DirtPedalerB

On a couple of recent rides I have apparently been the first one on the trail for a while and have encountered a TON or spiderwebs/spiders. One ride was at a state park on a weekday and the other was on some ATV trails. After stopping a multiple times to despider in the first mile, I just gave up and kept riding through them. At the end of the ride I had probably 5 -10 little black spiders with some white on their backs that repelled off my clothes back at the truck. My brake cables and helmet were full of webs and spiders as well.

My question is should I be concerned about these spiders biting me or should I just keep riding through them? nothing is more distracting then going fast and seeing a spider dangling off my helmet visor.

So what do you guys do on a webbed up trail?

mlh122

I'm a spider-eater too, i have wierd days off so i do a lot of riding on tuesday or wednesday mornings. I've thought of trying bug repellant? if there's something you can spray on you to make you "stink" to spiders so as soon as they get near you they drop to the ground and run away? What I do is worry about the ones that might be poisonous, i pretty much ignore the orange and black tree spiders, they do bite but they leave tiny flea-like bites and I don't think they carry nasty diseases. but if i see a black widow or wolf spider or hobo spider (probably not in the woods but you get the point) i freak out and get it off of me asap. also try and memorize each type of spider you see and when you get back home try to look up pictures on the web and identify if they are dangerous or not, if they are not it will be easier to ignore them, and if they are then you shouldn't let them dangle off you.

An alternative would be get a biking buddy that's a lot taller than you and let him ride in front. Or wear thicker clothes, cover all exposed skin, seal your wrists/ankles/neck etc... with duct tape. also tape the vents in your helmet so spiders don't get in there, or get a full face helmet with a visor and tape it to your shirt. or get a neoprene ninja suit, then you just have to worry about covering the eye hole. if you see any little kids be very nice because they will idolize you as a mountain biking ninja assassin and think that you are the coolest person ever. say things like "stay in school" "don't do drugs" "eat your veggies" etc... Sorry I'm ranting i'm on painkillers, from a sweet endo faceplant i did a few days ago....

vw addict

gross

EJ123

I hate webs.

Karldar

I've learned to ignore them for the most part, but I happen to like spiders. I can't remember the last time I was bitten and I tend to be one of the first ones on the trail since I ride in the early morning. I use insect repellent, but I don't think it's meant to repel spiders. I'm more worried about mosquitos and ticks, actually. Most of the time the spiders jump off, hang out in the tangle of my cable housing or hide in my helmet vents until I get back to the trailhead. You shouldn't have anything too poisonous on a trail down there, spider-wise. Black widows and brown recluses aren't gonna hang out across a trail. I'd be more worried about venomous snakes, I think, not that I really mind snakes either. You probably have rattlers, cottonmouths and copperheads down there, as we do in Tennessee. Never seen any on the trails, tho. Last snake I saw, and almost ran over, was a chicken snake. So, anyway, just be aware of what you're getting on you and try not to panic. I find that going faster makes my worry about it less since it's the webbing that bothers me more than the spiders.

CRUM

I let someone like you go first. Works every time.

DirtPedalerB

well most of the trails I go on are not well traveled. The next rider on the trail may very well be me. I like the backcountry trails instead of yelling on your left all day.

I should attach a 3 foot vertical or forward leaning 1/4" steel rod to my bars and try to knock them down. I could probably patent that and sell them on ebay..well except for the impalement danger.

either the spider bar or the ninja suit I really can't decide.

Thanks for all your suggestions though .. I guess I'll just leave them on me and switch to some long sleeves.

mlh122

well it wouldn't have to be steel, piece of pvc would work, or for safety have some semi hard foam to knock them down.

Maelstrom 

Unless you are tall...short people tend to clear out the short webs...I ALWAYS get webs in the head.

iamthetas

put on some glasses of some sort and learn to not let them bother you. I ride with a guy sometimes who is almost a foot taller than me but I still get them in my face. if you dont catch the spider with your face or bike, they will rebuild the webs in short order so you may get a double dose if its an out and back.
I got one of those BIG skin colored ones in my face one time and it went down my helmet, and into my shirt. I pulled off the trail and began to strip off my helmet, pack and shirt and was dancing a boogaloo and hollering and cussing the thing and happened to notice some young teens pointing and laughing.
since then I just let them hit me and hope they dont bite because I dont want to get arrested for stripping in public.

Karldar

On really overgrown trails, we used to just grab a tree branch and hold it out in front of us if the spiders were plentiful. Kinda sucked, but you could always toss it aside if it got too many spiders on it and grab another. Slowed us down quite a bit, tho.