Mud dirt and rain in my future, but should I ride in it ?

[Jrwilliams7]

So Sunny Southern California is taking a pounding with our first thunderstorm this weekend. It will clear up a bit Sunday and I want to take my Kenevo out. But from what I’ve read in other post, I should avoid water mud and rain.

Is there any truth in avoiding mud puddles and riding in the rain, or light sprinkle? Stupid question really but I’m new to ebikes.

 

[R120]

Ha - for all of us in the UK that sounds like the average ride! Should be fine, just give her a good clean after.

 

[Injidup]

Surely they’ve had thunderstorms in SoCal before?

 

[MattyB]

It’s a mountain bike - not a whole lot of point in buying it if you are never going to get it muddy!

 

[Doomanic]

I would imagine your soil is quite sandy so will make excellent grinding paste. Make sure you clean the bike carefully afterwards, especially the drivechain and don’t use a jet wash on it.

 

[Jrwilliams7]

Thanks everyone for confirming my thoughts on it being ok. Just wanted to double check.

 

[highpeakrider]

In the U.K. it will be muddy all winter - Go out and ride

 

[Injidup]

We had thunderstorms last night, so I went out for a ride today. Wet and muddy, but the bike was faultless.
How did your ride go, @Jrwilliams7 ?

 

[Jrwilliams7]

Vail lake in Temecula

 

[Injidup]

How did your ride go?

 

[outerlimits]

The only thing I don’t do is ride through water deep enough to reach the motor. The rest is fine

 

[Jrwilliams7]

How did your ride go?

Better then sex

 

[Injidup]

I think I needed mudguards! The good thing about the trails here is that the puddles will be gone in a day or so. And at this time of year (springtime in the Southern Hemisphere) the wildflowers are amazing.
I did enjoy the solitude, and didn’t really mind getting wet.

 

[Injidup]

Vail lake in Temecula

Just looked it up on the map, and it looks amazing! I’m a bit jealous!

 

[Jrwilliams7]

Just looked it up on the map, and it looks amazing! I’m a bit jealous!

Vail lake has endless trails for everyone. Cyclocross to DH and it’s huge. The outer fire road is 12 miles or so with tons of trails in between. Southern California has great riding, from coastal mountains to Forrest DH trails. It’s disney land for cyclists.

 

[ikaramboo]

It's fun to clean a dirty bike and gives you some confirmation that your ride was a worth every minute of it.

 

[njn]

In the states, at least on the east coast, many frown on riding wet trails due to erosion. I stick to trails that drain quickly and avoid swampy areas. That said, some of my best rides were in the rain.

 

[Injidup]

Around here where it’s mostly rocks, sand and gravel the rain is likely to do more damage than bikes! Plus, with such a small population it’s not such an issue. A million square miles and 2.5 million people (6 times the size of California and 1/20 the population! Roughly.)

 

[Jrwilliams7]

sounds like I need to move

 

[Injidup]

As they say, there are many things that can kill you in Australia, but none of them have guns.
Sometimes the remoteness is annoying. 8 days for a parcel to come from the eastern states, for example.

 

[Jrwilliams7]

In the states, at least on the east coast, many frown on riding wet trails due to erosion. I stick to trails that drain quickly and avoid swampy areas. That said, some of my best rides were in the rain.

West coast is the same. I stick to trails I will not rip up in rainy weather in my epic HT. No different on the kenevo.

The kenevo was a pain to clean with just muck off and light hose use. My 29er I could power wash and re lube the parts