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But I sold my 29er.

Normal mtn bike is ok on packed snow. Anything else and they suck. I tried riding all winter, regardless of snow condition, and there were a lot of days that sucked/were just for exercise/hiking with bikes. This will let me ride a lot more this winter.

Plus, if I put a Rock Shox Bluto and slightly smaller tires on it, apparently this model rips as a trail bike too.

Flat pedals would definitely be easier. I did not switch to flats until this summer, and had lots of days that the cleats on my shoes completely iced over from having to hop off the bike so much. You can certainly ride a regular mountain bike in the winter, just be ready for a lot of walking the bike on climbs when conditions aren't just right. When the snow is cold and packed, but not icy, I was able to ride almost like I would on dirt. When it gets icy, I don't think a fat bike will make any difference, you'd want studs. But when the snow is soft, the fat tires at low pressure work like snowshoes. The day I demoed a fat bike last year was in the spring, and I got to ride it on a variety of snow conditions based on elevation and aspect. I rode it in slush, frozen hardpack, melting hardpack, and a little powder when I got off line. Except for the frozen hardpack, I would have been walking a lot on a regular bike.

This is a "review" of the cheaper (lower spec) ops model, but with a dropper post and a bluto fork. He's also running the same tires I want for summer, as I have Maxxis Ardents on my Yeti SB66 and absolutely love them.

I expect my Surly to be similar by summer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k31BIhpEBHc

Went for a short ride, even though I've got a cold, and got a personal record on one descent, and was only 6 seconds off my 29er record on a 6+ minute climb. I'm happy with it.

Holy tires, Batman.

Man, the more I watch that video the more I want one of these. But I literally have no place to store it. And I can't see myself getting rid of my only mountain bike to get one.

Still - for a place with snow on the ground 6 - 7 months of the year it may be worth it. Looks stupidly fun.

It's surprisingly fun. Except for a little noticeable gyroscopic resistance turning at faster speeds, it rides like any mountain bike, but one that is also like a monster truck.

Also wish I could have found a deal on a bike from these local guys. I see these on the trails a lot.
https://vimeo.com/91095681

Great day for riding. Crisp fall air, temp in the upper 30s. Got several personal records. This bike is super fast on the gravel that dominates the local trails until you hit rocky or rooty sections, then you can feel that it's still rigid.

Garage is for car stuff, basement is for bikes

Lol maybe when you're single.

Also, loving the Surly. Added a Rock Shox Reverb dropper post, new grips, pedals, and a shorter stem. Went for a ride after our last storm. Some of the shaded trails were untracked, and I just put it in the lowest gear and spun up hills through about 8 inches of snow with no trouble. Then played around on the rocks a bit. The geometry makes it easy to keep the front end up off rocks. With a Bluto fork I see this being a super fun year round bike. Its at the neighborhood (literally, I walk there to pick up my bikes after work) bike shop, which happens to be a Surly dealer, getting the wheels set up tubeless. Should save a few pounds, fatbike tubes are heavy.

Why did I think today was a good day to go on a 20 mile death march ride in the mountains? No idea. 2700+ ft of climbing at an average temp of 91F was murderous. I am pretty sure I was suffering from heat exhaustion after reading the symptoms. According to my Garmin, somewhere along the ride hit 106F, which blows me away since the ride was between 7300 and 10000 ft elevation. I drained a 3 liter camelbak on the ride and another liter on the drive to the trailhead and was still parched.

Climb was on an old railroad, called Gold Camp Road as it winds its way from Colorado Springs to the mining town of Cripple Creek. Descent was wicked steep and technical singletrack, couldn't be bothered to take pictures there.

The longest tunnel of the ride.



Looking down towards downtown about halfway through the climb.



And lastly, I'm seriously considering selling both my Yeti and my Surly for a this Santa Cruz.

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/santa ... dodG93ZXI=

Oh - and a couple weeks ago I had my first opportunity to try out a legitimate fat bike. Holy shit those are fun. Can't justify one right now - but I definitely see the appeal. Especially anywhere where you get a lot of snow or sand. They climb surprisingly easy, too.

Yeah, I kinda want to consolidate too. I have a fat bike bike, regular mtb, park bike (for like 2 or 3 trips a year to keystone or winter park), road/gravel bike, and townie/grocery bike. A plus tire bike like that Santa Cruz could easily replace my fat bike and my normal mtb for all but fresh snow rides, and even that's not that often.

But then I went riding on Monday with the fatbike on one of the trails here that has some sandy sections and remembered how great it is to be able to ride sand with little to no loss in speed or handling. Not sure if plus tires would do the same.