Riding trail with a DJ bike

while rehabbing my knee, i took my stp out on one of our local trails. it's pretty flat and non-tech, but i had a blast on my ss dj bike. felt like i was swooping around on a big bmx bike.

so, i'd say dj bikes are great fun on fast, flowy singletrack. anything with elevation, rocks or more tech stuff wouldn't be much fun.

i have taken my P1 out twice on the trails down in Carson. It was not fun on the climbs. the p1 has it's place and (for me) it's not for general trail riding.

but i'll add one thing. this sunday did a solid 16 mile xc loop where there is some climbing and fast descents, and i got smoked by a friend on a P2 (he is a much strong rider than i).

i would'nt say so..my friend also has a p.1 and hates riding it anywhere but djs or the skate park

I ride my Zero on trails in order to get to the jumps that are built back in the woods. Its a hardtail, SS, jump fork rolling on 24's so its pretty stiff, but its a blast on fast flowy singletrack. I agree with what the other guys are saying about it not being fun on anything with rocks or elevation though. If you're a strong rider and you build it up light and jack the seatpost up then sure, I'd say you could ride a jump bike on trails.

I guess it depends on how the jump bike is built up. My friend's stock P2 is set up like a trailbike with the exception of the 4" travel fork, steep HA, and chainguide. The HA is not so much of an issue though because the bike is easy to weight and unweight.

They are fine for trail riding. I've taken my P2 SS(and now geared) to san juan and big bear. They won't climb like a XC bike obviously but they will bomb DH a lot better.

It depends. If the bike fits like my DJ bike where it's super short, it wouldn't be fun on trails. If it's a bit more spread out it'd be a blast! It comes down to the fit IMO.

On nice easy flowy singletrack my jump bike is really boring. On moderately tech downhill stuff it's an absolute blast. On very loose, tech stuff either up or down i end up walking. And sand? blech! Offroad climbing of any kind really sucks because i've got a bar with too much rise and the very slick Arrow Launch tyres do not bite on damp dirt.

if you aren't riding cross country on this bike to get to dirtjumps or something but simply to go for a ride, i'd recomend a flat bar and some nice light xc tyres; and you'll be all set.

i rode my kona roast bike built up for dj's down porcupine rim in moab, and loved every inch of it. Although in the fast straightaway downhill sections my forearms were beat to hell. I ride singletrack with my new simple singlespeeded dj bike, but its alot of hike-a-bike on the knarly climbs. The downhill stuff i can haul ass through.

personally i love riding downhill stuff with my dj bike, but would like to try a full squish someday and see what its like

bjanga said:

I guess it depends on how the jump bike is built up. My friend's stock P2 is set up like a trailbike with the exception of the 4" travel fork, steep HA, and chainguide. The HA is not so much of an issue though because the bike is easy to weight and unweight.

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that friend would be me. my p2 is a blast on trails, both tech and flowy, rocky and smooth. but i wont even attempt to climb long distances, i usually end up walking 50% of the climb, but the descent is always fun

I've ridden a few trails in Sedona AZ on my Revell (24") and it was fun, (normally rode an AC1) but it's just a totally different style of riding. You have to approach it in a different way. The trials there are rocky and technical, so it's a lot more work on a hardtail with jump forks but it is very rewarding when you can use all the little details of the trail to pop off and flow over rather than just plowing through as normal. DH is interesting too with such a steep head angle. Makes DH on a 'regualr' MTB seem much easier though.

If you want to ride a long way on technical trails than I guess it's not ideal, but a few miles is no biggie, and you become a better rider much faster.

I have a P1 that I put a front brake, gears, and a Pike on and it's really good in the technical stuff. Climbing with it can be hard but it's the only bike I've ridden trails on so I really have no basis for comparison.

what about some low log rides and 3-5 foot drops ?

^ Sounds exactly like what some people want a burly hardtail to be suited for.

Edit: that type of riding is totally doable with a steepish head angle, shortish wheelbase, a short stem and a 4 or 5 inch fork - although I imagine you could manage on a 3" fork if you liked pain.

well if i can race x-country on my dirt jumper kona shred and do moderate altough its tough, then trails should be fine. I personally love single track and downhill, and freeride and my shred is an absolute blast to ride on any trail going downward. it's pretty fun to beat people on uphill climbs and finish better than them when they're riding cross country bikes. If you train right the uphills shouldn't be a problem.

glad to hear as I just ordered a shred from a local dealer today

dan, you won't be dissapointed. it handles great and is really easy to manual and catwalk and such. it also bunnyhops really good (or so i was told by better riders than me beauce i ain't great at bunny hoping. another thing, if your hitting huge drops like me your going to need to set the shock alittle stiffer so you don't bottom out, but otherwise it handles jumps like a CHAMP.

well i have a faith 3..and i rode diablo which is really rocky steep and occasionally muddy like today..and on my bike it isn't too abd whatso ever..controlling everything speed and all fo that

i rode my friends felt, hardtail..down a trial and at first it was fine, but when you pickup speed it really does suck...the front end takes it and the rear throws it..though, my bike feels the same as his in the air for some strange reason..