osco53

I hear ya, 58 In a few months and I feel like 30 because of mountain biking.
I tend to stay off the black diamond and harder trails these days, I like to keep my wheels on the ground, mostly.
I have been known to get a little air but only when It makes sense to stay rubber side down.

As for the, 'serious injury' thing you mentioned, I think I will know when my quickness of mind, eyes, heart and hands start to tell me I need to throttle back a little, nothing yet.

Do I actually get after It,,,yep......

scrming

My confidence with the 2.8" is the same as when i'm on the 3.0"... the main thing i noticed is when riding the Fuel EX with the 2.8" it sure feels like i can accelerate a lot faster/easier. Not sure what is making for such a difference but after spending some time on the Fuel EX, the Fuse with it's 3.0" tires felt really sluggish... The data seems to show I'm faster all the way around on the full suspension Fuel EX than the hard tail Fuse... I thought for sure there would be spots where the Fuel EX would be slower... this is just casually looking over the data, not an in-depth scientific study...

Phil_gretz

57, here. I'm in really good shape and still do athletic things. I ride a hardtail and would recommend to the OP. Full suspension is only needed when you start doing more precipitous drops, heavy rock-laden trails, or similar. For what you describe, just get out of the saddle and let the legs absorb the rear axle movement when needed. It's just bike riding, after all...

LHawes

For most of the riding I am currently doing a hard tail would be fine, if not preferred, and I don't see myself doing anything radical but having the FS gives me a few more options and does no harm for my 'start slow and taper off' style of riding.

Which hardtail do you ride?

osco53

When I made the switch from a HT to a full squish I was faster on every segment from the very first ride per strava.
More experienced riders told me it had to do with the fact that my trails were kinda rooty and bumpy and the full squish helped keep my back end on the ground allowing me to pedal more often as opposed to getting off the saddle for all those smaller hits.
I was able to put more watts on the ground with my back tire not bouncing off things as high or long due to the suspension. And conserve more energy for pedaling because I could stay on the saddle more....

Other factors:
My HT and full sqush weighed the same.
HT was a 29er and I'm not the strongest rider.
Full squish Is a 27.5"
HT tires were 2.1" wide
FS tires are 2.35" wides,
Both were tubed at the time...

My riding and my trails show me no need for a new bike yet just to run 2.8" wides and that's only .45" wider than what I ride now as I have no traction Issues.

I have been on the Scott Genius 2.8" wides and the Specialized 3.0" out on my local trails but the Fuel ex plus bike I rode was only on stairs, over curbs, in grass and gravel and parking lots. so no way to tell...

We had the suspension locked out on the fuel and did not know it,, the thing was so so plush

LHawes

Personally not interested in going faster but understand many are. For me it's just about learning the ropes at this point and getting out there for the fun of it. I think the FS give me more options for the future but I could easily see the logic and fun behind a hard tail.

I just upgraded my 2016 Trance 2 to the new 2017 Trance 2 that should allow for the larger tires but never really had any traction problems either with the stock 2.3 Knobby Nics. The newer Trance has a 1x drive train; 34mm instead of 32mm fork; longer travel; new geometry and boost hubs for larger tires and cost me just $395 to upgrade as my LBS has a 30 day guarantee. Should have the bike tomorrow.

Terex

My friend's bike has 2.8's. When we ride the same trails, results are pretty similar to my 3.0's. We both climb well and both bikes roll through sandy arroyos that just wouldn't work with 2.3's. I may have a bit more edge grip when riding hillsides and deep ruts, but not much. Gets to be tire/tread selection.

LHawes

Would you mind telling us what kind of tires you and your friend are running?

DaveQ24

Nice battle scars in the pic. A few years back I had a set of pretty bad looking cuts similar to yours on my leg, some guy at my gym asked what happened, I told him got them riding ... to me, it's a sign I'm still badass even though I'm getting to be an old dude. HTFU or die, two choices in life, pick one.

LHawes

Really? That could easily have been a Crocodile, or a mountain lion - just sayin' for next time

LHawes

[QUOTE=DaveQ24;19103409... to me, it's a sign I'm still badass...[/QUOTE]

or maybe just really clumsy?

DaveQ24

Um. ... probably not gonna fly in suburban Detroit - we do have sea bass in the Great Lakes - but even those aren't ill-tempered.

LHawes

Awe come on Dave. "I was on a mountain biking African safari and there was a young boy along and he fell into the Zambizi river where a huge croc saw him and came at him like a freight train. I bunny hopped the Hippo between me and the croc and the boy, manualed over the croc who leaped out of the water just as I was grabbing the boy by the nape of the neck. As I pedaled back to shore the croc nipped my lower leg just before I killed it with my tire pump and made these mountain biking shoes out that ornery old croc."

"And that's how I lost my arm."

See? Again for next time you tell the story.

DaveQ24

Is that like the 10" trout that morphs into a 40 lb Chinook salmon by the time the fisherman tells the story for the 24th time?

