Fat Fattie

I have long wanted a fat bike. If you don’t know; a fat-bike is just a bike design to run really wide (FAT) tires. There are several benifits from the large wheels and tires with the primary one being better traction on snow, sand and mud. I think primarily they were designed for snow though.

I did at one time own a sort-a fat bike. It was a modified Kona humuhumunukunukuapua'a. Seriously. That was the name of the bike. The one I had thought was modified by a shop called generic cycles in Colorado. That mod was to widen up the back end so that it would run a 26” X 4” tire in the back. It was also a fixed gear. I bought it off of Dave Nice for $500. I thought it was quite a steel at the time but the fact of the matter was that it just wasn’t overly versatile and useful as a fat tired fixie. I did think it was cool though.

Since then I’ve been toying on and off with the idea of getting another fat bike. A proper fat bike that it.

I have been actively looking for something from Surly on my local classifieds. I’ve had a few deals fall through but then a few weeks ago, I saw it. A Surly Moonlander for $900 and size Large. Sweet! It’s in Edmonton. Bummer. We were in the middle of our busy busy season and me taking a day to drive to Edmonton and back just wasn’t something I could pull off. What the heck, I’m messaging the seller anyway.

Turns out, the gent was willing to meet me half way and early in the morning too.

That was 3 weeks ago, and today I got out for my 2nd ride on the bike. I’ve been working 14-16 hour days for the past 5 or 6 weeks. But man, now that I was able to get out on a rip, man I like that bike. Like, a lot.

The basic accessories I have on at the moment.

I was actually surprised how well it did going down our gravel road. I thought they would feel slower than it does. But, at almost any point, I can just drive down into the ditch and keep moshing though. Roots, fallen logs in the ditch? No problem at all. This is what I imagine it would be like to drive a monster truck. You just don’t need to think about what’s in front of you. You’re going to crush it. No matter what it is.

Even with 4.7” wide tires, not all roads are accessible

I am really looking forward to getting some good time on this bike. I have installed my 24 pack rack on it and should be set up for some coffee outside trips soon.

One quick little ride I did with my son offered him a chance to try it out. He loved it! Now, I’m hurting for some more fatties 👍

Here is a little video of me dialing in the bike and some initial impressions of riding it.