Midwest riding?

[Estom]

Hello! First of all I'd like to thank you all (especially Kathleen) for helping me two years ago
with finding information about places to stay and ride in Moab, UT. Here are the pix from my trip:
www.cyfronet.krakow.pl/rowery/estomusa.html Unfortunately text is in Polish but pix don't need
translation ) Alltogether I spent 2 months in Utah & Colorado plus a couple of days in MN, IL, MI,
MO,OK and NY.. To cut the long story short... I moved to the States last year and due to a limited
job market in MTB heavens I decided to settle down in La Grange Park, IL (10 miles west from
Chicago). Well, I have a good job but I don't really have any interesting places to ride at ( I'm
getting fat and lazy... please help me! Any suggestions? I tried Southern IL (Shawnee National
Forest) and it was OK but it' s 350 miles away... I spent Memorial Day in Great Smoky Mountains
National Park but it's 600 miles away... Help! Hilfe! Aide! Pomocy!

Cheers,

Estom.

 

[Jon Bond]

"Estom" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Hello! First of all I'd like to thank you all (especially Kathleen) for helping
me
> two years ago with finding information about places to stay and ride in Moab, UT. Here are the
> pix from my trip: www.cyfronet.krakow.pl/rowery/estomusa.html Unfortunately text is in Polish
> but pix don't need translation ) Alltogether I spent 2 months in Utah & Colorado plus a couple
> of days in
MN,
> IL, MI, MO,OK and NY.. To cut the long story short... I moved to the States last year and due to a
> limited job market in MTB heavens I decided to settle down in La Grange Park, IL (10 miles west
> from Chicago). Well, I have a good job but I don't really have any interesting places to ride at
> ( I'm getting fat and lazy... please help me! Any suggestions? I tried Southern IL (Shawnee
> National Forest) and it was OK but it' s 350 miles away... I spent Memorial Day in Great Smoky
> Mountains National Park but it's 600 miles away... Help! Hilfe! Aide! Pomocy!
>
> Cheers,
>
> Estom.

Looks like a cool trip.

Here's the first place to try:

http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Illinois_name.html

Jon Bond

 

[Estom]

"Jon Bond" <[email protected]> wrote
> Looks like a cool trip.
>
> Here's the first place to try:
>
> http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Illinois_name.html
>
> Jon Bond

Thanks! That was quick ) I tried some of those but the problem in Illinois seems to be that all
those trails have to be easy enough for 95-year-old rodies ( Where are the roots and rocks? I
kinda liked Southern IL, but I still think I'll have to move west ...

> Keep ridin'

Cheers,

Estom

 

[Shaun Rimmer]

Stephen Baker <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Estom says:
>
> >Where are the roots and rocks?
>
> New England. ClydesdaleMTB has a bunch up in NH, Jon-boy has some in CT,
and
> we have more than we need here in RI. I'm willing tot bet that Jimbo and Carla have some in Long
> Island, too, if
they
> haven't been suburbanised.,

Or old England - we got roots, rocks, rocks, roots, mud, mud, mud, mud, mud, mud, mud,
roots.................

Shaun aRe

 

[Kathleen]

Estom wrote:
> "Jon Bond" <[email protected]> wrote
>
>>Looks like a cool trip.
>>
>>Here's the first place to try:
>>
>>http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Illinois_name.html
>>
>>Jon Bond
>
>
> Thanks! That was quick ) I tried some of those but the problem in Illinois seems to be that all
> those trails have to be easy enough for 95-year-old rodies ( Where are the roots and rocks? I
> kinda liked Southern IL, but I still think I'll have to move west ...