Pamestique 

Well I retired and don't have the same time to spend on the computer like when I was working

Also, lost 2015 to a bad injury; needed surgery; off bike from April to September then in November fell and broke my wrist . Now just trying to stay out of trouble so back to the computer now and again!

Other than all that have been good - retirement is AWESOME!!!!!

Terex

Mine are just stock Specialized tires for this model.

FRONT TIRE

Specialized 6Fattie Purgatory Control, 60TPI, 2Bliss Ready, folding bead, 650bx3.0"

REAR TIRE

Specialized 6Fattie Ground Control, 60TPI, 2Bliss Ready, folding bead, 650bx3.0"

I don't know what 2.8's my friend is using. I'm out of town for a few days and will check with him when I get back. I know he's gone tubeless. I'm still running tubes but plan to convert pretty soon.

jbenkert111

Since we are on the subj of old (60 70+) guys/gals on MTB bike, let me ask you what you think about this. I came from a competitive age group running scene to road and MTB'ing. Because of my desire for racing I looked into the racing scene and was very disappointed that there really is very little opportunity for guys our age to race against our peers. Occasionally you can find a road TT that has age groups up to 70 or 75, but NOTHING in MTB'ing. Your lucky if you get 50 and over and even if your 75 (that's me) your still pay the same $. I say we should at least get an age group or a discount rate. Any of you have an opinion on this?

spokes5678

With the Arkansas mtb series they have an open class which I think combines 60 plus, clydesdales and some other unaffiliated people.
A guy I know about mid 60's did his frst race in it and won.
Another guy who I raced against and regularly kicked my ass races and wins and yet another youngster of 74 competes in it................ this is where you come in.Ask for this in your local series.

Jumpski

56 here, and I'll lower my standard and go mountain biking on occasion - hard tail.

Daspydyr 

Thanks for responding! I don't post like I used to. I am still plugging away as an office slug. But I am also riding more than ever.


Sorry to hear about your wrist. Bummer. My motto since one of my "moments" is act your age. It has helped keep me from the ER.


Congrats on retirement!

HBCruiser1

Couple of things as a new rider I'd suggest:

1) mtn biking is generally (at our age) a slower proposition. I'd encourage you to practice a lot of slow speed balance (even stopping and restarting without stepping off the pedals), it's saved me numerous times in precarious positions!

2) When climbing steeper sections where the front wheel wants to come up, I've found it better to put your butt on the nose of the saddle, this keeps the front wheel planted while not letting the back wheel get too light (like if you were to stand up).

3) When descending, drop that seat and let the bike move around under you as well as lean as far back as necessary to keep from going over the handlebars. Some really steep sections I've had to swing my rear way over the rear wheel with my chest on the seat of the bike! Again, slow speed balance is really important is these types of situations as well as a lot of switchbacks are pretty tight. Additionally keep your arms bent and legs bent, go with the flow.

4) Take the trails, especially downhill as fast as you can handle, try to avoid skidding as it tears up the trails unnecessarily, especially here in SoCal where they are heavily used.

5) Folks riding up have the right of way, yield to a rider coming up a trail.

I mostly see younger people on the trails, I love to see older people out there enjoying the trails, too! You're right, it's a lot of fun and takes you back to riding a bmx bike as a kid.

LHawes

Great advice and I hope to practice what you're preaching. I find it incredibly fun and challenging to do the little things you mention like trying to balance while stopped or super, super slow speed riding.

I also find that with very little practice both the up and down hill positions you mention come kinda naturally. Doing them well will take some practice but it feels pretty natural to lean forward going up and back going down.

LHawes

I have been posting in 2 threads and forgot to update this thread with my new bike. I rode the 2016 Trance 2 for a couple weeks and immediately wanted to start upgrading stuff. Wider tires, boost sized hubs, 1 x 11 gear set, larger forks, you all know the drill.

My LBS has a 30 day return policy so after looking at the 2017 Trance 2 I saw that it had most of what I wanted in upgrades and for an additional $395 (they gave me 5% off the retail price) I exchanged the 2016 for the 2017.

Love the 1 x 11 and with the 32/11-42 gears it turns out I lost only the granny gear on the low end and a few gears on the upper end but no problem. Hard to tell any real difference but the geometry was changed and a few new features added and am happy with the exchange. The bike does feel just a little more 'planted' but couldn't really tell you why. Still pretty exciting stuff for this old guy. Can't wait to get back out there.

ColonelSanders

We need to see pics of your new baby in the flesh.

Often the photo's on sites make the bikes look less attractive than they really are in real life photo's.

HBCruiser1

It is intuitive to lean forward, but on REALLY steep sections it's not intuitive to move your butt forward onto the nose of the saddle to keep the front wheel down. It was key info from an experienced friend for me to conquer some tough uphill sections I was struggling with. Coming from a road background, on hills I'd generally push back to lengthen my legs and pedal stroke, but on the mtn bike this would allow the front wheel to pop up. Conversely standing would let the rear wheel spin out. Moving forward onto the nose of the seat places your mass more toward the center and it really helped. It's harder on the legs, but it gets you up the hill.

Have fun on the trails. It's nice to mix it up between road and off-road!