Originally Posted by
trace
I primarily want to be able to ride on snow and sand but also would use it for general off-road riding. I just moved to a coastal area and I'd love to be able to ride on sand beaches. Plus I commute (on a road/touring bike) on a paved bike path which does not get cleared of snow in the winter, so it would be cool to be able to continue commuting on the path even with a snow cover. I'm not really a mountain biker so not planning anything too technical, I just don't want to have to restrict my riding to hard surfaces.
FWIW, I found that the hazard of commuting on paved paths is ice more than snow. For that, studded bike tires make the difference for me between riding ~safely and not riding. But studded fat tires are CRAZY expensive; even studded MTB tires (in my case, 26” x 2.1”) are expensive, but less than half the price the last time I looked.
Not trying to discourage the fat bike! Just conveying my experience. The first time I tried a fat bike, I couldn’t stop giggling, and that’s really never changed.