Great Divide Shock/Steel/Carbon fork

[stever121051]

Looking for comments on riding the Great Divide Route
with a Steel fork v Shock v Carbon fork

Let me know how every body feels about this
People who have ridden it etc.

I just bought a 2013 Fargo 2 which has a steel fork and unless I get talked out of it I am
planning to ride the divide next summer with the steel Fork

As always I appreciate everyone's comments

Peace,

Steve Reynolds
http://www.stevesgreatdivideride.org

[sthig]

I ran a carbon Niner and it worked wonderfully

[AZTtripper]

Just second hand info here, anyway I have heard that the White Bros. Carbon is the fork of choice. Something about the front to rear flex actually being smoother on washboard then a shock fork. Not sure how much truth there is to that or if they just convince themselves of it. It's a long one for sure so shaving weight makes carbon a good choice.

[sthig]

AZT, I saw some on the Tour Divide.  I ran a whiskey 7 fork for a while and loved it but when I moved to my Niner SIR I had to get a niner fork for compatibility.  Both forks gave some but still didn't make for a comfortable ride over the washboards.

[harryonaspot]

I have 7500 miles on a Fargo steel fork. Mostly dirt including the Divide and other popular routes. worked fine for me, and the very few times I have wanted suspension would not have justified the extra expense and weight. If you want some extra cush, run a larger front tire.

[stever121051]

Hey which fargo are you riding and would you say 2.5 tires would help with cushion?

thanks

Steve Reynolds

[harryonaspot]

It was a 2009. Had On One Mary bars. I ran WTB Vulpines or similar. A 2.5" tire would add cush for sure. It also rolls slower than neccesary, though only you can know whats right for you. But the route is 75% smooth 20% washboard and maybe 5% rough trail. It all depends on the year. Riding light and setting the bike up so your weight isn"t on your hands is key. That is why I like the Alt bars. They give a more upright riding position. This sometimes takes getting used to coming off a more agresive position on a mtb. this is touring not a 3 hour Sunday ride. Long days in the saddle over and over take a different strategy.

[SlowRide]

But the route is 75% smooth 20% washboard and maybe 5% rough trail.

I'll disagree. If the route was 75% smooth for you you took a detour somewhere and weren't on the GDMBR.

[harryonaspot]

I will stick by what I said. It does depend on the year, but also the rider and what you are used to. I ride in New England. We have rocks and roots here. Lots of them. So for me, more than 2000 miles of dirt roads, unles they are just on mess of washboard, represents smooth. If I rode buff singletrack, or had a fs bike on milder trails, perhaps I would have thought it rougher. Everyone comes from a different background. I have answered threads like these and other inquiries from friends and others who are curious. I always give the same answer. Never could figure out why Adventure Cycling recommends a full suspension bike for the route.

[SlowRide]

I ride on the TDR every single day, I live directly on the TDR in Colorado, so I'd say I'm familiar enough with it and it's terrain(I have 16,000 miles logged on and around the divide on a hard tail so far in the last two years). I'd agree that a fs bike isn't needed but still would disagree that the TDR is 75% "smooth".

~edit~
I was thinking about this objectively over coffee this morning and maybe it's just the word "smooth" I'm having trouble with. I get your meaning harryonaspot, and I'm not trying to be a snit by contradicting, but I think someone who has not done the TDR before might be misled as to the difficulty when reading "75% smooth" if you get my point.

[harryonaspot]

Point taken.

[bakerjw]

Good insight SlowRide. Thanks.

I considered going with a carbon fork, mainly due to weight, for riding the upper portion of the TD route next Summer. I'm new at mountain biking, having been a roadie for the last several years, and as such am not the most experienced MTB rider around. In the end I opted to go with a front shock. Although it is a bit more weight, I feel that it will give me a little better margin for error if I take a rock, root or other unexpected object the wrong way.

[bouldernick]

I think the only reason to change your fork is if you have money burning a hole in your pocket and you want to save weight. Then get a carbon fork. Otherwise, I'd still with what you have especially as you can carry water on your fork legs.

Your tire pressure will have a larger impact on comfort than your fork. Just lobbing that out there.

[Payton MacDonald]

Steel is what I used for the Canadian and half of the Montana sections and it was great.  You'll be glad you have the bomb proofness of it . . . +1 on the tire pressure.  Makes a big difference

[c_monkeywrench]

I rode the Divide this last summer on a fully steel cross bike. There were only a few descents that were a bit rough but for the most part, it held up great. The further south I got, the more irritating the washboards were on the long fire roads, something to keep in mind.

[JefA]

I rode it this summer on steel fargo with stock steel fork. I saw several riders on steel salsa, surly steel frame fork bikes and everyone loved them. Most of the time you are hammering out long sections of dirt road. I would be more worried about the saddle. When I ride it again I will be using a thunder buster seat post. The fargo is a fast bike for the great divide. your gonna love it! oh and btw I rode the hole thing at 65 psi. I know i'm a nut job.

[ezr4d]

Wow, 65psi?!
I let so much tire pressure out in the Basin I was practically riding on the rims 

[cccniuk]

I rode the Divide this last summer on a fully steel cross bike. There were only a few descents that were a bit rough but for the most part, it held up great. The further south I got, the more irritating the washboards were on the long fire roads, something to keep in mind.

Always wondered if you could use a Cyclocross bike. And wondered if the fast boys could use one to set the record.

[HappyWanderer]

I did the divide race this year in 2014.  I have a Fargo 2013 Ti.  I have tried four forks on the bike:  A Rock Shox suspension, a Niner Carbon, the Fargo V2 and the White Brothers Rock Solid.   

I tried out a Rock Shox suspension fork while training and it was comfy but also heavy.  I also worry about durability on suspension forks,  at least one person I was riding around had their suspension fail.  As a short person I also had the bag drag problem with the suspension. 

My husband rides a niner fork and I've tried it out.  It is very light weight but feels stiffer on the medium to large bumps than the steel fork or White Brothers but absorbs the small bumps nicely. Another advantage is that it does have less brake shudder than the other two. 

I started out the race on the Fargo V2 steel fork. It was great, I liked having the H20 bottles on it and I found it fairly comfortable, but heavy.  Amazingly it failed near Steamboat; one of the dropouts came loose.  I am not an aggressive rider and weigh less than 135 lbs so I am pretty sure it was a fluke, I've never heard of this happening to anyone else.  Salsa was very good about the warranty, but I was faced with buying a new fork right away to get me going again.  The fork I was able to get in Steamboat was a White Brothers Rock Solid.  I loved it!  I noticed that it was smoother right away, less jolting on the washboards (which increase in size and frequency the farther south you go), and it held up for the remainder of the race (and is still going strong).

Overall I would go with the White Brothers if I was making the choice again.  I think it is nice and smooth and comfortable, and a good balance between weight and durability.   I like the aluminum steer tube, the carbon steer tube on the Niner makes me a little nervous, and as I learned, even a steel fork can fail.  I did miss the water bottle cages, but made it just fine without.   

[stever121051]

Hey  thanks for the info I appreciate it.

wanted to know your thoughts on the race
and how you did overall and how you felt about the experience overall

thanks

Steve