Mountain bike vacation update

Yes, it is now decided. The mountain bike vacation of this summer will be spent in Switzerland, freeriding the Alps. 

We will go with Freeride Mountain Biking Tours, FRideMTB, who specializes in taylor made mountain bike tours in Switzerland. For 7 days we will be riding the best of what the alps have to offer. Since the weather in this region can be quite unpredictable we opted for a floating schedule. Which means that each day the head guide will make a decision on where the best riding is to be found, and take us to it. An other really good company which I heard nothing but excellent things about is Ride Big.

Some spots, such as Zermatt are however guaranteed. I can't wait to blaze down the trails right next to the Matterhorn. The southern region Ticino, close to the italian border, is also said to offer some really epic descents. 

The package is all inclusive and they also seem to have a really sound contingency plan. Renting mountain bikes and equipment is possible but we will all bring our own.

Bike parks

How do I feel about bike parks? Well it is not an entirely easy question to answer. At the same time as I do enjoy blasting down A-Line in Whistler, I also feel that more people on the trail means more injuries, and somewhat a loss of adventure. 

You get everything custom made and I do miss the non-perfect features of a natural trail. Dropping down from a big stone or rock which has not been adapted and sculpted do take a different level of skill to master. 

For me mountain biking is first and foremost about freeriding natural trails, but I do at the same time concur with what the guys from FRideMTB is writing on their Bike parks in Switzerland page, namely that bike parks do provide an exceptional training ground. A place to fine tune your skills for the real backcountry mountain bike riding.

10 good reasons to bike in the cold

To ride or not to ride, that is the question. As the snow falls and the temperature drops, so does usually also the motivation to get out and ride. But snow and cold weather do not really have to be that bad for mountain bike freeriding. Here I list some of the advantages compared to summer riding.

1. You will not be all sweaty inside your fullface helmet and body armour.
   
2. Falling on snow hurts less than falling into a rock garden.
   
3. Snow can be used to build jumps. Do it!
   
4. You do not have to clean your bike when you get home.
   
5. There will definitively be less hikers on the trail.
   
6. There will definitively be less cows (and their shit) on the trail.
   
7. If your girlfriend/wife calls to tell you to come home and help prepare for the dinner party, you can always tell her that the snow absorbs all her words and that you can't hear a thing.
   
8. Irish coffee tastes better in cold weather.
   
9. Riding with a full freeride beard gets to hot in the summer.
   
10. There will probably be less evil naked riders on the trail?
    

One gear is all I need

Singlespeeding a full suspension freeride bike might be a crazy idea, but that is exactly what I have done. After removing the rear cog, shifters, cables and the deraulier and replaced them with a single speed kit and a chain tensioner from Rohloff my bike feels more free than ever. 

Also, on the trail I seem to be riding with more flow. I don't know exactly why, but one thing that might factor in is that I tend to ride with a more constant speed.

Cracked frame

Yesterday I found a crack the frame of my mountain bike. Could be from the last time i was out riding the shore. So now I am in the process of trying to decide what frame I should replace it with. I could of course get an identical one, but still at the same time trying out new stuff can be a lot of fun.

Anyway, my friend John has set up his own homepage about mountain bike freeriding. He plans to fill it with small articles and ride reports, check it out.

Vacation freeride mountain biking

I am currently in the process of planning my summer vacation together with four good friends. We will spend 2 weeks biking in Switzerland, out of which we will spend 2 or 3 days helibiking. 

Taking my bike up in a helicopter is something I never tried before and I really look forward to it. For me freeride mountain biking is all about riding where few others have been before, and i think helibiking is the right way to go. And according to the the guys at FRideMTB - Freeride Mountain Biking it does not really need to be that expensive. 

One helicopter with pilot and one mountain bike guide is of course not dirt cheap but I think I got a reasonable good price. Other interesting destinations which we will try to squeeze in are Andorra and Spain, maybe also Romania if we can find a good guiding company. 

Using a guiding company is something i really would recommend unless you are going to one of the areas where there are a lot of people riding.