Hi Estom,

Welcome back. Mark Twain National Forest, near Rolla, Missouri, has 742 miles of trails,
about half of which are open to mountain bikes. Included in that total is the Berryman
Trail, a 24 mile loop through the Ozark Mountains. The Ozarks are old, mellow mountains,
hills, really, compared to, say, the Rockies, but they still provide some gorgeous scenery
and plenty of challenges. If you go, pack plenty to drink - you won't be able to fill up at
the camp sites or trailheads - there is no running water. In the hottest part of the
summer, it's difficult to carry enough water to last the whole ride, and I'm chicken about
drinking from the springs along the way. A filter bottle and/or water purification tabs
might be one way of getting around the problem, but then again, during long dry spells,
lots of the small springs peter out. When we go, we usually take two vehicles and leave one
with an extra cooler full of cold drinks and food parked at the Indian Creek campground,
about 14 miles from the trailhead. This also provides a handy bailout point if you're
riding with a mixed ability group. It's a beautiful area, with more than enough riding to
justify a weekend roadtrip.

Kathleen

 

[Superclydesdale]

"Estom" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Jon Bond" <[email protected]> wrote
> > Looks like a cool trip.
> >
> > Here's the first place to try:
> >
> > http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Illinois_name.html
> >
> > Jon Bond
>
> Thanks! That was quick ) I tried some of those but the problem in Illinois seems to be that all
those
> trails have to be easy enough for 95-year-old rodies ( Where are the roots and rocks? I kinda
> liked Southern IL, but I still think I'll have to move west ...
>
> > Keep ridin'
>
> Cheers,
>
> Estom
>
>

Estom

Here are some great places for to ride, all within 5 hours or so of Chicago. You just need to come
north to God's Country, Wisconsin.

http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Wisconsin/CAMBATrails.html

http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Wisconsin/LevisMound.html

http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Wisconsin/KettleMoraine.html

http://www.cambatrails.org

I have not ridden at Kettle Moraine SP, but I hear good things about it. Levis/Trow mounds offer
some truly fantastic riding, but be prepared to
climb. My favorite out-of-town riding weekend is the Camba trails near Cable, north of Hayward. I
generally stay here when riding the Camba trails: http://www.telemarkresort.com/jsmain.html

Hope this helps SuperClydesdale

 

[Jd]

"Estom" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> Hello! First of all I'd like to thank you all (especially Kathleen) for helping me two years ago
> with finding information about places to stay and ride in Moab, UT. Here are the pix from my trip:
> www.cyfronet.krakow.pl/rowery/estomusa.html Unfortunately text is in Polish but pix don't need
> translation ) Alltogether I spent 2 months in Utah & Colorado plus a couple of days in MN, IL,
> MI, MO,OK and NY.. To cut the long story short... I moved to the States last year and due to a
> limited job market in MTB heavens I decided to settle down in La Grange Park, IL (10 miles west
> from Chicago). Well, I have a good job but I don't really have any interesting places to ride at
> ( I'm getting fat and lazy... please help me! Any suggestions? I tried Southern IL (Shawnee
> National Forest) and it was OK but it' s 350 miles away... I spent Memorial Day in Great Smoky
> Mountains National Park but it's 600 miles away... Help! Hilfe! Aide! Pomocy!
>
> Cheers,
>
> Estom.

If you moved to the USA and want to ride a lot, why the hell did you choose Illinois? I'd rather
flip burgers in Colorado than make six digits in Illinois.

JD

 

[Superclydesdale]

JD

Although we are topographically challenged, we have some great riding in the Midwest. Not everybody
is fortunate enough to live in your neck of the woods; would you really want them to? (Anybody
hiring web developers in GJ/Fruita??)

I am on my 3rd day of SS'ing and am having a lot of fun. What gearing do you run on your single? The
Ribbon ride during FFTF was a most impressive display of single speeding, especially that last
climb. Maybe next year I will single it, and try not to endo in front of you.

