Backcountry Mountain Biking on a Budget

[Mike7]

With more and more roads and trails popping up that do not allow motorized vehicle travel, I thought it might be interesting to have a thread on mountain biking in the backcountry with some gear and other info that myself and other people here may have found useful. I am not a bicycle expert by any means (I use the local bike shop for that), but I have been riding in the backcountry regularly for the past 15 years. In that time, I have developed some preferences for gear that I will go through here briefly and others can chime in with their own knowledge, experience, and preferences. A bicycle is a great way to explore an area, to save your feet and knees from some abuse and fatigue, to pack out meat over long distances particularly if you have a trailer, and a good way to quickly bomb out of an area down a closed road after dark on the way back to base camp when you are not planning to stay overnight up in the area you are hunting.

1) The bicycle:

I prefer a full suspension bike, not so much for what it allows me to do, but rather for comfort. This is not necessary, but I am getting older, and it is nice to be able to sit down sometimes without killing yourself while coasting back to the truck down a 7 mile long road that is covered with small blow downs and ground squirrel holes. I also prefer a lighter cross country bike with 3-5 inches of suspension travel, that I can still run fairly wide tires on to help with downhill cornering and braking traction in the mud...in this fashion the bike is still light enough to ride up long hills, be carried through the woods from one road/trail system to the next, or simply light enough to easily toss over blow downs that are across the road/trail. These lighter cross country bikes are not beefy like an all-mountain bike, rather these are the kind of bikes that a person can ride down most anything, but if you ride it hard/fast on extremely rough trail, you will eventually beat the crap out of the bike and yourself.



Today's bicycles can get really expensive and you will have to pay more for a full suspension bike. So if you are on a budget, I would recommend getting a used bike with only front suspension, but with decent components if possible. The higher level components (brakes/derailers/etc.) are not only lighter, but I have found them to be more dependable, particularly when covered in sand and mud. If you weigh over 160 lbs and plan to ride in the backcountry, try to get disc brakes. The 135 lb kid at the bike shop (the guy who rides a 1 speed downhill bike without a seat and rides only on sunny weekends) who says you don't need disc brakes, may not have any idea what your bike will be exposed to. In my experience, when you are riding down a long descent in rain and sleet with a backpack on, disc brakes are far better. I have even started to overheat my disc brakes before, but I have went almost completely through a set of rim type brakes in just one trip previously when riding out of an area with 120 lbs of trailer wt behind me.

2) Lighting: I always bring two forms of lightning at least (a headlamp and a bicycle mounted light). I don't use a fancy expensive mountain bike specific light with expensive batteries to replace. A cheap 200-300+ Lumen LED Mag or Tactical light that takes AA batteries will suffice just fine for the speeds I ride at. I have a cheap heavy duty light like this that I just keep with my bicycle along with an extra set of rechargeable batteries. This also allows me to ride my bike several times weekly throughout the year at night, while just rotating AA rechargeable batteries. Having an easily removable light is nice also as a backup light source around camp, and is easy to lock away when you leave camp or when preparing your bike for transport home on the vehicle.

This flashlight is not the lightest in wt, and I would not pack it in on my back, but this is a cheap durable light that will give you years of service on your bike. http://www.batteryjunction.com/terralux-tlf-3002aa-opt.html

You also need a way to keep your light in place in any weather while cruising down washboard covered roads at night. This is the best product I have found for that. I usually keep two of these in my bicycle pack (they weigh nothing).
http://www.twofish.biz/attach-a-light/lockblocks-flashlight-holder or
http://www.amazon.com/Two-Fish-Lock...=UTF8&qid=1425533980&sr=8-1&keywords=two+fish

 

[Mike7]

3) Clothing:

