[mtnfiend]

I do a lot of hiking and biking in So Cal, where the mountains are quite steep. Many trails I hike and ride gain and loose between 700-1100 feet per mile. I think it would be really cool to be able to hike up these trails and the roll down them on something. Determining that something is my issue. It needs to be light enough that I can carry it on my back when hiking up, and it needs to be able to roll down steep, rocky trail.

I thought about a mountain board but those can't handle rocky obstacles and I don't think they can be turned well enough for tight switchbacks. Speak up if you ride mountain boards. My current thinking is a mountain unicycle. What would be ideal is a unicyle with a freewheel and brakes. This way I could coast downhill most of the time using the brakes to slow me down rather then slowing down by slowing my cadence, al. la. a fixie.

Anyone else have any ideas? (Beyond walking downhill of course )

 

[Tracerboy]

I do a lot of hiking and biking in So Cal, where the mountains are quite steep. Many trails I hike and ride gain and loose between 700-1100 feet per mile. I think it would be really cool to be able to hike up these trails and the roll down them on something. Determining that something is my issue. It needs to be light enough that I can carry it on my back when hiking up, and it needs to be able to roll down steep, rocky trail.

I thought about a mountain board but those can't handle rocky obstacles and I don't think they can be turned well enough for tight switchbacks. Speak up if you ride mountain boards. My current thinking is a mountain unicycle. What would be ideal is a unicyle with a freewheel and brakes. This way I could coast downhill most of the time using the brakes to slow me down rather then slowing down by slowing my cadence, al. la. a fixie.

Anyone else have any ideas? (Beyond walking downhill of course )

yeah something with 2 wheels and a seat. never heard of such a thing, but keep looking!!!

 

[Low_Rider]

What would be ideal is a unicycle with a freewheel and brakes.

Ummm, brakes yes, but a freewheel?? Those things are hard enough to ride as they are, but a freewheel (as well as being hard to make for a unicycle) would make it impossible to ride.

What you need is a light, long travel, SS dually with a nice pack that you can strap the bike too. Granted the climb would be painful, but it's the only way I can see you coming back down.

Cheers, Dave

 

[Full Mountain]

what about just mounting pegs where the cranks would attach....and just letting the wheel turn freely...weld the pegs to the drop outs and just let the wheel spin normally...that is if you can remove the cranks from a unicycle....mount some disks on it and away you go
DMR

 

[lovemonkey]

I can see it now, "Single speed too complicated for you? Presenting....NOSPEEDS!"
I think that the unicycle would be a bad idea, but a pure coasting bike could be a workable solution.

 

[Low_Rider]

You guys haven't ridden a unicycle before have you?? I can hardly balance on the things with cranks, without there's no chance.

cranks = balance

I don't think I'd really want a coasting bike either. You would find that you rely heavily on the use of your cranks for balance and stability.

Nah, I still think a decent pack and a light dually is the way to go. If I remember "MTB Bill" has done a lot of hiking with bikes in the past.

Cheers, Dave.

 

[Low_Rider]

Here you go, this is his website: www.mountainbikebill.com and here's the link where he mentions climbing with his bike: www.mountainbikebill.com/J-MtFuji.htm painful but rewarding!!

Dave.

 

[mtnfiend]

The trails in SoCal are pretty narrow and can get very overgrown with vegetation. Strapping a bike to ones back side ways would get caugh up in vegetation or on rocks. Thanks for the link though. That was a great read. (Note last two photos are from Ron Bigelow http://www.ronbigelow.com).

 

[Low_Rider]

Hmm, I know photos never do trails justice, but I'd be pedalling up those and just shouldering the bike in un-rideable sections!!

Dave.

 

[shwinboy]

I think a light weight custom built scooter/ kik bike is what you should be looking in to. The uni with a free wheel is just stupid.

 

[Mr.Bob]

How about something like this?

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=132145&highlight=coupler

It'll pack down pretty small and you should be able to get a process down for quick assembly. I think would be a heck of a lot more fun then the alternatives unless you anticipate lots of build up/tear downs per trip.

 

[Low_Rider]

Wow, that Black Sheep is just magic!!

Great for guys doing a lot of travelling, but maybe not so for climbing. You're on the right track though.

Maybe an ultra light, foldable rig that can be packed into a nice soft hiking bag or something??

Dave.

 

[mtnfiend]

Hmm, I know photos never do trails justice, but I'd be pedalling up those and just shouldering the bike in un-rideable sections!!

Dave.

Yeah. Looking at those photos they don't do them justice. I guess the point was that the trails are narrow and strapping a bike width ways across you back would not work that well.

In thinking about the trails I would like to hike up and ride down, several of them are trails that I ride up frequently. I just like the idea of hike up for training purposes (training for hikes that is) and then having the fun of biking down. I really like hiking up the trails around here but get to the top and wish I had my bike. That and the downhill can be bad on my knees sometimes.

Given the lack of products out there I can see I'm in the minority here.

 

[mtnfiend]

How about something like this?

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=132145&highlight=coupler

It'll pack down pretty small and you should be able to get a process down for quick assembly. I think would be a heck of a lot more fun then the alternatives unless you anticipate lots of build up/tear downs per trip.

Thanks for the link. That is amazing! I also really like the Ti Thompson conversion.

 

[Low_Rider]

I also really like the Ti Thompson conversion.

Yeah that caught my eye too.

 

[Stevirey]

light bike

You could spend a zillion bucks on a 15LB hardtail Mt.bike!