Cheers mark aka SuperClydesdale

"JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> "Estom" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> > Hello! First of all I'd like to thank you all (especially Kathleen) for helping
me
> > two years ago with finding information about places to stay and ride in Moab, UT. Here are the
> > pix from my trip:
www.cyfronet.krakow.pl/rowery/estomusa.html
> > Unfortunately text is in Polish but pix don't need translation ) Alltogether I spent 2 months
> > in Utah & Colorado plus a couple of days in
MN,
> > IL, MI, MO,OK and NY.. To cut the long story short... I moved to the States last year and due
> > to a limited job market in MTB heavens I decided to settle down in La Grange Park, IL (10
> > miles west
from
> > Chicago). Well, I have a good job but I don't really have any
interesting
> > places to ride at ( I'm getting fat and lazy... please help me! Any suggestions? I tried
> > Southern IL (Shawnee National Forest) and it was OK but it' s
350
> > miles away... I spent Memorial Day in Great Smoky Mountains National
Park
> > but it's 600 miles away... Help! Hilfe! Aide! Pomocy!
> >
> > Cheers,
> >
> > Estom.
>
> If you moved to the USA and want to ride a lot, why the hell did you choose Illinois? I'd rather
> flip burgers in Colorado than make six digits in Illinois.
>
> JD

 

[Iggy Peuterbaug]

"Kathleen" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Estom wrote:
> > "Jon Bond" <[email protected]> wrote
> >
> >>Looks like a cool trip.
> >>
> >>Here's the first place to try:
> >>
> >>http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Illinois_name.html
> >>
> >>Jon Bond
> >
> >
> > Thanks! That was quick ) I tried some of those but the problem in Illinois seems to be
> > that all
those
> > trails have to be easy enough for 95-year-old rodies ( Where are the roots and rocks? I kinda
> > liked Southern IL, but I still think I'll have to move west ...
>
> Hi Estom,
>
> Welcome back. Mark Twain National Forest, near Rolla, Missouri, has 742 miles of trails, about
> half of which are open to mountain bikes. Included in that total is the Berryman Trail, a 24 mile
> loop through the Ozark Mountains. The Ozarks are old, mellow mountains, hills, really, compared
> to, say, the Rockies, but they still provide some gorgeous scenery and plenty of challenges. If
> you go, pack plenty to drink - you won't be able to fill up at the camp sites or trailheads -
> there is no running water. In the hottest part of the summer, it's difficult to carry enough water
> to last the whole ride, and I'm chicken about drinking from the springs along the way. A filter
> bottle and/or water purification tabs might be one way of getting around the problem, but then
> again, during long dry spells, lots of the small springs peter out. When we go, we usually take
> two vehicles and leave one with an extra cooler full of cold drinks and food parked at the Indian
> Creek campground, about 14 miles from the trailhead. This also provides a handy bailout point if
> you're riding with a mixed ability group. It's a beautiful area, with more than enough riding to
> justify a weekend roadtrip.
>
> Kathleen

I went to school in Rolla and second Kathleen's recommendation. There are miles and miles of awesome
trails in the area. Berrymen is closer to Potosi, MO, and is an excellent technical trail. Near
Rolla, there is a trail set called Kaintuck, which is probably close to 35 miles total. Plenty of
challenges and a good workout. But she is correct about the shortage of running water. I've had to
drink from a spring in a bind.

Also, there is plenty of good riding to be had in the St. Louis area, about a six hour drive from
Chicago. Castlewood State Park is nice, good climbs and downs and also good hardpack for railing.
Chubb trail, just west of St. Louis on interstate 44, is a 10 or 15 mile trail that is also awesome.

St. Joe State Park, near Farmington, MO, is excellent. There is an 11 mile paved bike path with
plenty of singletrack on both sides of the trail. I used to ride there regularly and it seems like
there was always a new trial popping up that we were not aware of. This is highly recommended.

Overall, if I were you, I'd probably do Berryman first. If you have a couple days, hit St. Joe SP
the following day.

Good luck!

 

[Estom]

