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I bought a fat tire bike in 2015. It always caught my attention because of its uniqueness. My model has 4 inch tires. I felt that I could use it it snow and on the mountain bike trails. A national sporting goods mall store was selling a floor model and marked down about $300. I could not turn this down.  I rode it mostly on the wooded trails in the local parks. The first thing that I noticed was that it was loud. I thought that the sound was the rubber rubbing against the rims. The wide tires would roll over anything and my steering was not impacted by roots and rocks as much as with my mountain bike. It also was a much harder bike to pedal and a short ride would really tire me out.  I was excited to try it in the first snow. In this light snow cover the wide tires worked great is feeling stable on the paved surfaces. It was slower going on the snowy grass and the bike just sunk in. I was trudging through and getting tired.  On a prepared trail for fat tire biking. As we received more snow a local bike shop had demo time on the trails. The local mountain bike association creates and maintains a winter path for bikes during the winter. What a big improvement than blazing your own trail. I could go faster and farther.  You can see several bike patrol riders. Great to have people on the trails to keep us safe. My road id app monitors my location for my family. I also leave a note on my car with the time that I left. Always have what you need to survive in the cold if you have a problem and take your phone.  I had not received my bike carrier for my new car, but it fit in the back fine.  Early snow fall. Be careful not to cause ruts. My biggest challenges:
1. playing with the air pressure for the conditions. 5-10 pounds for soft riding conditions. 11-20 for trail riding. I also use 20 for paved conditions. 2. playing with the gears. I have 24 gear options with 3 in front and 8 in the back. Basically it is the same for me as the road, mid front most of the time, large cog for pushing the speed and the small one for the slow going. Enjoy the ride.
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 I found an app for my phone called All Trails. It gave me a listing of trails nearby. I had heard about this nice mountain bike trail called, DTE Foundation Trails, in the Waterloo State Recreation area just north of Chelsea, Michigan. One day as I was driving from riding the Lakelands State Park Rail Trail, I saw a sign for parking for the DTE trails.  I took a photo for reference on the trail. Four trails of increasing difficulty.  DTE is the area's primary electricity provider. Their foundation provided funding for the trail. The trail was constructed and maintained by the Potawatomi Chapter of the International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA). www.potomba.org for their information. The trails flow in different directions depending on the day of the week. Some days go clockwise and others go counter-clockwise. Posted signs clearly let you know which direction. There were spots to pull over for faster riders.  Most of the trail goes through forest, but you do get some views of the wetlands and little lakes.  There are signs also provide a location if you need assistance. I still consider myself a mountain bike novice and selected the easiest of the four trails. I felt that this was a very good decision. The most difficult section for me was during the first half mile which was due to the elevation increase. I just pull off when I need to catch my breath.  This tree was begging for a photo. I found the curves to go smoothly with my fat tire bike. The handlebars could easily make down the path. There were few rock and roots. A regular mountain bike could easily traverse this and I even thought of taking my gravel bike here. I will definitely come back. I had a great time.
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AuthorI love my riding days and look to find interesting and informative items to share. 
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