As snow begins to fall, mountain bike clubs in the area begin to groom the trails for winter riding. Many think that biking is strictly a summer weather activity, but are quite wrong. There are some people who will only ride their bikes in the winter.

With such a demand for winter riding in this area, these trail systems must control the snow buildup on the trails, and they do so very similarly to ski hills. The closest trail system around here is the Silver Lake Park Trails in Silver Lake, Wisconsin, about 30 minutes north of Grayslake. A representative of Kenosha Area Mountain Bike Association (KAMBA), the organization that takes care of these trails, said, “We have one groomer.”  

They make special trail groomers that are no wider than the typical biking trail which get pulled behind specialized vehicles made to drive over the snow. “We have 4-8 grooming volunteers depending on the day,” the KAMBA representative said.

While they only have one machine, there are other jobs that the groomers are able to take care of. The Chicago Area Mountain Bikers (CAMBr) organization out of Chicago has more trails to groom.  

 “It takes $40 to $50 per day of grooming.  These costs can add up, and the organization relies on donations from park patrons to cover the costs of the grooming machines,” a CAMBr representative said.

CAMBr reported they have 30 or so miles of trails to groom.  To successfully groom each trail they must do multiple passes so that the snow is packed down enough for the riders.  

“Each pass can take up to 3 hours,” the CAMBr representative said.

In order to groom each trail system it can take more than one whole day of grooming, which takes a large commitment from the volunteers.

Since biking in the summer and winter are very different sports, one may think that there are different leaders for each season.  

“We have a dedicated set of trail volunteers and group leaders that work the trails year-round,” said Metro Mountain Bikers, a group out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

“We recommend tires that are at least 3.8 inches wide,” said Metro Mountain Bikers. This is considered a fat bike and fat bikes can be an expensive investment. There are lots of bike shops around that will rent a fat bike for a day or more so a person can try out fat biking for themselves at these local trails.

While trails are open, they ask to make sure to adhere to all park guidelines and only ride where it feels comfortable. People need to be respectful of the trails and the people who take care of them.