Author Archives: aklevorn

It will be interesting to see how these three different types of snow bonds together? We have the crusty base, Saturday’s wet system, snow and freezing rain and then today’s lake effect dry fluffy crap. Many thanks to Mike Reilly … Continue reading →

I made a quick pass through the School Forest at lunch before the winds get too hairy, figuring no one would go out once the winds picked up. The roller is still toast so I built up something to add … Continue reading →

Just a quick trip in this morning to run the roller over the orange loop on the south side. I put caution tape across, anyone who gets there after about 4pm today feel free to take it down. Just to … Continue reading →

I’m feeling cautiously optimistic about last night’s groom. We got enough snow where pulling the roller might’ve been a struggle so I just grabbed the big truck tire and dragged that around to mostly clear snow off the base that … Continue reading →

Bit the bullet and did an opening pass with just the sled, hooked up the roller, hit the walking trails and then went back for a second pass on 3 of the 4 bike trails. The north side of Bryant … Continue reading →

Finally enough snow to groom and now this. At least there will be a base once this storm passes. Couple of trees down I was able to drive around. Snow blowing over the Dog.

When I got back from vacation the snow was too dry to groom, and not enough of it. Now the week looks like crap weather-wise so I’m going to hold off grooming until maybe the weekend. Such is winter fatbike … Continue reading →

Went out again this morning, a little tougher than last night. Still just pulling a truck tire. Lotta snow out there. We’re going to try and go ride it in this afternoon if the wind doesn’t get too insane. Should … Continue reading →

I groomed tonight ahead of whatever storm is coming overnight in the morning, we’ll see how that snow pans out and maybe tomorrow will be rideable. Maybe tonight was just a maintenance groom to make it easier the next time. … Continue reading →

Got a full pass on most of the walking trails and all the bike trails. Should be soft, but rideable tonight. Low tire pressure for the first few laps will help. Got some signs up but before I even got … Continue reading →

I was on vacation last week during the big storm so I missed last week grooming but I made up for it today. Thanks to whoever hiked all of the trails on the south side of Bryant. That was very … Continue reading →

We’ll see what happens with this groom? I probably should’ve got out last night when there was a little more moisture, but I think it was too sloppy? It’s definitely cold enough to set up. And we’re supposed to get … Continue reading →

What could go wrong grooming at lunch on Friday the 13th. Not much actually, got stuck on a few downed trees and took a whopper of a tree branch to the face but other than that it went pretty well. … Continue reading →

First off, the cross country skiing is fantastic. The snow is somewhat of a challenge to groom, but I’m gonna head out at lunch and try and repair all the hiker damage, put up some signs, and at least repair … Continue reading →

A first pass has been made on all of the riding trails in the Ludington school forest and some parts of the disc golf course, I plan to go out with the roller this evening and finish it off, and … Continue reading →

I looked at the weather and almost didn’t go out. But on the off chance that we get some more snow Sunday Monday I wanted to have something laid down. There wasn’t a ton of snow out there and I … Continue reading →

Trails are awesome. I hereby proclaim this the week of fatbiking. Thanks to those that rode in my groom from last night.

The walking trails are rolled. I made it through everything but the northern loop on the south side with just the sled. If anyone wants to snowshoe that it might be passable with the roller. Might be rideable by Monday … Continue reading →

All the walking and biking trails done. Didn’t venture into disc golf. Feet too cold. Should be good for the week.

We’re ready for snow. In case you’re wondering why Big M wasn’t groomed last week with all the snow they got, A > It’s firearm deer season, we like to give hunters these two weeks to do their thing, we … Continue reading →

Conditions seemed like they warranted grooming last night so off I went. It seemed like there was enough snow to cover the ice from the past few weeks of rain and then it got really cold overnight it is currently … Continue reading →

I got out and groomed yesterday afternoon, we usually try and groom after dark, but life sometimes gets in the way, so I went out mid-day. That being said, if you’re riding anywhere and you see grooming operations underway, the … Continue reading →

We got enough snow to make it worthwhile to go in and touch up all the trails we have a pretty solid base on the biking trails The walking trails were pretty chewed up so I added some extra weight … Continue reading →

We made it through the thaw. Trail is the stuff of dreams. That is all.