A thin hat that you can fit under your bicycle helmet when bombing down a hill back to camp in October in freezing temperatures is really nice and can prevent "ice-cream headache". A merino hat and a Kuiu guide beanie is a pretty good combination for example. Some windproof gloves (I prefer some soft shell gloves with a sticky or leather palm) are nice to have. I am not much of a vest person in general for backcountry hunting for various reasons, but a wind/waterproof vest can be really handy on a bicycle (I will very commonly be riding in the fall, winter, and spring with a combination of a base layer with or without a mid-weight fleece or merino layer that is then covered in a breathable wind shirt, and then a bicycle vest as needed over all of this to further cut the wind). I never wear my clip-in bicycling shoes in the backcountry for my mountain bike. I see guys recommend them on here, and I might use them in a mountain biking race or maybe if I was pulling a trailer up a perfectly graded clear gravel road on the west side of the state on Weyhauser land, but for where I ride and hunt, I use hiking boots with big metal platform pedals that will support a boot and a heavy load. Hiking boots can give me a somewhat stiff sole that helps avoid fatigue of the plantar fascia when standing on your pedals for long periods, and this allows me to easily get off of my bike to hike cross country, carry or push my bike up less than desirable trails and roads, or just sneak along if I happen to run into game. I typically have a helmet with me for riding down roads and trails...it is particularly easy to take an unexpected spill in the dark when trying to hurry back home or to camp.

4) Bicycle repair:

This is not my specialty. I have not made the jump to tubeless tires, and see no need to do so for my style of bicycling. I ride with slightly heavier off road tires and tubes that I generally keep over 40 psi, and I never get pinch flats...in fact I have rarely ever gotten a flat at all despite riding over all kinds of logs, rocks, etc. with my fat butt. I do carry an extra tube and patch material however. I also carry a multi-tool which will allow me to repair a broken chain...this did save my bacon one time, saving me about 10-12 miles of walking, and prevent getting home later than I told the boss I would be home.
I have found the following tire to be a great front tire for my uses. http://www.maxxis.com/catalog/tire-468-121-minion-dhf

5) Bicycle pouches:

There are various ways to carry gear on your bike. Under the seat bags which attach to the seat post but remove easily are convenient and need not be removed to mount your bike back on the vehicle rack. The only downside that I can see with these, is that if you have a full suspension bike, it can limit how much you can lower your seat for going down steep hills, because the seat bag will hit the back tire when you go over bumps (this is more of a problem with larger wheeled bikes like 29ers). Bags that attach to the steering column are convenient, but have very little capacity generally. Frame bags can carry a lot of gear, but can be expensive and have to be removed before you can put your bike back on the vehicle's rack. These also require you to remove one or both water bottle holders sometimes.

This is a cheap bicycle frame pack that I use and like, and which will fit on almost any mountain bike and will carry all of a person's repair supplies, lighting needs, and a little more.
http://www.amazon.com/Jandd-Frame-Pack-Black/dp/B000FLWSV8/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_t



6) Riding with backpacks:

Backpacks that have an internal or external frame can make the rider uncomfortable by not allowing one's head/neck to extend while riding, which is necessary to see the trail as one slides back off of the seat and lowers their riding angle while getting prepared to make a steep descent. Because of this, my favorite setup for scouting and overnight trips is as follows. I use a lightweight Granite Gear pack for this purpose that has an inflatable frame. I can deflate the frame for improved mobility, safety, and comfort during rough riding and ascents, but when I get off my bike to start hiking I can reinflate the frame for improved support of the load (putting the weight on my hips). As an aside, a Kifaru Timberline is actually a pretty comfortable pack to ride with though for a somewhat bigger pack. When I am just going out riding for the day though, I prefer to just wear a hip pack and a small camelbak.



Hopefully this helps someone. Post up your own comments and suggestions!

Mike

 

[Muledeerfanatic]

Ive done a little deer hunting/scouting on my bike. You can cover some serious country on a bike especially on the way out

 

[DaveC]

40 psi is just about road bike pressure! No wonder you don't pinch flat! Semi-burly tubeless tires, Stans fluid, and 19-23 psi for me please.

Riding out with a heavy pack sucks. A good steel rear rack (e.g. Tubus) can take 40 pounds of meat no problem, which with a deer lets you cut your pack down to a decently rideable amount.

Repacking your freehub with thicker grease (e.g Tenacious Oil) helps quiet it a good deal. A surprisingly effective way to sneak up on critters. Don't overdo it such that the pawls won't engage in colder weather.

 

[good2eat]

40 psi is just about road bike pressure! No wonder you don't pinch flat! Semi-burly tubeless tires, Stans fluid, and 19-23 psi for me please.

Riding out with a heavy pack sucks. A good steel rear rack (e.g. Tubus) can take 40 pounds of meat no problem, which with a deer lets you cut your pack down to a decently rideable amount.

Repacking your freehub with thicker grease (e.g Tenacious Oil) helps quiet it a good deal. A surprisingly effective way to sneak up on critters. Don't overdo it such that the pawls won't engage in colder weather.

