shop from Logan to Salt Lake (and probably farther). I think the reason for our solid 4.9 star rating is this attention to detail. From every customer's bike that comes in to each new bike that goes out - no bolt is left untorqued or cable left too long or pivot left without lube. Each bike has to be meticulously checked by someone else before it can be marked complete. Being so thorough can be quite the challenge for a new comer like me, but it's a really good thing to get used to. Sure, I know how to change a tire - but I've never cared about the placement of the logos before! And it's not just tire logos...these guys obsess over the logos on the headset, spacers, and top cap. They fret over the placement of decals and the direction of closed QR skewers. I also never realized there was so much to proper cable management; that all cables on new bikes come too long and need to be cut to size and often re-routed; that wires should be trimmed at one inch from the pinch bolt and on and on....So for you mechanical types that like to work on your own bike: when you think you've finished - THINK AGAIN! Look for the little things that you would normally miss. Make it perfect. That's what we do...then we have it double-checked. So next time you pick up a bike from us, look a little closer. I'll bet you'll be impressed. In fact, the Shoppe guarantees it!

-Daniel Steiner