Trails are in good shape, almost no hiker incursions, in fact footprints up to some signs and then tracks off to the side of the track. Amazing! Thank you very much. We have one biker, not sure who it is, … Continue reading →

Did a full reset on walking and fat bike trails last night. Groomers rarely get to say this, but it was a nearly perfect evening on the groomer. Three minor issues, all operator error, going new places I shouldn’t have … Continue reading →

Got in a full pass on all bike trails and walking trails last night and finally got signs up to education both riders and walkers about A – Lowering tire pressure and B – Helping stay off bike trails with … Continue reading →

Groomed everything I could get my hands on. Too much snow to pull roller so just used sled. Even my ski contraption was too much. I would go first thing. As it’s going to be soft I bet with the … Continue reading →

I got the snow dog out for the first time this year and laid down some corduroy for everyone. 4” Tires or greater please 3 to 4 pounds of air pressure will probably be the key with his first groom.

There are at least four sets of tracks in the school forest trail system in Ludington right now and the riding was actually pretty good. We’ll see what kind of snow we get on top of the two or 3 … Continue reading →

I got out for a quick ride at lunch to give everybody an update on the trails in Ludington, Michigan and overall they are very, very good. Cartier Park had a couple of slick spots, no mud necessarily, and I … Continue reading →

It looks like a lot of the ice is gone from the trail some of it still exists. Fat tire bikes are probably fine as always if you’re leaving a rot in mud that leaves damage which we have to … Continue reading →

We decided not to groom last night as it was too warm and just would have pressed all the water together and made ice when it froze. And then it stayed 40 all night. Trails will probably not be rideable … Continue reading →

We’re at the point of the season where we have to look pretty hard at the forecast before we groom, and before we ride. I didn’t groom last night as I knew today was going to be warm, and we’ve … Continue reading →

Looks like we’re skiing again! Just kidding. But we did get about 4 inches of fluffy white snow which might be rideable with the base we had on Thursday. It’s supposed to snow more overnight and I’ll try and get … Continue reading →

Trail is in great shape, some minor hiker intrusion on the north side where hikers are coming out of the church property onto the trails to make a loop. We might have to create a hiking trail in there next … Continue reading →

Knocked down another five or 6 inches of fresh powder from Saturday afternoon’s groom this evening. Had to abandon the roller after the Smallest Loop, South of Bryant and continue with the ski abomination on the bottom of the ice … Continue reading →

I groomed late in the day Saturday, knowing that we’d get snow overnight. And we did. There’s about 4″ of fluffy snow over a pretty solid base. The trails should be rideable, but they are way better ski trails at … Continue reading →

Post work edit. We got about 3″ of really fluffy snow this afternoon and it looks like it’s going to snow for the next 24 hours or so, conditions might not be all that great until Sunday morning. Let us … Continue reading →

I’ve been wanting to try the SnowDog with the roller we built for the Rokon. It’s a beast, but does a really nice job on the trail, so I knew there wouldn’t be much traffic out on Sunday, pretty cold, … Continue reading →

Got done about 12:30, trail should set up for after work riding. Gonna be cold though…

Got the SnowDog tuned up and man was it awesome. I hit the many of the walking trails with two passes to smooth them out and did a full pass of all the SFT Fat Bike trails. They were in … Continue reading →

Managed a full pass with the Rokon and roller (half the weight), not my first choice of weapon for the fluffy snow we had but we’re still struggling with the SnowDog and ignition. Grrr. Trail should be good, but the … Continue reading →

I managed to get out with the Rokon and the roller last night before the temps dropped to smooth out all the walking trails in the SFT proper, and I think that with the drop in temps to 19 degrees … Continue reading →

I took a little extended lunch break and groomed about 10 miles of fat bike and walking trails in the Ludington school forest today. I don’t normally groom in the daytime it doesn’t generally have enough time to set up … Continue reading →

Trail held up well this week. Only frozen footprints on the north side. And they weren’t too bad. Rest of trails super fun.

With temperatures hovering at freezing or above this week please take care when riding the trails that anyone grooms really. From Marquette to Grand Rapids we’re trying to hold on to our base until some more snow is in the … Continue reading →

Still experimenting with the snow dog so I went out and did a hot lap just pulling a large truck tire. We will see how that works. Just a reminder to Riders new to the sport, we appreciate fat bikes … Continue reading →

All the trails, hiking and biking, got at least one pass. Snow Dog ran great, right up until the end and then some fuel line popped off. Didn’t burst into flames, yet. And is parked WAY out back… Here’s a … Continue reading →

The picture is from Saturday, but we just got another 2 inches of fluffy powder (ungroomable) but three of us are riding at 8:30 this morning, so that should pack it down pretty good and it’s supposed to stay cold … Continue reading →

