Winter blues, missing your bike, what about a bit of proper ski biking ?

[Waynemarlow]

Over on one of the other threads I put in a little piece on one of my luvs, ski biking.

Have a look at probably one of your hero's, Rob Nicholls. There's a whole story of how one of our mates decided to give up skiing from damaged knees and we all went noooo, so we built ski bikes.

 

[Waynemarlow]

5 minutes ago
New #16
galaga187 said:

I’m heading to Las Clusaz in a few weeks we saw people riding them but no hires.


Sorry I don't know of any in Las Clusaz but there is a French dealer who makes them called Firem

Have a look on the European ski bike site as I know they have a few rentals about. Not a great ski bike to be honest as they are little heavy but would get you started. Our bikes are now less than a pair of skis and boots, all carbon and weigh not a lot as we don't have all the extras that bikes have like gears and brakes ( what no brakes )
Skibike manufacturers and similar equipment

 

[Waynemarlow]

galaga187

You may want to consider

 

[levity]

The new Lenz bikes look so fun!

Here's a throwback for ya - K2 made a few skibikes at the start of the millennium.
Here's mine at Tahoe back in 2006. It didn't have much in the way of suspension (a rear "coil shock" and some elastomers) but was still a hoot to ride.

 

[Waynemarlow]

The K2 is quite different than the Lenz style bike, the K2 needs footskis and is a “skibob” The Lenz bikes fit in the Freestyle category and you stand on pegs mounted where the bottom bracket would be, they are much more like riding a mtb on snow than the ski bobs which have been around since before skiing started as we know it.

Another American brand selling tons of is

 

[R120]

As a former long time resident of the Alps, I have to say most of my crew regarded snow bikes as in the same category as snowblades when it came to appeal/cool factor - having said that we would have an annual snowbike day where we all hired them and hooned down the mountain, but from recollection they where complete POS where hurting yourself or someone else was easier than controlling them, but they where fun when you managed to stay on. I also seem to remember a lot of resorts being quite anti them.

Having said that they seem to have come a long way since I last swung a leg over one, and my views are ridiculously blinkered, especially as I started snowboarding in the late 80's/early 90's when we faced a lot of prejudice about even being allowed on lifts.

Would be fun to try one again.

 

[Waynemarlow]

Would be fun to try one again.

Yup they are now an optional thrill factor on the slopes. Our whole reason to get into the ski biking was a couple of us were getting into problems with knees and legs, which meant hanging up the skis and giving up winter holidays which we had done as a group for far to long. The skibikes have allowed those guys to sit ( you use a slightly different technique ) and the likes of myself to stand ( you are more agile for the steep and the moguls ).

There's now quite a remarkable surge in riders, we used to be the only ones on the slopes, now you see them everywhere we go.