Totally agree with the Stans notube set up, only time Ive ever gotten a flat is when I ripped a 3" gash in the tire sidewall, plus the hook up is amazing.

One of my favorite additions is a remote lock out for the rear shock. If not locked out the shock eats a fair bit of your power while climbing. With it the bike climbs as a hard tail and descends full suspension.

And disc brakes are a must, though it can be a challenge to keep them quiet.

 

[Mike7]

I have no idea what kind of grease the bicycle shop uses for my hubs?...but they are absolutely silent.

You guys still haven't convinced me on the tubeless thing yet, but I am not racing down hills with shoulder pads, etc. First of all, I don't like crashing because I don't heal like when I was younger, and hate flat tires even more. I have friends as well who extoll the virtues to me of going tubeless, such as, "they are a little lighter, you can get a softer downhill ride with more traction by letting air out, blah, blah , blah." Lol. In the small group I know that uses tubeless, they have far more tire problems than I do with burping air at the edges, ripping sidewalls, etc. Maybe they haven't all got it dialed in perfectly yet?

I will have to at least try tubeless at some point for recreational riding probably, but for me at least in the backcountry, I can tolerate a little heavier tube/tire combination which has plenty of traction for my style of riding and gives me years of riding without a flat tire regardless of the cause of it. And all of this without any adjustment in tire pressure whether I am carrying no pack, or a 135 lb pack. (I have only done the 135 lb pack thing one time, and wouldn't recommend it without a trailer...still better than walking though.)

 

[miller1]

Are all areas open to biking or just certain ones?

 

[DaveC]

Freehub noise is dependent on design; models like Shimano with weaker, fewer springs don't make much racket period. Freehubs with more reliable and faster engagement like King and Hope can be pretty darn loud in factory form.

Tubeless is only mandatory if you live in thorn and goathead central in the southwest. On one ride shortly after moving to Arizona years ago I had to walk out after running out of both patches and tubes, which was all the evidence I needed. Now that I live in Montana I just run tubeless out of habit. Lower tires pressure reduces rolling resistance, and thus increases speed, considerably on uneven terrain.

99% of tubeless field failures are due to either people pushing the limits too far on tire weight or tire/rim combos, or not keeping their fluid topped up. Not every tire should be run tubeless on every rim, even if you can get it to hold air.

Most of the time hunting I ride my fatbike, with tires at 5 psi. No tubeless there due to loose tire fit.

 

[good2eat]

Are all areas open to biking or just certain ones?

You cannot bike in designated wilderness areas

 

[Mike7]

DaveC,

Yeah, the worst thing that I ride over here is stobs on logs across the road, and the tubed tires seem to handle that amazingly well. My current bike is a Giant Anthem 29er, so not sure about the hub makeup there.

Would you mind explaining in more detail what you mean by pushing the weight limits on tubeless tire/rim combos and keeping fluid topped off?

Thank, Mike

 

[Lawnboi]

Tubeless at a lower pressure will give you a smoother ride, as well as give you more traction... And it's stupid easy to setup. Worth it IMO, especially if you ride a lot.

Good stuff though, I have never hunted off my bike, I do however do a lot of mountain biking

 

[Jason Snyder]

Mike,

The Stan's sealant has a finite life. Over time, it evaporates and the polymers begin to solidify creating the "cauliflower effect". Every three months or so it's a good idea to either completely change it or add some more.

 

[miller1]

You cannot bike in designated wilderness areas

got it, thanks

 

[JeremiahH]

If anyone is planning on getting into mountain biking for hunting purposes I would not recommend a full suspension bike unless you plan on solely using a trailer with it. Hard tail and good rack system it's hard to beat for versatility.

 

[DaveC]

DaveC,

Yeah, the worst thing that I ride over here is stobs on logs across the road, and the tubed tires seem to handle that amazingly well. My current bike is a Giant Anthem 29er, so not sure about the hub makeup there.

Would you mind explaining in more detail what you mean by pushing the weight limits on tubeless tire/rim combos and keeping fluid topped off?

Thank, Mike

As mentioned, the liquid in tubeless solutions eventually evaporates, or oozes out sealing little punctures. If you're low on sealant a thorn will shut you down just like with a tubed setup.