Seeing Erin’s post about Big M and just having walked a section of the SFT (and deciding that it needs to be ridden ASAP) I thought I’d chime in about the Ludington conditions as well. Trail looks to be mostly … Continue reading →

I think mornings will be the best option for the next two days, then we get some snow and some cold and should be back in business. I think everyone that got out this weekend, especially at Big M, enjoyed … Continue reading →

After last night’s snow and tomorrow’s dropping temperatures I decided to go out and do a quick groom of the school forest walking and biking trails. They should set up perfectly overnight with 2 to 4 days of magnificent riding … Continue reading →

I went out Sunday night and tuned up the walking trails, all of them, for the hikers and skiers. our trails, with the exception of the outer loop on the north side were in pretty fine shape all weekend after … Continue reading →

Mike Reilly and I got all the groomers, the Ludington-based groomers, repaired on Friday, went to a fabulous Valentine’s Day/birthday party, and of course I went out to groom.As it turns out a couple of beers and a couple of … Continue reading →

Well I started with good intentions… Tracksled broke down about 20 minutes in to the groom, we’re looking at it at lunch. Just got inner loop of north side done. Went to get Rokon, got through the walking trails and … Continue reading →

The biking trails of the Ludington school forest were groomed last night, it didn’t get quite as cold as it was supposed to but it should still be rideable and any and all bike traffic will certainly help the situation. … Continue reading →

All of the SFT trails got a groom of one sort or another. Some got the roller, some got just the ice fishing sled and some got the pan. It didn’t get as cold as it was supposed to, but … Continue reading →

Joe Sanders took his first laps on the tracksled today. Grooming the walking trails of the SFT south side. I took the Rokon and a tire and cleaned up the hiking tracks and posted some signs at lunch. It should … Continue reading →

I got all of the singletrack trail’s a path through the disc off and I did a bunch of the walking trails as well with the track sled. It’s currently blowing 3o knots outside so we’ll see what develops but … Continue reading →

We didn’t get quite enough snow to groom but we got the perfect amount to ride in again. There are at least three sets of tracks through the school forest trails and Memorial tree and at least two sets of … Continue reading →

Four riders laid down tracks in the Ludington SFT trail system today in prep for tomorrow’s Wednesday night ride. It is supposed to stay below freezing and there is a potential for some more snow so the Ludington school forest … Continue reading →

I’m sure we’ll get one or two more blasts of winter after spring break, so we might be able to groom something up for a short period. But for now, I think we’re done… And the beach isn’t all that … Continue reading →

SFT is amazing and should stay consistent until noon or so on Saturday. Literally the best trail since we’ve been grooming. Park downtown and enter trail at A on this map. Only the trails in the SFT are groomed, the … Continue reading →

Hopefully we don’t get a bunch of snow tonight. Got around most of trails with roller ’til I broke hitch on the ice fishing sled. Then I had to go get tires to finish.

Waiting for the blizzard to die down to see what happened out in the woods during the latest Polar Vortex-like blast. We sure had a great weekend though. Hope everyone got a chance to get out while they were so … Continue reading →

All of the school forest trails at this point are dialed in, five stars, fantastic. We are however of course supposed to get 1 to 3 inches of snow tonight which should be fine to ride in Saturday morning.

$20 bucks at Briggs and the groomer was back in action. Did all the bike trails and most of the walking trails before I smiled clutch two. Some poor soul rode the entire system on what appeared to be a … Continue reading →

Well my best efforts to groom 5.2 miles of trail for my brother’s 52 birthday ended when the bold holding the sled to the groomer snapped as I crossed Bryant Road this morning, .5 miles into my grooming run. So … Continue reading →

Got out and groomed everything with the tracksled and two tires while it was warm. Should set up nicely for the weekend. 2-3 pounds of air and you should be good. Happy Valentine’s Day.

Just laid down a set of tracks so that when the snow stops there is a recent track to go through.

We’re chomping at the bit to go ride ourselves and enjoy the trails, here’s an update. We’ve spent all week getting the trails back into shape after the big storm. Skiing, tracksledding, snowshoeing and now we have Dave out with … Continue reading →

We are slowly opening up the Ludington School Forest trails, both hiking and biking trails. We might get them open before the rain comes, but then we’ll have to close them again. Nothing is rideable at this point. Might try … Continue reading →

Killer grooming session tonight. In a good way. Got 100% groomed. Rescued roller and smoothed out most of the walking trails with 50# of weight in the pan. Then Got around north side with the roller and 20# pounds so … Continue reading →

Update – The groomer is back in action, and everything has been groomed with the exception of the northern section of the orange loop. Most everything the southern section of the north south through trail is also not been groomed, … Continue reading →

Everything but the two southern loops, the loops south of Bryant, have been groomed. I’m not sure how it will set up, the snow was really weird of course, but it’s better than nothing. And we’re supposed to get a … Continue reading →

Trail is in pretty fair shape. There are some patches of ice, very limited, but they do catch you by surprise. The balance is thin snow or dirt. Very rideable, 3.75 out of five stars.

