There are different textures of snow depending on the temperature when it fell and the temperature after it fell. Sometimes it can be very granular like large sand particles. Other times it can come down as large light flakes the size of a relatively large coin. It can be a meter thick and you can kick it up like feathers. Other times it can be very dense and humid.

I don't ride in the winter but I know plenty that do. They've described their ideal conditions as being several days after a snowfall, with relatively cool temperatures (-10C) and after the hikers/snowshoers have packed down the trails. That gives a nice solid surface that offers decent traction and is still fun to ride through.

I gather that riding through deep snow is no fun, probably very similar to riding through sand but with less give since sand will not compress but snow will.

It's a true pain in the arse - - going downhill does not mean you can build any momentum.

Also, if you encounter a set of 4-wheeler (ATV) tracks, it is no help at all to try to ride in them - - the tire's rounded profile leaves a slippery trough that your tires keep trying to slip down into the bottom of.

The most fun snow to ride on is the 'corduroy' of a machine-groomed ski run. :D

Then if you are lucky enough, you hit an ice patch and crash. Which will leave you hurting for the next couple of days.

My most memorable snow rides always seemed to involve a couple buddies and a flask full of something 80 proof or better.

I know some guys that like riding on snowmobile trails. I'm not sure if I'd want to do that given the speeds those guys can reach and how often drinking and snowmobiling go hand in hand.

I hear riding on snow is fun.

Snow sucks.

In Alaska, the snow was usually Light and fluffy when it first fell. The older snow usually got hard and frozen and rough, and when it started to melt it was really wet and heavy.
Riding my BMX in the snow sucked, and if it got to deep it would pack itself in between the spokes, got really heavy and sloppy handling.

Sounds like North Idaho: drinking and any motorize off-road vehicle seem to go together there :rolleyes:

Sled tracks are much nicer than ATV tracks, because they pack a flat track.

I hate to ruin a good snow discussion but......

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w...6/Dupont08.jpg

I just noticed that there's one corner of my yard where the 5' fence is actually covered in snow.

It was cold today, but sunny. I could feel the warmth of the sun, man was that nice. I can not wait for spring. I might actually be able to get out this weekend. We'll see.

And cross country ski trails aren't bad to bike on, as long as there was enough traffic to make a nice wide trail.

That normal for you guys up there? My parents live in Buffalo, and they've had a pretty mild year. Usually they get a couple big storms and random lake effect. This last week was really the only true storm of the season for them.

See, the news is littered with snow from places like ohio, and new york...
Then in the summer, California is always on the news for burning to the ground.

Poor Alaska never gets mentioned =(

We endured 6 months of darkness and 6 months of light
-60+ temps,
Major fires every year, my last summer there the USAF base was almost evacuated...

The only time I remember That alaska was on the news was a 10 second clip about a 7.9 earthquake, lol
I'll have to get pictures from that one..

As long as it's a multi-use trail or an hors-piste type of thing. Classic XC trails that had tracks laid down are a no-no for bike riding. I don't know about skate-style skiing. I figured it would be less of an issue but not for classic-style trails.

No, this is out of the ordinary. Our total cumulative snowfall far this year is about 3.7m. I looked up what our annual snowfall is, it's usually about 2.2m. We have had warm days so it's not like we have 12' snow everywhere but where the snow has a chance to accumulate it can get deep.

Yeah, the tracks they leave look like they will make a nice surface to ride on but I've seen those guys keeping up with me at highway speeds when the trail runs parallel to the highway. Wouldn't want to get in the way of that.

Yeah, the tracks they leave look like they will make a nice surface to ride on but I've seen those guys keeping up with me at highway speeds when the trail runs parallel to the highway. Wouldn't want to get in the way of that.[/QUOTE]

I've been riding snowmobiles for years and participate on a snowmobile forum. It's funny to see people post about biking on the trails, it freaks them out. Also you have the XC skiers, the mushers, and the hike/snowshoers sharing the trails. I do all of the above but stay off sled trails for your same reasoning. Even though 95% of the riders just cruise it's the 5% that give snowmobiling a bad rap. The only good thing is you can hear em coming for miles, and get out of the way if you see a snow cross racer wannabe in a full kit. It has been the best riding year around here since 2003.

Well, I did the deed, bit the bullit or whatever you want to call it. It's just another payment coming to my house. Got it used,it seems to be pretty sound. I hope it'll get me to G-town.

I added some styling touches when I got home......
http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w...upont08009.jpg

The window looks too angled to be the Element so I'm guessing it's the Xterra. That's my guess, the Xterra.

Nice color choice...
"red makes you faster" haha.

Ding! You win.....no prize.

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w...upont08011.jpg

http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w...upont08010.jpg

I can't believe you let the kids bully you into that. Well, at least it has a First Aid kit and roof rails.

yaaaaaaa! He got the Xterra

I know my winter pics are starting to get old but I had to share this one. This year there was a new procedure for snow removal where the city was no longer allowed to dump the snow into the river. So all over the city we have snow dumps. The dump trucks drop off the snow and then they have this crazy snow blower thing that flings the snow way up high. This is a pic of one of those snow mountains. This is normally flat ground. For an idea of scale the power lines you see above are high-tension lines that are usually very high up. Apparently they had to be raised because of these snow mountains. The lower lines you see are the regular height for power lines.

http://stradasystems.com/mtb/images/IMG_0064.jpg

You could get in some snowboarding.......:D

Are you serious? How were they able to get away with that so long...do you guys salt your roads out there?

Yes, the roads are salted here. It was a disgusting habit but the province and the city have been doing a really good job with cleaning up the waterways around here. There are parts around the island of Montreal that are now swimmable. As a kid nothing was safe around here but it's been improving slowly and steadily.

Dammit, who cares about people...I'm thinking more in terms of the impacts to the aquatic ecosystem.

The improvements are there all around. I was just using the swimming reference as a single indicator but it is by no means the only one.

There's been a big push over the years to go green with a lot of things. Herbicides and pesticides have effectively been banned. I've noticed that the level of salting has decreased and been partially replaced with fine gravel. I don't know if this last one is fact, it's just what I observed.

Just razzing ya...things aren't any better out this way. You should see what the oilsands area looks like! I was doing a bunch of work in a pristine forested area slated in 2004 and didn't get back up to that area until 2006...I felt sick when I saw what they had torn out. And I helped it happen too.

I once stumbled across a clear-cut forest and that broke my heart. It just looked so awful. It was somewhere north of Quebec City and I was participating in a rally as part of a service crew. Since rallies typically use forestry roads we end up wandering in forestry land. It just stunned me.