Just like tubed rigs, a tubeless setup needs a tire with sidewalls strong enough to not get cut. Obviously location/conditions dependent. With tubes you have the structure of the tube which gives you a little more leeway in this area.

Most importantly, tubeless tires need to fit tightly onto the rims you're using, to prevent burping (momentary loss of pressure during a hard hit) and rolling off the rim when running lower pressures. With all the tires and rims built to prevent these issues there really isn't any reason for this to happen these days, but (for example) 5+ years ago when 29er tire and rim selection was much smaller it was pretty common for people to use various tricks to run tire/rim combos which were not made for tubeless use. Sometimes this worked fine, sometimes it didn't. Sometimes when it didn't the result was a spectacular high speed failure and crash. Being on a ride with someone who has to stop and pump up their tires because they just burped 5 psi is a pain. Even worse is someone whose tubeless rig fails, and they have to pull the valve core and use their socks to mop the stans out so they can properly seat a tube.

 

[gmajor]

I'd also second a hardtail. A lot less energy waisted on a climb. Are you guys using them when forest service roads are closed to get close to wilderness areas? Anyone use a bob/other trailer?

 

[JeremiahH]

I'm using mine for roads closed to motorized, and any other authorized trails.

 

[Arbutusbucks]

I'll third the hardtail and the tubeless setup.

I have used a BOB trailer but to shuffle beer on laid back group rides. Once you get on singletrack they can be a handful only because they are lower to the ground. Logs and rock gardens can be a problem. But hey, if you already have it hooked up you're not in a hurry anyway so I don't mind walking it once in a while.

 

[Floorguy]

Can't believe no one has posted pics yet... I would but Luke asked me not to post anymore pics of my bike.

I run a fat bike, last fall I did a trip with a walmart mongoose dolomite with a couple upgrades pulling a kiddy trailer my buddy was running a borealis pulling a Bob trailer. It was a shakedown hunt to figure gear out. A 1x7 with road gearing is not something I would wish on anyone. I have upgraded and now have a 9zero7 with a frame bag, gas tank bag, and bar yak setup and a handlebar bag (mount interferes with bar yak). Still looking at getting a seat bag and rear rack, I also have a Montana scabbard for when I get the rack. Upgrading to the Bob trailer is a must as well as single track and deep 4 wheeler ruts disagree with the kiddy carrier.

 

[Mike7]

Thanks guys for the tubeless tire info...that may be something that I add at some point.

I have no problem climbing with a full suspension bike, but my front and rear shocks lock out pretty well. 90% of my riding is with a 15-40 lb pack only (no trailer for hauling camp or game) , and it is just a lot of fun and comfortable to ride out on my full suspension bike. Of course I can't use a rear rack though, which would be a cool thing to have, especially on a fat tire bike.

I am not a big fan of my Bob trailer for hunting. It can go on singetrack of course, but on rough trails and roads that I sometimes ride on, with loads at and beyond 30-40 lbs, it is fairly unstable when riding downhill and when pushing the bike and trailer up hill. With the Bob trailer, you are not only moving the load from A to B, but constantly fighting to keep the trailer up right in some riding/walking conditions. So, if I have a road to ride on, I would much rather use ANY 2-wheeled trailer.

I have a $15 yard sale kids aluminum tubing framed trailer that attaches to the rear wheel. It is extremely light, very stable, low as noted above, and will carry 75-100 lbs (over twice what the Bob trailer will). I also have a homemade 2-wheeled trailer with a seatpost hitch, that will carry at least 300 lbs. I love seatpost hitches. I haven't had 300 lbs in it going down a mountain road though...I would guess that my buddy would need to be behind the trailer with ropes attached to the rear of the trailer to help with slowing it down in that case? When I first built my trailer, I couldn't find any trailers on the internet with a seatpost hitch except these guys (http://blueskycyclecarts.com/), but not there are more people making them.


For carrying a rifle on the bicycle, I have found nothing better than a Kifaru gun bearer. If my bike can fit under, around, and through alders growing in across a road, then I can ride it with the gunbearer. The gun in this way ducks down under the limbs when I do, and the gunbearer on your body helps to give some shock absorption for the rifle/scope combo. I have found that the front handlebar gun racks don't work well in most cases. I haven't tried the Montana scabbard method of rifle transport, but I would be worried that the rifle might catch on limbs and the scope may take a little bit of a beating from road chatter?