Ludington School Forest is amazing right now. Just enough snow to smooth it out. With temps rising to above freezing right now rides before noon are probably your way bet. That pic is from Tuesday, we rode in another 3” … Continue reading →

I set tracks through the Ludington school forest and the disc golf this morning. The trails didn’t get as much snow as the roads, I think most of that stuck to the trees, but there is an inch to 2 … Continue reading →

Ludington received about 3 inches of snow Thursday night and a group of seven or eight of us road in the SFT loops. The trail Saturday morning should be fantastic. Hopefully we continue to get couple inches of snow per … Continue reading →

Looks like the groomer 2.0 for the Ludington School Forest is ready. Apparently it’s shorter and a little lighter. Excited.

Thanks to the efforts of many of the members of the Shoreline Cycling Club, our section of the NCT in Lake, Mason and Manistee Counties is open.  A quick tally of man-hours driving home last night, purely a guess, but … Continue reading →

I thought I was done grooming, guess not… The Ludington School Forest Trails, with the exception of the Orange Loop, and a TON of disc golf were groomed this morning. We’ll ride in the Orange Loop tonight and then if … Continue reading →

Should be free of ice pretty soon, then, a couple days to dry out and that’s it. Thanks everyone that used the trails this winter we only had one instance of riders riding when they shouldn’t, but I think those … Continue reading →

Kudos to the folks in Ludington. Everyone knew well enough to stay off the trails Wednesday and Thursday. I put a fine tooth comb to the slush that was the Ludington School Forest trail system last night. It should set … Continue reading →

Trails are awesome. I think we’ll be fine through this little thaw Wed and Thurs, just might not be able to ride in the late afternoons. Thursday afternoon might be sketchy, just go with 2-3 PSI to start and if … Continue reading →

First full run with new track sled. Trails closed now. But should be good Monday after work.

At lunch yesterday I threw a frame around an ice fishing sled we had as a groomer a while back, it’s been in my garage as we’ve not had a winter like this since we started grooming operations. The idea … Continue reading →

It is amazing what just pulling a truck tire around trails with a solid base can do. I was the first one around so, the first pass was soft but very rideable. When I went back over my tracks for … Continue reading →

Brutal grooming session tonight, all I could pull, after getting stuck twice with groomer in the first 100 yards, was the truck tire. So I got around the trails with that, moving the snow off. Hopefully that will set up … Continue reading →

It’s kind of killing me not to groom the Ludington School Forest this morning but the snow is really grainy and it would not set up by the time people would probably start riding it. So, dust off your XC … Continue reading →

I went over the Ludington school forest trails with a variety of grooming apparati. When it freezes tonight it should be pretty good there are several spots that are glare ice, so studded tires, if you have them, would be … Continue reading →

Looking at the forecast I do not know that there will be any grooming done this week in the Ludington school forest. It looks like Riders have stayed off the trails during this thaw for the most part, the few … Continue reading →

All trails groomed last night, and I hit the walking trails as hard as I could, but they are still very rough from walking. It looks like there is a two day warm up in the future this weekend so … Continue reading →

I went out late last night and groomed the Ludington school forest walking trails with the drag to try and knock down some of the footprints, the biking trails were very good so I didn’t do much of them. I … Continue reading →

Ludington trails are pretty good there may be a little icy in spots and there’s a dusting of snow or whatever’s belief that the crossed but they are totally rideable

I’m going to head out at lunch and see what’s up. It looks like people stayed off them for the most part. We could use the higher end 3″ of the snow that’s in the forecast, so a little snow … Continue reading →

It’s our groomers worst nightmare, a brief warm spell after weeks of below freezing temps. Read about warm weather riding tips from our friends at the NMMBA.

The best I can say about the Ludington school forest trails is that I hope the beach is rideable. The Ludington school forest trails are closed. Probably until Friday, I was in there at lunch with the Rokon and couldn’t … Continue reading →

Three of us ride in my last trip around with tire and Rokon and the first lap was a little sketchy but the second laps were good. Dave is currently out there with snowmobile and the stag doing disc golf … Continue reading →