"Kathleen" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Estom wrote:
> > "Jon Bond" <[email protected]> wrote
> >
> >>Looks like a cool trip.
> >>
> >>Here's the first place to try:
> >>
> >>http://www.mtbr.com/trails/Illinois_name.html
> >>
> >>Jon Bond
> >
> >
> > Thanks! That was quick ) I tried some of those but the problem in Illinois seems to be
> > that all
those
> > trails have to be easy enough for 95-year-old rodies ( Where are the roots and rocks? I kinda
> > liked Southern IL, but I still think I'll have to move west ...
>
> Hi Estom,
>
> Welcome back. Mark Twain National Forest, near Rolla, Missouri, has 742 miles of trails, about
> half of which are open to mountain bikes. Included in that total is the Berryman Trail, a 24 mile
> loop through the Ozark Mountains. The Ozarks are old, mellow mountains, hills, really, compared
> to, say, the Rockies, but they still provide some gorgeous scenery and plenty of challenges. If
> you go, pack plenty to drink - you won't be able to fill up at the camp sites or trailheads -
> there is no running water. In the hottest part of the summer, it's difficult to carry enough water
> to last the whole ride, and I'm chicken about drinking from the springs along the way. A filter
> bottle and/or water purification tabs might be one way of getting around the problem, but then
> again, during long dry spells, lots of the small springs peter out. When we go, we usually take
> two vehicles and leave one with an extra cooler full of cold drinks and food parked at the Indian
> Creek campground, about 14 miles from the trailhead. This also provides a handy bailout point if
> you're riding with a mixed ability group. It's a beautiful area, with more than enough riding to
> justify a weekend
roadtrip.
>
> Kathleen
>
Thanks a lot! I went to the Ozarks last September but didn't do any riding (

I agree it's beautiful and versatile but still pretty far even for a weekend trip. I'll probably
check some WI trails and do more riding in Shawnee. I have just read about "Garden of Gods" by
Kentucky border (on Ohio river) but I don't know if they have any bike trails there...

Well, I guess I have to do my homework and search the Net for some hints. I' m sure with help of the
Group I will manage to find some decent riding in Midwest - Hey Wisconsin is the home of Trek,
right?! And

Waterloo is less than 100 miles from my home )

Cheers,

Estom

 

[Jd]

"SuperClydesdale" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> JD
>
> Although we are topographically challenged, we have some great riding in the Midwest. Not
> everybody is fortunate enough to live in your neck of the woods; would you really want them to?
> (Anybody hiring web developers in GJ/Fruita??)

The job market sucks here, but the riding speaks for itself. It's a cushion that keeps the crowds
down a bit, though I-70 feeds The Beast well enough as it is.

> I am on my 3rd day of SS'ing and am having a lot of fun. What gearing do you run on your single?
> The Ribbon ride during FFTF was a most impressive display of single speeding, especially that last
> climb. Maybe next year I will single it, and try not to endo in front of you.

I run 2:1 (34x17). I saw that endo develop, which is the only reason you didn't end up with tire
tracks. Group ride caution can be a good thing, doncha think?

JD

 

[Brad And Julie]

"Estom" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> Hello! First of all I'd like to thank you all (especially Kathleen) for helping me two years ago
> with finding information about places to stay and ride in Moab, UT. Here are the pix from my trip:
> www.cyfronet.krakow.pl/rowery/estomusa.html Unfortunately text is in Polish but pix don't need
> translation ) Alltogether I spent 2 months in Utah & Colorado plus a couple of days in MN, IL,
> MI, MO,OK and NY.. To cut the long story short... I moved to the States last year and due to a
> limited job market in MTB heavens I decided to settle down in La Grange Park, IL (10 miles west
> from Chicago). Well, I have a good job but I don't really have any interesting places to ride at
> ( I'm getting fat and lazy... please help me! Any suggestions? I tried Southern IL (Shawnee
> National Forest) and it was OK but it' s 350 miles away... I spent Memorial Day in Great Smoky
> Mountains National Park but it's 600 miles away... Help! Hilfe! Aide! Pomocy!
>
> Cheers,
>
> Estom.
If you are ever in St. Louis or just passing through, you MUST ride the Chubb Trail. It is my
favorite trail and has a bit of everything. Here's some pictures from my website
http://members.socket.net/~jfalken/chubb.htm

I ride it a least once a week when it is not raining as it seems to always do right now. PS Don't
listen to Kathleen about the Chubb Trail. A few years ago she told me she didn't like it, but I
think she just had a bad experience.

Brad and Julie Vaughn Just kidding Kathleen - I think I saw Dan out at the Chubb a couple weeks back
in the evening. It's shocking how often I am there at the same time as him.