Walk On Your Life

Posts Tagged ‘Mountain’

YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch

YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch, a 5,000 acre recreational facility, is located within the Winter Park/Fraser Valley in Grand County, Colorado, only 67 miles west of Denver. It conveniently adjoins The Fairways at Pole Creek, a residential golf and recreation development sited on 1,000 acres with spectacular mountain vistas. The blog for the YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch was the result of then YMCA of your Rockies Board Member Wendel Ley’s leadership over 3 years in looking for that perfect, year-round webpage for one more YMCA campus to compliment the existing YMCA Estes Park, Colorado web-site. When Wendel and his wife, Audrey, were introduced on a sunny, snow-covered February day into the 1,200 acre Just Ranch with its majestic mountain setting by the then elderly Mrs. Just, Wendel knew he was “close to heaven”. When Mrs. Just wouldn’t give Wendel an alternative about the ranch until the Board could assemble in July for their annual meeting, Wendel bought the Ranch for the spot. Examine out ColoradoMountainHomes.org.

With 40 years of land development encounter in Houston, Texas, Wendel knew that even if the YMCA didn’t appreciate the spectacular views and painless location to Denver and Estes Park that he valued, he would love his Ranch in Colorado. Prior to the July meeting, he swiftly took choices on much more than 6,000 acres surrounding the Just Ranch to be certain the YMCA had enough gorgeous land to think about for their new location. When the Board assembled in July, they fell in love with the majestic peaks surrounding the meadows and streams with the Valley and hired a land-planning firm to lay out their new YMCA campus. It was determined the Y required about 5,000 acres and Wendel and his two partners bought the remainder of a optioned acres. The Just Ranch with Mrs. Just’s original log cabin Home is right now the heart of a YMCA Snow Mountain Ranch acreage.

One of the most important components on your mountain bike is your tires. They grip the ground and provide the traction you need on different surfaces. Most mountain bike riders look for light weight, strength and traction in a tire and many advanced riders even have multiple sets of tires for different riding conditions.

So what tire is right for your mountain bike and riding style? With so many different manufactures and models to choose from which one is right for you? These are not easy questions to answer so hopefully we can provide some insight to get you moving in the right direction. Mountain bike parts are not cheap and you want to make the right decision.

Tire Construction:

Consider a Kevlar bead or folding tire – A Kevlar tire weighs an estimated 60-80 grams less then a conventional none folding tire. It does not sound like much of a weight savings but multiple that number by two and then consider the rotating weight. For an extra couple of dollar, in my opinion, it is worth spending the extra money.

Terrain and Tread patterns:

Determine where you are going to ride and how you are going to use the bike. As an example will you be riding on the local trails that are hard packed dirt or on slick rock?

For hard packed terrain consider a narrower and smooth tire. As an example a tire that is 1.8 to 2.0 wide.

Every year bicycle manufacturers make better, lighter and cheaper mountain bikes which make them more attractive to consumers. Do you want to buy a full suspension mountain bike? If you do below is a list of items that you might want to considered before buying a new mountain bike.

One of the most important questions to ask yourself is what type of terrain will you be riding on? If you are going to be riding cross country maybe a full suspension mountain bike is not warranted and a hardtail will better suit your needs. However if you are going to be riding downhill or on rough terrain a full suspension bike might be right up your alley.

Determine your budget and stick to it. Consider buying the best bike you can afford within your budget. Many riders suggest that if you have less then $700 to spend on a bike you might want to consider a hardtail because full suspension bikes are more costly. However you could consider buying a used full suspension bike at a good price on a mountain bike classifieds site.

If you determine that a full suspension mountain bike is what you need and want then consider the different frame designs. Single-pivot, sweet-spot and horst-link are a few popular designs and each has their advantages and disadvantages. The best way to truly understand the difference is to go to a few bike stores and test ride the different designs. The bike store guy will be more then happy to explain and point out the pros and cons of each design.

When you first start out with mountain biking, it can be a bit overwhelming when you walk into a bike store to buy your first mountain bike and see all of the available accessories you’ll need when you first start riding.

There are several mountain biking accessories and related products that you can purchase. Although the sales staff will try to sell you anything they can, the real question for those on a budget isn’t what’s cool, but what accessories you need to make your rides more safe and enjoyable. By starting with these accessories, you’ll be just fine when you hit the trails.

Bike helmet
The bike helmet is the most important mountain biking accessory that you can buy. No one should ever be on a bike without a helmet. There have been many people who have experienced serious head injury, when it could have prevented by wearing a helmet. All mountain bike helmets are comfortable and stylish and everyone who rides on the trails wears one.

Mountain bike gloves
No matter what season you ride in, your hands can take a beating. Beginners will normally keep a death grip on the handle bars, which can be very brutal for their hands. When you crash, your hands will be the first thing to hit the ground – and everyone crashes at some point. Mountain bike gloves are a must have accessory, as they will take the beating for you.