As fat biking grows, so do some questions about where it belongs

Looking toward single track and downhill opportunities

By Alissa Johnson

As Crested Butte prepares to host the Fat Bike World Championships in January, fat biking has begun to make headlines across the country.

In recent weeks, the Dallas Morning News and the Boston Globe published articles about fat biking and Crested Butte. The New York Times and Outside Magazine have also covered the sport, and industry growth suggests that it is more than a fad.

Yet as fat biking grows in popularity, so do questions about where and how the sport will be accommodated. As bikers look for more places to ride, Nordic and alpine ski resorts are being asked to consider adding bikes to their winter repertoire and land managers are also looking at where they fit into the recreation picture.

That discussion was highlighted at a November 17 meeting of the Mt. Crested Butte Town Council, where the council heard updates on both fat biking and the Crested Butte Nordic Council. One thing seeems clear: There is momentum behind fat biking, and riders are looking for more opportunities and places to go out for a spin.

Industry growth

Judging from sales, fat biking is unquestionably on the rise. Dave Ochs—fat biker aficionado and director of the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce—says fat bike sales are projected to be 20 percent of all mountain bike sales in the next ten years.

“Mountain bikes do represent 25 percent of all bike sales. Fat bikes are projected to shake up the market. In ten years it’s projected to be at least 20 percent of the mountain bike sales overall,” Ochs said, suggesting that projection could be easily surpassed.

In 2012 the fat biking industry grew 50 percent, in 2013 it grew 200 percent and in 2014 it grew by over 400 percent. There are more than 50 different fat bike manufacturers, including Walmart, and one company—Salsa Bicycles—went from $3 million of business to $27 million in three years.

“Fat biking is the biggest growing segment of the biking industry,” Ochs says.

Twenty-eight Nordic skiing facilities support fat biking in various ways. For example, Gold Run Nordic Center in Breckenridge allows fat biking on all of its trails on Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Ochs also said some downhill ski resorts are hopping on the bandwagon as well, though no one is offering lift-served downhill mountain biking during the winter.

Balancing use

Of course, not all skiers want to share trails with mountain bikers and integrating fat biking into existing trails is a balancing act. Keith Bauer, executive director of the Nordic Council, told the Town Council that a 2014 survey of pass holders revealed mixed emotions about the matter.

“The feedback from the survey was that they were okay with seeing them on a limited basis on public trails… but gun-shy of seeing them on, say, Magic Meadows, one of our premier trail networks,” Bauer said.

Currently, the Crested Butte Nordic Center allows 10 kilometers of fat biking on the Poop Loop, the Riverbend Loop, the Skyland Connector and the Rec Path. This year, they are also opening the Teocalli connector to the list. That falls in line with what Bauer and the Nordic Council’s board of directors see happening nationwide.

Bauer referenced a recent meeting with an industry consultant who provides GPS mapping systems for Nordic centers across the country. “He’s familiar with what’s going on in North America with fat biking and what he’s seeing is that most Nordic centers have some fat biking, five to 10 kilometers, so people can get on and get their feet wet,” Bauer said.

So while the Nordic Council is partnering with the fat biking community on developing one of the courses for the upcoming Fat Biking World Championships, emphasis for future trails is being placed on single track opportunities.

Ochs sees the biggest potential for fat biking in ski resorts. He is working with Crested Butte Mountain Resort on developing a course for the World Championships but would like to see that developed even further.

“Ski resorts—to us that is the future of fat biking and something I’d like to see. We’ve discussed with CBMR lift-served downhill fat biking. If we were to do it first there is no doubt that Crested Butte Mountain Resort would make huge, huge headlines. It’s been discussed, there are other resorts talking about it but it’s ours to champion,” Ochs said.

Resort spokesperson Erica Mueller confirmed that the resort is open to the idea of fat biking, but is proceeding carefully because the sport is not included in the Ski Safety Act. They are working on options for the World Championships, and in the meantime, fat biking will be allowed to the top of the Red Lady Lift as part of the uphill skiing policy starting Saturday, November 29. Fat bikers who wish to bike the resort before 9 a.m. or after 4 p.m. need to visit the Adventure Center to read the policy and sign a waiver before hitting the hill.

“We also encourage fat bikers to use the Snodgrass trail or the North Village loop when it’s open, Mueller said

Some disagreement

Even as the fat biking discussion expands beyond Nordic trails, the limitations placed on fat biking by the Nordic Council have frustrated some community members. Council member Todd Barnes urged Bauer to consider opening more trails, even if they were limited to certain days of the week or changed on a regular basis.

“I don’t think you can argue with fat biking growth,” Barnes said, arguing that fat bikes couldn’t be any more destructive to trails than dogs or people who poach the trails by walking.

“I don’t think we are ignoring it,” Bauer responded, pointing out that challenges with easements were also a factor. Threatening legal action, one landowner in particular has been vocal in pointing out that easements for Nordic skiing were not secured for fat biking.

“The board has talked about it for about six hours over the last three months,” Bauer continued, “It’s on our radar, and we’re talking about it. Unfortunately, we saw tracks on every single trail last winter so there was some entitlement among locals saying screw it, we’re going to ride wherever. That was hard for the board to deal with and got things off in the wrong way,” Bauer said.

Nordic Council president Skip Berkshire emphasized that the future of fat biking doesn’t seem to be Nordic trails.

“I’ve taken to heart everything Dave [Ochs] has said and where fat biking is going is single track. That seems to be a win-win opportunity because if we can work to help put that in and connect with parts of our trails, then we can win with single track,” Berkshire said.

Barnes continued to push for more fat biking at the Nordic Center, suggesting that the jump from riding the Poop Loop to single track would be too big for beginners.

Facilitating future discussion

The exchange between Barnes, Bauer and Berkshire seemed to emphasize the need for further discussion. To that end, Ochs has added a regional fat biking conference to the World Championships line-up.

Gary Sjoquist of QBP (Quality Bicycle Products) will help host that discussion. According to Ochs, Sjoquist helped host a national summit for the past two years as a way to educate communities and land managers about fat biking.

Access, land use, easements, grooming, the future of fat biking, the next steps for fat biking and areas for fat biking will all be on the table. Ochs expects the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management to be in attendance.

In the meantime, one thing remains clear. Local fat bikers are determined to keep riding, and they’re not alone. As Ochs said of the recent publicity, “This is a national phenomenon, if you will, that is getting picked up by those [national] publications. It’s pretty neat.”