Heading to Fruita Fat Tire this year....recommendations for riding?

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Heading to Fruita Fat Tire this year....recommendations for riding?
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flag Explodo
Posted: Jan 21, 2020 at 16:09 Quote
I've never been to any MTB event, so this should be fun. Fruita looks like nice riding, but I'm a bit worried I might be over-biked. I have a Ripmo and a hardtail. So much of the Fruita riding I've seen looks like I'd prefer to be able to stand up and crush pedals hardtail-style instead of needing the plushness of full suspension, but with knee surgery next week I'll most certainly be on the Ripmo.

1) Where should I ride in Fruita to get the most of my Ripmo?

2) Is Fruita so smooth that I could just rock the hardtail and be happy?

3) Should I even bother to take a bike or should I just rock demos?
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I hope Guerrilla Gravity is there doing demos. I already plan on checking out a Spot since they'll be there.
flag chacou
O+
Posted: Jan 21, 2020 at 17:35 Quote
Explodo wrote:
I've never been to any MTB event, so this should be fun. Fruita looks like nice riding, but I'm a bit worried I might be over-biked. I have a Ripmo and a hardtail. So much of the Fruita riding I've seen looks like I'd prefer to be able to stand up and crush pedals hardtail-style instead of needing the plushness of full suspension, but with knee surgery next week I'll most certainly be on the Ripmo.

1) Where should I ride in Fruita to get the most of my Ripmo?

2) Is Fruita so smooth that I could just rock the hardtail and be happy?

3) Should I even bother to take a bike or should I just rock demos?
.
.
.
I hope Guerrilla Gravity is there doing demos. I already plan on checking out a Spot since they'll be there.

You'll want the full suspension, IMO. 18 Road are super fun and flowy, Kokopelli/Horse Thief is classic, Lunch Loops area if you head toward GJ is awesome. You could probably get by just fine with the HT, but you'd likely have more fun on full suspension, I do at least. Granted you don't need a 180mm travel enduro bike really, but if you can firm up the rear why not. I've never been to Fat Tire Fest so I can't comment on how demos work there, re: crowds, etc., however looks like you're in Arvada, so you can just walk into the GG "shredquarters" next to Mile High and see about a demo pretty much anytime, especially this time of year.
flag Tacocat13
O+
Posted: Jan 26, 2020 at 7:57 Quote
Fruita is fun on a hardtail. I’d take hardtail to ride 18 rd and then demo a bike to ride on Horsethief and Kokapelli.
flag ramsdude47
Posted: Feb 5, 2020 at 15:23 Quote
1) Lunch Loops in GJ and Kokopelli in Fruita (actually Loma/Mack), you might be slightly over biked but not more so than pretty much anywhere that doesn't have a chairlift or is exclusively shuttle/DH oriented.

2) 18 Rd is smooth and very hardtail friendly. People ride the other systems on hardtails, but they are definitely outliers. You probably don't want to be an outlier post knee surgery.

3) I wouldn't count on the demos that you want being available. Also the demos are at 18RD and the other trail systems are a long drive away. Even Kokopelli is 30 mins away.
flag provin1327
O+
Posted: Feb 24, 2020 at 9:44 Quote
I've been to the Fruita Fat Tires fest a few times and have ridden around Fruita a bunch.

1) Where should I ride in Fruita to get the most of my Ripmo? - Your Ripmo will be overkill for all of the trails around Fruita but in general the southern trails in the Kokopellia area will be your best bet because they are much more rocky than the northern trails. The Lunch Loops area in Grand Junction would be a good place to ride it as well. The trails at 18 road which are on the north side of town are a must do so don't avoid those just because your Ripmo is overkill. You can still have tons of fun on a big bike like the Ripmo.

2) Is Fruita so smooth that I could just rock the hardtail and be happy? - For the trails at 18 road yes definitely. It's doable at Lunch Loops and Kokopelli but a full suspension bike would be preferred.

3) Should I even bother to take a bike or should I just rock demos? - Bring a bike for sure. You have not mentioned where you are staying, how long, or what your riding plans are. The Fruita Fat Tires fest demo is set up at the 18 road trailhead which is 30 minutes from town and 45 minutes from a lot of the other trails in the area. Although plenty of people do it, it's a dick move to take a demo bike for an entire day or to take a demo bike over to the Kokopelli or Lunch Loops trail systems. On top of that most of the demo bikes go fast especially if you ride a common size like an M or an L. You wouldn't want to get all the way out there and not have your own bike to ride just in case.

TLDR; bring your Ripmo and if you want to get on a hardtail then demo one at 18 road.
flag provin1327
O+
Posted: Mar 2, 2020 at 12:57 Quote
One more piece of advice if you are going to demo out at 18 road. Bring lots of water and some form of shade. There is zero water and zero shade at the 18 road trailhead. I'd set up an awning and bring a cooler filled with water.
flag Explodo
Posted: Mar 24, 2020 at 22:36 Quote
And it's cancelled.
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