Out of towner trail recommendation
Greetings_ I will be in town next week and am debating on what trails to ride, It's between Sunderbruch or Sylvan Island. I've been to Scopa and would like to ride something that is fast and flowy, Technical and tough climbs will not deter me, What would you suggest? I live in St.Louis and am used to a variety to trails. Thanks for the guidance.
Poser
Do both!
Ride Sunderbruch...then, head to Moline (about a 15-20 minute drive through town) and ride Sylvan because the race course will be well pounded in after Sunday's race. AND, you can hop over to one of the local brew pubs, like Bent River for example, for some post-ride grub and refreshments.
"ya, well...that's like...your...opinion. man."
Supporting Member
This is EXACTLY what I was going to suggest as well!Originally Posted by jimithng23
I wanna ride!
FORC'n Newbie
St. Louis??!! GORCer comin to visit FORCers? Hell, we're practically cousins!! Loved Chub and Greensfelder, Berryman- not so much.
I'm gonna get this fat bike race out of the way Sunday so I'll be itchin to ride my squishy. Call me when you're in town and I'll try to hook up with you to show you around.
Vibrato- 309-737-4762.
Believe in yourself? Well sure, of course. But be aware that "believing in myself" has been the root cause of most of my injuries.
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"I feel sorry for people who don't do this." -Badfish41- after bombing the Hermosa's at Levis Trow.
THanks, I appreciate everyone's suggestions, Yes, I am a trail steward at Greensfelder, If you havent been there in a while I highly suggest the 4 hour drive to the Loo, 22 miles of schweet single track and more planned, I would also suggest Lost Valley-Matson and Klondike. You can combo all 3 of these parks for the "trifecta" which is about 4 hours of serious ride time, They are connected by the KATY trail, Our statewide rails to trail system.
QCFORC President
I'm in.
You'd understand if you know what I was talking about.
Supporting Member
Where's the nearest airport!?
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Supporting Member
If this is what you really want to ride forget the other two and ride Illinwek! The flowest trail, with the best up and down hills in the whole area......... It's easy to find right of I-80 and 10-15 minutes from Sylvan if you want to ride two parks!
JB
"I've spent half of my life riding a bike, the other half I wasted!"
FORC'n Newbie
Ride Sunderbruch, have a blast, then head to Sylvan and ride around for an hour until you realize you are riding around in circles and eating far more bugs than the recommended daily value, then head over to Illiniwek to please the Chief.
Time to complete trail systems:
Sunderbruch - About 45 minutes if you do everything once at a medium pace.
Sylvan - First time riding the island you'll never hit every trail, but in about half hour or 45 minutes you've pretty much seen it all.
Illiniwek - 45 minutes to an hour to do both loops at a medium pace.
Ride times are based on my super slow fat bike experience.
That Guy
Don't go to Illiniwek to please the Chief, go to Illiniwek to please yourself.
If you're not going to have someone who knows the trail show you around, I'd suggest you skip Sylvan. Can be a frustrating ride for non-locals going solo, especially given that you are interested in "something that is fast and flowy, Technical and tough climbs..."
Rg.
Haters gonna hate.
FORC'n Newbie
Oops forgot the smiley
I agree with Rage. Sylvan can be quite frustrating for the uninitiated. Are there any real tech sections at Illiniwek? Like BM or LT at Sunderbruch?
Last edited by AG; 04-12-2012 at 03:57 PM.
The Berminator
Sunderbruch and Illiniwek would be my suggestions. As others have noted, Sylvan is a maze to a newcomer and a guide would be a good idea. However, you may be able to follow the race course for the Sylvan Island Stampede because it will be "beat in" from the large amount of traffic it will see during the race this Sunday.
There are no man made technical features at at Illiniwek to appease the land managers {make your voice heard if want this to change ;)}. There are a few mild natural tech features (log overs and rooty sections) on the north loop. The rest of the trails are generally open and flowy with a tough climb and exciting descent every 5 mile lap. We measured elevation gain per lap to be around 350 feet.
FORC'n Newbie
IMHO, Scocopa is the fastest and flowiest trail system in the QC. Not much in the way of extreme climbing or descending but I love it out there. Especially the section with the skinny trees right on the edge of the trail. TRON mode!
Regarding Illiniwek trail features, I'd like to see stuff like this...
just a member
holy crap. some of you just like to hear yourself talk. I'll vote with the first two posts and say do both. If you want someone to join you, post up. We like to ride...
I may have to grow old, but I'll never have to grow up.
FORC'n Newbie
I'm in, too.
Dood- you've done good at greensfelder. Been a ouople years, but out of the 3 parks we rode in the 2 days we had, this one is on my "don't miss if you go back" list!
We've done all four QC parks in one day for a "quadfecta", so riding any or all is possible. Drive time between all 4 parks probably totals about 1 hour, and if it's your first time riding there will be places where you'll want to take a pic, try the TTF again, ride both ways to double the mileage, etc. All 4 are worth riding. "Favorite Park" status is based on individual riding style, all 4 parks have their own great flavor.
If you can get a guide, Sylvan is fun as heck and very different than anyplace else- highly reccomended- with a guide. We have a tendency to take it for granted but 1st timers rave about it... with a guide. Seriously- a guide.
And since sylvan soil is basically bricks, concrete, hypodermic needles and dead bodies, it drains REALLY well. If you think its too wet to ride anywhere- Check the status bar for Sylvan. Its probably open!
Believe in yourself? Well sure, of course. But be aware that "believing in myself" has been the root cause of most of my injuries.
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"I feel sorry for people who don't do this." -Badfish41- after bombing the Hermosa's at Levis Trow.
And if you can't find a guide for Sylvan, just start riding. It is still a blast!
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